BWEF – CEO Sibongile Mkhabela

As part of the Barloworld Limited BBBEE initiative "Khula Sizwe," Barloworld Empowerment Foundation (BWEF) was established as an independent foundation that seeks to ignite self-belief and unleash resilient communities in Africa. The focus is on developing women and youth by empowering them in the fields of entrepreneurship, education in all its forms, protection of the environment and social development. Storytelling is one of the foundation's anchors and a vehicle for shifting the power dynamic to enable the communities it serves to lead transformation and take ownership of the outcomes.

With this captivating introduction in mind, we delve deeper into the world of BWEF to discover who sits at the helm, navigating the ship and the force that motivates everything. "I am the product of my people, my community, my teachers and my school," expresses Sibongile Mkhabela during an intriguing conversation. She further stated, "your steps may be your own, but you cannot choose a path that is not yours nor one that is misaligned with your destiny. What we do and strive to achieve is driven by the heart and the values instilled in us as children. These values are built from the nurturing spirits and guidance of caregivers, parents, and leaders.

Sibongile Mkhabela, affectionately known as Mam Bongi, has an incredible story about a journey of servanthood that requires a great deal of inner strength, a compassionate heart, and a courageous spirit. Servanthood, in its most basic form, demands in one the intrinsically built quality of wanting to be of service to people for the greater good of society. Mam Bongi has endured unfathomable trials and tribulations that encouraged her to embrace Tata Madiba's mission to transform society. She dedicates her life to advocating for the people of South Africa, driven by the sense of right and wrong entrenched in her as a young girl and through the lessons she learnt along the way.

Mam Bongi is a social worker by profession and a social activist by nature. At age 11, she joined the YWCA, where she met her lifelong mentor, Ellen Kuzwayo. It is there that Mam Bongi's boundaries were pushed, forcing her to view all things from a distinct perspective. She was introduced to Black Consciousness, which significantly influenced her journey even though her pursuit of justice led to her incarceration, a sacrifice she was willing to endure to establish a community where everyone is free to live where they wish to and be true to who they are. Mam Bongi was a student resistance leader in the Soweto Students Representative Council (SSRC) and the South African Students Movement General Secretary as her first step towards becoming an activist. She was then charged with sedition, jailed, and only released six years later, after the nationwide June 16, 1976, Soweto uprising, known as the infamous student revolt and the turning point in the anti-apartheid struggle.

On April 27, 2018, for her tremendous sacrifice and sheer resilience in the face of adversity, Mam Bongi was awarded the Order of Luthuli (Silver) by President Cyril Ramaphosa. The award, in addition to honouring her battle against apartheid, also honours her ongoing work for social justice and her outstanding contribution to the well-being of South Africa's youth. When asked to comment on rebuilding a broken South Africa, Mam Bongi said: "Development will begin when every single broken piece transforms to a place of wholeness, and only when we reach that point of wholeness, will we be able to plan the future."

To add to her many attributes, Mam Bongi is also a paralegal and founded the Zola Advice Office to fight for the dignity of black lives and strengthen the role of African women in our society. As highly accomplished in her present life as she was in her youth, she is proudly the former Chief Executive Officer of the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund (NMCF) and the Nelson Mandela Children's Hospital Trust (NMCH Trust). Mam Bongi is deeply committed to community development and seeing people thrive in society. She believes that every person she encounters has something to give, which makes the Foundation the ideal platform for Mam Bongi to share her vision. Through storytelling, she aims to restore people's dignity and sense of self-worth.  

"Siyakhuzela," which means "to ignite," has a similar connotation at BWEF. This simply means that the Foundation encourages and invests in what people have already started. As we all know, a story intends to compel reflection; the stories told through the Foundation are the storytellers' journeys, where they have walked, what they have seen, heard, and felt which subsequently reflects where they are now in their journey of life. The Foundation functions as a facilitator, allowing the storyteller to tell their story, creating a mirror effect that reveals where the gaps are and encouraging self-appreciation for who one is and how far they have come. Enabling people to tell their own stories allows them to fuel their fires, which is when development takes place. Manifestation is powerful and the language one uses defines who they are, that holds to Mam Bongi's belief that through storytelling one can positively alter negative situations.

During her tenure as CEO of the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund, Mam Bongi formed an African social justice organization that has become a key player in issues affecting children, their families, and communities. "It's in your hands, it's in their hands; it's in our hands to create the society we want to create," Tata Madiba always said. That is critical when considering where we are now as a society. Although digital technology has resulted in many positive innovations, humanity has unfortunately lost one common trait that allows us to connect with others: empathy. Sadly, with social media platforms broadcasting horrifying stories of youth suicides, we realize that today's youth are defined more by technology than by their unique character traits.

Reconnecting the youth will require a complete revolution, resetting time to an era when people engaged in deep, meaningful conversation and spent time developing genuine connections and lifelong bonds. We are currently constructing a society out of broken pieces and failing as a country to rebuild this society, as the adopted solution involves building on top of those pieces instead gluing these pieces together first, to provide a solid foundation. If the African continent is to achieve an inclusive and sustainable society, we must develop strategies to empower and upskill the youth, to build resilient communities and transform its countries.

Mam Bongi points out that our Leadership mirrors what happens in society. If the Leaders abuse power, many will think it acceptable to abuse power but if the Leadership is driven, transformative and ethical, then society too will be the same. Mam Bongi admits that she does not have enough time to fulfil her heart's desires which involves seeing a transformed society where everyone is free to speak without being defined by race, gender or class. Nevertheless, she would like to see a less racialized and transformed South Africa and is content to have had the opportunity to pave the way forward for those who come after her. If there is one key insight from this conversation to take away and implement, it is that "Now is not the time for passive citizenry."

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