In just three months of the JSE/Liberty Investment Challenge getting underway, the Eastern Cape is being put on the map with a school from the province taking a spot in the April edition of the financial literacy competition.

Representing the Eastern Cape, is the “Natural Winners – MDA” from Sandisiwe High School in East London
 
Representing the Eastern Cape, is the “Natural Winners – MDA” from Sandisiwe High School in East London. Led by teacher, Thabo Nkonkoto Gcisa, the team managed to grow their income to an impressive R8, 042.40 in the Income Portfolio. “We are proud to be representing the Eastern Cape as winners for the month of April. This is only the beginning and we hope to go from strength to strength in the months to come,” Nkonkoto Gcisa expressed.

Kwa-Zulu Natal schools are also making their winning intentions clear with Eden College Durban and Maritzburg College taking top spots in the Speculator and Equity portfolios respectively. First time winners this year, “Eden Securities” of Eden College Durban, achieved a growth of 8.73% in the high risk Speculator portfolio. “The team has been working extremely hard over the past couple of months. This win is a clear indication of the efforts they continue to pour into the competition. I’m very proud of the determination they are showing,” said their teacher and mentor, Phyllis Welsch.
 
“The JSE Education Department is pleased to announce the April winners of the Investment Challenge. A high standard of performance is being set in the early stages of the competition with learners achieving great results thus far. We urge learners to stay committed, continue to work hard and encourage their peers to enter. Best of luck to all learners for the rest of the Investment Challenge,” says Senior Investment Challenge Co-ordinator, Idris Seedat.
 
All boys’ school, Maritzburg College is no strangers to the winners’ podium. For the second time in this year’s round they have been top contenders in the Equity portfolio. This time the “Genius Investors Are Back” team achieved a growth of 6.85%. They are led by teacher, Jean Van Heeswijk, who is thrilled with his pupils’ performance so far. “We’ve gotten off to a great start, and are determined to once again make our mark on this exciting competition,” he said.
 
The four students in each of these teams have earned themselves R500 for best performance in their respective portfolios. A further R500 has been awarded to their school as well as another R500 for their teacher or mentor. At the end of the competition, five prizes amounting to R60 000 per portfolio will be awarded to the overall winners of the Income, Equity Growth and Speculator Portfolios. Additionally, the teams from around SA will get a glimpse into celeb life by being treated to a VIP experience of an all-expenses-paid trip to Johannesburg for the glamorous awards ceremony, which is held at the JSE every year.
 
According to Julian Dallamore, Brand Manager at Liberty Retail SA Marketing, “It has been great to see the results learners have achieved thus far in the competition. This shows that the youth want to be empowered with the financial skills that will assist them in planning their future. We look forward to seeing more learners participating in the Investment Challenge.”
 
The JSE/Liberty Investment Challenge is the largest financial literacy initiative in South Africa with the aim to educate high school learners and university students on the ins and outs of trading on the stock market.  The competition runs until the end of September and is open to all learners from any South African high school. Students from universities and independent colleges are also eligible to participate. Income (low risk), Equity Growth (moderate risk) and Speculator (high risk) are three of the risk portfolios from which high school learners can choose to compete while university students can only compete in the Speculator Portfolio. All school entrants must be in teams of four and have to be supervised by a teacher or mentor. University teams must consist of a minimum of two members and a maximum of four.
 
To register, each team will be required to pay a fee of R120 per team per portfolio entered for schools and R150 per team for universities. To find out more visit the JSE/Liberty Investment Challenge website: http://schools.jse.co.za orhttp://university.jse.co.za and the new interactive mobisite: http://schools.jse.co.za/mobile or http://university.jse.co.za/mobileor contact the Investment Challenge Co-ordinators on (+27)11 – 520 7116/ 7344/ 7168. For further information, registration forms and interaction visit the Facebook and Twitter pages