College of Science, Engineering & Technology

Top engineering student receives SACMA award

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Kgariri Benny Magolego from the Department of Mining Engineering in the College of Science, Engineering and Technology was recently recognised as a top achieving student in Coal Mining Engineering at the South African Colliery Managers’ Association (SACMA) Annual General Meeting Awards held on 25 February 2022 at the Country Club, Johannesburg. His hard work and perseverance have earned him a merit award as a Top Coal Mining Engineering student for 2021 from the University of South Africa (Unisa). The merit certificate was accompanied by prize money to the value of R2 500.

Kgariri Benny Magolego

SACMA is an organisation representing eight mining houses and some small operators, with 43 operations in four provinces. The organisation helps in transferring knowledge of coal industry practices between current and future members. SACMA is also recognised by the Engineering Council of South Africa as a voluntary association which provides influence in terms of the accreditation of learning materials and institutions.

Born in 1990 at Glen Cowie Township near Jane Furse in Limpopo, Magolego matriculated at Matshumane Secondary School in 2007. Immediately after completing matric, he tried to look for job opportunities in the Steelpoort area, with no success. This setback encouraged him to pursue studies in mining in order to be marketable in the mining industry. He started his National Diploma in Mine Surveying at Unisa in 2009 and completed it in 2013. During this time, he also assisted in tutoring mine survey modules for students.

During 2012 and 2013, he obtained practical experience at Glencore coal mines. From 2013 to 2014, he held the position of surveyor at Nkomati Nickel Mine, where he gained open-pit and underground survey experience. From 2014 to 2017, he was a senior surveyor at Petra Diamonds Kimberley Underground Mines, where he gained invaluable underground experience in cave mining.

Magolego also worked on a project at Palabora Mining Lift II to gain valuable experience in a project environment and is currently a senior surveyor at Glencore Coal. Here, his exposure to mine scheduling, design and planning have encouraged him to enrol for Unisa’s Advanced Diploma in Mining Engineering in 2020.

One of the major challenges that he faced during his further studies was being hospitalised between November 2020 and February 2021. Consequently, he was unable to write his exams and failed the supplementary exam in February. However, this misfortune did not demoralise Magolego, as he still wishes to continue with his postgraduate studies in either Project Management or Business Administration.

If he is not underground or finding ways to improve his knowledge, you will find Magolego watching soccer, reading books, and travelling around the country.

* By Lesego Maloka, Administrative Assistant, College of Science, Engineering and Technology

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Publish date: 2022-03-02 00:00:00.0

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