A full-circle moment for humanitarian Sweet

Giving a sweet to a young boy at shul every Friday might seem like a small gesture, but for Martin Sweet, those treats came with lessons that would shape his life’s work. Decades later, the boy who received those sweets and words of wisdom from the late humanitarian giant Bertie Lubner has been honoured with the Bertie Lubner Humanitarian Award in honour of Chief Rabbi Cyril Harris at the 2026 Investec Jewish Achiever Awards. 

For Sweet, founder of Primestars and group chief executive of Prime Impact Holdings, the recognition carries a significance that extends well beyond his professional achievements. 

“I’m deeply honoured and humbled by this recognition. To receive an award from my own community is profoundly meaningful, but to receive one associated with a man I admired and, in many ways, wanted to emulate makes it even more special.” 

Sweet’s encounters with Lubner at shul left a lasting impression. “Every Friday he would give me a sweet. But the sweet was never just a sweet. Somehow, Bertie would turn it into a lesson about life, challenging me to hold myself to higher standards and to do more for others.” 

Lubner would remind him, “It’s not about who you are; it’s about who you can become, and you don’t do good things because you are a good person. You become a good person by doing good things.” 

Those lessons complemented the values Sweet had already learned from his parents, both Holocaust survivors, while growing up in Klerksdorp. 

“They had experienced unimaginable loss, but they were determined to give me something they believed could not easily be taken away from me: an education. They sacrificed enormously to give me the opportunity to learn, and they instilled in me the belief that education has the power to transform a life,” he says. 

That belief eventually became the driving force behind Primestars, which Sweet established in 2004, under the name Marketing Stars, following a career in corporate leadership and a stint as a Johannesburg city councillor. 

“My passion is driven by service,” says Sweet. “I feel a profound responsibility to use every resource, connection, and skill I have to widen the circle of opportunity. Seeing the resilience, brilliance, and potential of our learners fuels me daily.” 

What began as a small initiative has grown into one of South Africa’s leading youth development organisations, reaching young people in under-resourced communities across all nine provinces. 

One of Primestars’ earliest innovations was turning Ster-Kinekor and Nu Metro cinemas into what Sweet called “theatres of learning”. Its eduCate programme offers matric pupils free maths and science revision, while mobile cinemas bring these learning opportunities to schools beyond conventional cinema networks. 

Over the years, Primestars has expanded into entrepreneurship, financial literacy, career guidance, and leadership development. Its Step Up 2 A Start Up programme encourages young people to develop business ideas, while Rethink Rands teaches practical money-management skills. The What About the Boys? initiative addresses gender-based violence by challenging harmful ideas about masculinity and encouraging empathy, accountability, and respect. 

“We helped young people explore careers they didn’t know existed. We encouraged them to step into entrepreneurship, to see themselves as creators of jobs rather than seekers of them,” says Sweet. 

His commitment has already earned national recognition. Earlier this year, Sweet was named Best CEO at the CSI Legacy Awards for his contribution to youth empowerment and education. 

He took on the role of group chief executive of Prime Impact Holdings, bringing together Primestars, Signa, Seed Academy, School Media, and InternFit to create opportunities extending from education to employment. 

Primestars has now touched the lives of more than 1.8 million young South Africans, with more than 90 000 participating in its programmes annually. 

Sweet’s motivation has remained rooted in the belief that a young person’s circumstances should never determine their future. “The youth of this country aren’t broken. They are brilliant. They simply need scaffolding, encouragement, and environments that allow their gifts to rise,” he says. 

It is a conviction that connects directly to the values of his childhood, when his parents taught him the importance of education and Lubner shared what it meant to live a life of service. 

“From my parents came my belief in the transformative power of education. From Bertie came the understanding that a meaningful life is defined by what we choose to do for others.” 

Receiving an award bearing Lubner’s name has therefore brought Sweet’s personal and professional journeys together in a way he could never have anticipated. 

“In many ways, this moment brings the journey full circle. My parents shaped the values by which I have tried to live, and Bertie showed me what those values could look like in action. To now receive an award associated with him is profoundly meaningful.” 

Sweet also paid tribute to Marc Lubner and the Afrika Tikkun family for continuing Bertie’s legacy, while acknowledging the team, partners, and sponsors who have helped Primestars reach so many young people. 

Above all, his award is a celebration of the values that have guided him from childhood to the present day, and the community that helped instil them. 

“I am deeply grateful for the privilege of belonging to our Jewish community, a community that has always taught us to aim high, to reach for the stars, and to understand that the values that define our humanity are found in what we do for others, in planting a tree today knowing that someone else may one day sit in its shade.”