Mpumelelo Bernice Mjekelo: Empowering Youth Voices Through Poetry and Storytelling

Mpumelelo Bernice Mtjekelo is an activator who founded and manages Spoken and Unspoken Word (Pty) Ltd, which is a creative arts company she established in 2019 and is located in Bloemfontein, Free State. Driven by her passion for literature and youth development, Mpumelelo has created a platform that uses poetry and storytelling to help young people discover their voices, build confidence, and express themselves creatively.

What is Spoken and Unspoken Word?

Spoken and Unspoken Word is a creative arts company that focuses on poetry and storytelling in schools across the Free State province. Mpumelelo’s workspace is at Motheo TVET College, Centre for Entrepreneurship and Rapid Incubator, where she is recognized as a supporting external SMME.

Through poetry and storytelling, the company is dedicated to using literary arts to develop learners’ confidence, creativity, and communication skills. Spoken and Unspoken Word helps learners strengthen important academic and personal development skills such as public speaking, self-expression, critical thinking, and performance confidence. Through the impact that the company has showcased, it has afforded Mpumelelo the ability to also work with local schools, such as Kamohelo Primary School and Headstart High School, where she delivers literary arts programmes to learners studying Creative Arts as a subject.

A breakdown of Mpumelelo’s sessions

Each session is carefully designed to encourage participationa nd build learner confidence. Workshops begin with an engaging ice-breaker activity, helping learners feel comfortable and ready to participate. The sessions then move into creative workshops and facilitated learning experiences, delivered in collaboration with schools and project partners. Here, learners actively participate in poetry writing, storytelling exercises, performance preparation, and artistic expression activities.

As part of the poetry facilitation process, Mpumelelo uses her original audio poetry content titled Reflections of a Broken Mirror, which serves as a teaching and reflection tool during workshops. She also incorporates rehearsal and performance techniques inspired by her artistic training at Mnabana Cultural Centre during her primary school years in Thaba Nchu.

Learners are recognised and rewarded for their participation through branded t-shirts sponsored by partners such as The Rivonia Circle and Activate Change Drivers, as well as certificates and pre-owned books, including poetry and short story collections.

Showcasing and Community Impact

Beyond classroom workshops, recognizing learner participation is an important part of the company. To achieve this, Spoken and Unspoken Word also hosts showcases and competitions that give learners the opportunity to present their work publicly. Even though the work shared publicly is to expose the learners’ work to the greater public, it is done with the consent of their parents/guadians. The project is a success and has received media coverage in publications such as Issue Newspaper, which helps highlight its growing contribution to youth development through the use of art.

Outstanding participants receive:

• Certificates of recognition
• Pre-owned poetry or short story books
• Public recognition for their creative achievements.

All highlights are shared through its digital platforms, including:

YouTube: Spoken and Unspoken Word http://www.youtube.com/@spokenandunspokenword

Facebook: Spoken and Unspoken Word/Mpumelelo Mjikelo

A Success Story

Thandolwethu Mbalo, a 2023 Activator born in the Eastern Cape and raised in Bloemfontein, first met Nompumelelo through the A! Roadshow. What began as a chance encounter soon developed into a meaningful connection.

Following the roadshow, Nompumelelo invited Thandolwethu to an event that brought together artists from across the province of the Free State. The experience exposed her to the work of the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture and provided valuable insight into opportunities available within the creative sector. Most importantly, the event gave her the chance to network with local artists, exchange contacts, and begin building relationships that could lead to future collaborations for her own upcoming events.

For Thandolwethu, the connection demonstrated the power of the Activator network—not only in creating opportunities for learning but also in opening doors to partnerships that can help young people grow their impact within their communities.

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About the Author:

Londiwe Mnguni is an activated young person passionate about community development and social change, with a deep commitment to contributing meaningfully to initiatives that empower and uplift communities.