Funds raised from the sale of NFTs help keep at least 35 South African students in school through part and fully funded scholarships.
The NFT adoption continues to catch on in Africa, even as non-crypto related institutions now use it for various reasons, including charity. A South African school has turned to digital collectibles to help facilitate the school’s scholarship programme.
In Greyton, South Africa, Greyton House Village School minted its first collection of NFTs in February 2022 and has already sold eight pieces. The most recent sale went for $300 on OpenSea. The proceeds from the sales are used to keep children in school, with over 35 students benefitting from the initiative.
School Sells Student Artwork As NFT To Support Scholarship Fund
Greyton School is selling artwork created by students who have given their consent for the items to be sold for a good cause. Each item is crafted on paper using mixed media and then scanned and minted on OpenSea. Furthermore, one of the school’s parents, a blockchain developer, assists in creating the artworks on the Opensea platform.
Marli Hoffman, the school’s principal, is hopeful for more sales which he believes will help the school support more children. He also believes that the initiative will help the trajectory of the community through the education of more students. He said,
“The more NFTs we sell, the more children we can support with scholarships and reduce the waiting list for applications. The only way to change the trajectory of poverty in our country from the bottom up is through education.”
Furthermore, Hoffman revealed the first few artworks sold for $250 each, or around 0.1 ETH. The amount is equivalent to a month’s school expenses for one Greyton House kid. The school intends to continue adding to its NFT collection and has added a 5% royalty on all future NFT sales. This is meant to earn passive income for the scholarship fund.
The ongoing use of NFT for charity is just one of several success stories of the NFT boom in Africa. Recently, there has been increased attention to the space following the sale of the Ghanian pallbearers NFT for $1 million. Also, the virality of the Nigerian corp member’s kind gesture to an elderly man has seen more attention given to NFTs.
NFT Volume Skyrockets Across Top Ecosystems In The Last 30 days
The boom in NFT adoption across Africa has coincided with an increase in NFT traded volume across top networks in the last month. Data from Cryptoslam show that the top three NFT chains have seen a double-digit increase in trading volume in the last 30 days.
Source: Cryptoslam
According to the data, Ethereum continues to dominate the NFT scene. It has recorded over $2.5 billion in NFT sales and a 33.08% increase in volume. Impressively, Solana ranked second has performed the best among the top three posting a 63.11% rise in trading volume in the past month. The reason for its strong performance may be closely linked with its integration with OpenSea.
Rounding out the top three is Avalanche, with a 15.72% increase in trade volume and over $55 million in sales. However, a look further down the list shows that the Ronin network is still reeling from the effect of its recent hack. Trade volume on the Ethereum sidechain is down by 48.03%.
Interestingly, the best performers happen to be the Binance Smart Chain and Chronos network. Both ecosystems have posted triple digits increase in trade volume over the last month. The BSC has recorded a 252.59% rise while Chronos has grown by 109.11%
Do you think the soaring popularity of NFTs in Africa is sustainable in the long run? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Chris is a crypto enthusiast and a firm believer in the blockchain’s ability to create a new financial paradigm. Through writing, Chris hopes to expose the intricacies of this disruptive technology and how it is beneficial to Africans and developing countries. He aims to give readers a rational and unbiased outlook of the industry by equipping them with the necessary information to make enlightened investment decisions.
