Kayum Abdul Ahmed

Kayum Ahmed was appointed CEO of the South African Human Rights Commission on 1 August 2010. He holds five degrees and three post-graduate diplomas including a Masters in International Law (LLM), a Masters in Arts (MA) cum laude, and a post-graduate diploma in Trade Law and Policy (awarded with distinction). Kayum is a recipient of the prestigious Nelson Mandela Scholarship from Leiden University in The Netherlands, a former Hubert H. Humphrey Fellow at American University's Washington College of Law, as well as a former Congressional Fellow at the United States Congress. Before joining the Commission, Kayum served as the Acting Head of International Relations at the Parliament of South Africa. More recently, Kayum was nominated as one of the Mail & Guardian's 200 Young South Africans Award for 2011. He is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Nicholas Dawes

Nic Dawes is editor in chief of the Mail & Guardian newspaper, where he was previously an associate editor. He has been a political columnist and business editor at ThisDay, managing director at Maverick Interface Design, and news and finance editor at World Online. He was born in Cape Town and finished his schooling in Canada. He studied science and later English literature at the University of Cape Town before attending graduate school in the United States on a Fulbright Scholarship. Nic is married to Aurelia Driver, and has two young children, Hannah and Alexander. He lives in Parkview, Johannesburg. He is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Zohra Dawood

Zohra Dawood is executive director of the Open Society Foundation and director of the Open Society Initiative in Indonesia. In mid-1999 she joined the Open Society Institute, founded by financier and philanthropist, George Soros, as the deputy executive director of the Open Society Foundation for South Africa. She has worked for a decade as a chief researcher for a land rights organisation and has during this time, written widely on the issues of land reform and in particular on the restitution of land rights. This was at the height of apartheid, where land struggles and land access were central to debates on the construction of the post-apartheid state. On moving to government after 1994, she had been involved in drafting land legislation for the new government. Her work with the Department of Land Affairs and Agriculture involved policy formulation and implementation, including negotiations and settlement of land claims. She has been advisor to Cabinet members and the Presidency of Nelson Mandela. She has also worked for the Department of Defence in drafting their legislation and policies on land and environment. She has degrees in law, one in African government and administration and a master's degree in economic history. Zohra is actively engaged internationally in key issues related to human rights and international justice, social, economic and legal reform and the promotion of independent media. She is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Thembisa Dingaan

Thembisa Dingaan is a professional director of companies and artist. She has worked with a number of different sized businesses throughout her career in various roles as a corporate lawyer (White & Case New York and Johannesburg), Investment Banker (Citigroup, Nedbank and Wipcapital), non executive director of several companies and Executive Director of family owned investment vehicle (Skweyiya Investment Holdings). Thembisa is currently a member of the board of directors of the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA), where she has the additional responsibility of sitting as a member of the Credit and Investment, Audit and Risk, Development Fund Risk, Human Resources and Remuneration Committees. She also serves as the chair of the Finance Committee at DBSA. In August 2008, Thembisa was appointed by Cabinet as a member of the board of the Export Credit Insurance Corporation of South Africa (ECIC). In addition she is also a member of the following boards: Mustek Limited, chair of Ukhamba Holdings, Imperial Holdings Limited, Adapt It Limited, and Apollo Tyres South Africa. She is a former member of the Minister of Trade and Industry Standing Advisory Committee on Company Law, as well as the boards of, Alt X Listed,Placecol Holdings Limited (member of Audit Committee); JSE Listed, Enaleni Cipla Pharmaceuticals Limited (Chaired the Audit Committee); Nozala Investments (Member of the Audit Committee); Royal Bafokeng Resources (Member of the Audit Committee and Chaired the Remuneration Committee); City of Johannesburg - Pikit Up (Pty) Limited (member of Audit and Human Resources Committees);and Companies and Intellectual Property Registration Office (CIPRO). Thembisa holds a B. Proc LLB from University of Natal, LLM(International Business Transactions) from Harvard University and a H Dip Tax from the University of the Witwatersrand. She is a member of the New York State Bar. She is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Simphiwe Duma

Simphiwe Duma is CEO of Technology Innovation Agency. Simphiwe began his career in 1994 in Massachusetts, USA, where he worked as a Project Engineer for Coneco. On his return to South Africa, he worked for Spescom, Eskom Generation and Transmission before joining a firm of Consulting Engineers. He has since worked his way to senior positions and has most recently been the Chief Executive and Chief Engineer at Psidot Technology Holdings (Pty) Ltd (Psidot Technologies), and also Chief Engineering Consultant at Lebone Engineering (Pty) Ltd. He has been the Lead Engineer on a number of projects in ICT, Defence, Energy and Local Government. He received a BS in electrical engineering and computer science and a minor in writing from The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), in USA in 1994. He earned a post experience diploma in engineering business management from the University of Warwick (UK) in 1999. He also received a masters of engineering degree in electronic engineering from the University of Pretoria in 2006. A Fellow at the South African Academy of Engineering, Simphiwe is professionally registered as an Electric Engineer by the Engineering Council of South Africa. He is also a senior member of the South African Institute of Electrical Engineers. He is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Urin Ferndale

Dr. Urin Ferndale is chief operating officer at Edcon. He is a registered organisational psychologist with more than 20 years experience in Human Resource Management at both listed companies and parastatal entities. He joined Edcon, the largest clothing retailer in South Africa which owns Edgars, Jet, Boardmans, CNA, Legit and Discom as Human Resources Director in 1999. He was appointed as Chief Executive of Retail Operations for Edcon in 2007. He is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Wayne Hempe

