• Codeta taxi chairman Vuyani Dyantyi donated groceries to matric learners at Echibini Secondary School in Lady Frere to help them during exams.
• The taxi boss previously donated school uniforms to struggling learners and wants the taxi industry to do more for poor communities.

A Cape Town taxi boss has stepped in to make sure matric learners at a rural Eastern Cape school do not write their final exams on empty stomachs.

Vuyani Dyantyi, chairman of the Codeta Somerset taxi route in Makhaza, Khayelitsha, donated groceries to Echibini Secondary School in Lady Frere to support learners preparing for their exams.

Dyantyi said he wanted learners to focus on passing matric instead of worrying about where their next meal would come from.

“It is important for us in the taxi industry, especially Codeta, to give back to the communities. I donated food for matriculants so that no learner would write exams on an empty stomach,” he said.

He said the only thing learners should worry about is studying.

This is not the first time Dyantyi has helped struggling learners.

Earlier this year, he donated school uniforms to other schools in Lady Frere after seeing children walking to school in damaged shoes.

He said he also wanted to change how people viewed the taxi industry by showing that taxi operators cared about their communities.

Dyantyi said many rural families struggled to provide basic needs for their children, especially those depending on social grants.

He said some families ran out of food before the next grant payment and had no choice but to wait until the following month.

“I am not doing this because I have money, but I am doing this because I know that there are families who need assistance,” he said.

He promised to continue helping other schools, saying even small donations could make a difference.

Echibini Secondary School principal Unathi Gunya said the groceries arrived when the school needed help most.

“He caught us at a very difficult time for those groceries. He met us at a point of need,” said Gunya.

The school runs study camps for matric learners, which often require parents to contribute money.

Gunya said the donated food would help reduce the pressure on families, with the school adding more groceries where needed.

Parent Zingiswa Dikwana, 50, said many parents survived on temporary jobs and struggled to pay for their children’s school activities.

“We do everything for our kids. When the school needs money for our kids’ camps, we try to get the money because we know education is important. Dyantyi saved us,” she said.

Dyantyi hopes his donation will encourage other taxi operators and businesses to support learners, especially those in rural communities.

He believes every child deserves a fair chance to succeed, regardless of their family’s financial situation.