In 2010 in Hessequa Municipality, Riversdale Ukrainian museum was opened where you can see some traditional clothing, cultural artifacts, mural from Crimea and history of Ukrainian -South African cooperation between Hessequa and Voznesensk Municipalities.

The story of this cooperation has started in 2004 when Mayer of Riversdale Chris Taute and Mayer of Voznesenk Yuriy Gerzhov met at the conference in Poland. Two strong leaders saw the potential for cooperation and signed twinning partnership between Voznesensk and Hessequa. In 2007 this partnership gave birth to the “”HaQua Youth Programme” that later was renamed into “International Leadership Programme”. The Programme is an annual event and takes place interchangeably in South Africa and Ukraine. As result, over 200 Ukrainians has visited South Africa and the other way around.

The International Leadership Program focused on teaching Ukrainian and South African delegates about history, culture, languages, people and traditions of each other. In South Africa the programme is run by the Good to Share Leadership Foundation and managed by Christopher Taute. In Ukraine the programme is ran by Voznesensk Municipality and managed by the three organisers, Mrs Inna Slavich, Mrs Tatyana Tereshchenko, and Mrs Liudmyla Momotenko.

In 2010 Liudmyla Momotenko in cooperation with South Africans who visited Ukraine has arranged majority of the exhibit and the museum was opened with the support of Ukrainian Embassy to South Africa.

Inside the museum there is a beautiful mural of the famous castle in Crimea Swallow’s Nest (Lastivyine Gnizdo) made by late local artist Compion Saayman after his trip to Ukraine. A special place in the museum is a stone of love that was presented by the mayer of Vosnesensk to the museum. As it turned out years of cooperation has led to few successful marriages and now South African-Ukrainian families are living both in Ukraine and South Africa.

In March 2015, the mural depicting children from South Africa and Ukraine as well as their home town landscapes was created on one of the walls in the Museum.

Similar to Riversdale, there is also a permanent exhibition of the South African Culture at the Kibrik Museum of Graphics in Voznesensk, in the Mykolayiv Region. In addition there is a library of English literature and English Club created at the Voznesensk School #6. For his support of international cooperation between Ukraine and South Africa Chris Taute was honored with the Diploma of Honor by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.

The Riversdale Museum is located in Ha Qua Youth Centre and is available for visitors by previous arrangement with Good to Share Leadership Foundation  Chris Taute (Chair)  083 298 3349

International Leadership Programme 2018 allowed 11 delegates from Ukraine to visit South Africa. More photos and feedback of participants about the programme are available here:

International Leadership Programme 5-18 July 2017 took place in Ukraine and 10 delegates participated.