"I only dreamt of flying to the UK, but I never thought it would actually happen to me one day," exclaimed the joyous Ntsieni Thabela (20), a University of Venda BCom student before he flew to the UK last week.

Thabela, of Shayandima near Thohoyandou, is the latest recipient of the Abe Bailey Trust Visiting Scholarship. The presentation of the scholarship took place at the University of Venda on Tuesday last week.

The scholarship is awarded to students with distinctive leadership skills, outstanding academic achievements and dedication in community involvement.

The deputy registrar of the University of Venda, Mr Humphrey Mugwedi, said the university was very pleased to produce an intelligent student like Thabela who could match the international academic standard. Mugwedi said he believed that Thabela would be a role model to his friends and fellow students.

"You received this award as a result of hard work and we are very proud of you. We have no doubt that you will represent us well in the UK because we have trust in you. We know that you will be our ambassador and show the whole world that South Africans are also capable of competing with the rest of the world."

Although very happy but a bit nervous, Thabela said it took a lot of effort for him to be selected for the award. "I achieved all this through the Lord’s guidance. Everyone here should be rest assured that I will never disappoint them. I will proudly carry the pride of Univen, Limpopo and South Africa and I will work hard to show the sponsors that they did not waste their money."

His jubilant father, Samuel Thabela, said they had never expected something like this in their family, but they were very proud of his achievements. "We know that he is a hard worker and this is obviously a breakthrough, which will lay a solid foundation in his life."