Youth Month allows Engen to reflect on the ongoing assistance it provides gifted South Africans, like Inga Sityata, who is fast developing into a business leader of tomorrow via the company’s graduate development programme.
The son of a domestic worker, Sityata grew up in Mqanduli and later moved to Dutywa.
He attended Mangqobe Junior Secondary School, residing with an uncle, before moving on to Nomaka Mbeki Technical Senior Secondary School, from where he matriculated in 2013.
Sityata credits both his mother and uncle for emphasising the importance of education, despite having little formal education of their own.
“From an early age I grew up admiring educated, successful people, and I valued self-development and continuous improvement,” said Sityata.
“Coming from a poor, rural area, I knew that education was the only way that I could change my circumstances.”
With three degrees from Cape Peninsula Technical University tucked firmly under his belt, Sityata has certainly used the power of knowledge to change the course of his life.
Moving to Cape Town after matric, despite not knowing anyone, he completed a National Diploma in internal auditing in 2016 and followed it up with a Bachelor of Technology in internal auditing in 2017. Not one to rest on his laurels, Sityata recently graduated with a master’s degree.
It was while completing his MA in 2019 that he was accepted into the Engen Graduate Development Programme. This allowed him to gain valuable experience in various areas of the business at the company’s corporate headquarters in Cape Town, including in the Engen Enterprise risk and assurance division.
“My greatest challenge was balancing my time between work and studies, but I live by Friedrich Nietzsche’s philosophy, which states that ‘He who has a ‘why’ to live, can bear almost any ‘how’.”
Hence, Sityata’s advice to young South Africans this Youth Month is as follows: “You need to understand what your end goal is.
“Coming from an underprivileged background, I knew that the odds were stacked against me, but I was determined to become the first matriculant in my family and the first university graduate to demonstrate to those after me what is possible.
“I wanted to help change my family situation and inspire others – because anything is possible when you know your why.”
Sityata said that in moments of stress or pressure, he always tried to pause and look back on all he has achieved despite his circumstances.
“I am grateful to Engen for believing in my capabilities and offering me a unique platform on the graduate development programme to learn and gain experience,” he said.