Wayne Hempe is financial director of TBWA Hunt Lascaris. Apart from playing a role in the setting of corporate strategic direction at TBWA\Hunt Lascaris, Wayne also oversees the complete financial function of Room 13 Art Centre. Room 13 Art Centre is a TBWA corporate social initiative that focuses on the development of creative, artistic and entrepreneurial talents amongst the children of disadvantaged communities. Having grown up in Mitchell's Plain in Cape Town, Wayne is no stranger to the difficulties facing many young learners in South Africa. As the chairman of the Sedibeng Book Club, Wayne not only spreads the love of African literature, but also promotes reading and literacy among the youth. Sedibeng has set up reading rooms at two Room 13 schools in Soweto. Wayne is also on the board of trustees for Behind the Mask, and has been for the last 2 years. Behind the Mask is a communication initiative that focuses on LGBTI rights and affairs in Africa. Through journalism and activism, Behind the Mask acts as a voice for LGBTI people and communities throughout Africa, striving to promote respect for sexual diversity and equality before the law. He is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Ashwell Jenneker

Ashwell Jenneker has been the DDG for Statistical Support and Informatics at Statistics South Africa since 2008. The cluster exists to optimise the use of technology in the production and use of official statistics, to promote and provide better access to official statistics, and to support the production and use of official statistics. Ashwell started his career at Stats SA as a Statistical Training Officer before progressing to Deputy Director of Marketing, Acting Director of Communication for the Census 2001, Executive Manager of Statistical Information Services and Executive Manager of the Data Management and Information Delivery Project (DMID) before his DDG appointment. Ashwell is married and has two sons. His passion is clearly visible on the squash court. He has won numerous squash tournaments and currently plays in the Northern Gauteng squash team. He has a BSc (honours) in mathematics and a higher diploma in education from the University of Western Cape. He is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Nicholas Jonsson

Nicholas Jonsson is chairman and CEO of Jonsson Group (Pty) Ltd, employing nearly 3 000 people in Southern Africa. After a thorough grounding in the ravaged garment industry of the late 1980's and 1990's, Jonsson in 1998 decided to set his energies on re-defining the South African workwear industry. He has since developed Jonsson into a household name as Southern Africa's leading designer, manufacturer and solution provider in the workwear space. Jonsson's sells their products in 20 countries and have operations in South Africa, Lesotho, Australia and the UK. He was born in Durban and schooled in Michaelhouse. He continues to live in Durban and is passionate about the City and KwaZulu Natal. He is married to Celeste and they have two young children, Olivia and Luke. He is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Bhekithemba Makhubu

Bheki Makhubu is the editor and publisher of The Nation magazine, a monthly periodical in Swaziland that writes critical analyses on the country's social and political situation while also breaking news. Started in the late 1990s, the magazine has become an influential player in Swaziland's political discourse in a stifled environment that does not encourage independent views in society. It has become the foremost critic of government excesses as the country teeters on the brink of collapse due to a failing economy and has emerged as the lone voice in calling for political change as the only means to save the country from being a failed state. Previously, Bheki was the editor of The Times of Swaziland SUNDAY when, in 1999, he was dismissed from the newspaper after publishing a story critical of King Mswati's and his polygamous tendencies. Bheki has been a journalist in Swaziland for over 20 years. He is currently studying towards an LLB degree with Unisa and has taken up to writing critically on the judiciary which he believes is crucial in any society that wants to achieve democracy. He is married to Fikile and has three children. He is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Baba Mashologu

Baba Mashologu is director of public sector finance and black economic empowerment at Deutsche Bank. joined Deutsche Bank in 2010. He has more than nine years investment banking experience in South Africa and the rest of Africa. He has been involved in a number of acquisitions and capital raisings across various sectors, most notably the acquisition by the Elephant Consortium of a BEE stake in Telkom SA Limited. Other M&A experience includes the acquisition of Wetherlys by Ellerines, the Mustek/Safika BEE deal, debt and equity capital-raising for Tshwarisano, the BEE investor in Sasol Oil, the conversion by the Royal Bafokeng Nation of its royalties stream into equity in Impala Platinum Limited, the sale of various platinum farms on behalf of Holgoun Resources and most recently the equity capital-raising for Nexus Connexion SA, the BEE investor in Neotel (Pty) Limited. Baba is the former President of the Association of Black Securities & Investment Professionals (2009 -2011). He is a Board member of Financial Services Sector Charter (2010 - 2011) and a Member of DTI Advisory Panel on BBBEE (2009 - present). He is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Tsakani Matshazi

Tsakani Matshazi is the administrator of the Energy and Water Sector Education and Training Authority (SETA). She is a qualified Chartered Accountant and businesswoman, with more than a decade of experience in retail, auditing, private equity, development finance and BEE. She is the Immediate Past National President of ABASA ("Association for the Advancement of Black Accountants in Southern Africa") and currently serves as the Chairman of the Charter Council for the BEE Charter for the CA Profession. She also serves as the Vice-President of CBBO ("Confederation of Black Business Organizations"). She is a member of the Presidential BEE Advisory Council. She is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Martin Mohale

Martin Mohale is managing director of Tongaat Hulett. He has been with Tongaat Hulett Ltd for 23 years. He started there as a Legal Advisor; he was then appointed as a Human Resources Director, Strategy and IT Director, Operations Director. Tongaat Hulett is a focused, agric-processing business with 25% BEE equity participation. The business includes integrated land management, property development and agriculture components. It is a growing, dynamic, fast moving and transforming organisation with various business operations in Southern Africa. Tongaat Hulett is set for exciting times capitalizing on its strong regional competitive positioning in a changing world of agriculture triggered by renewable energy and a fairer world trade regime. He was appointed Chairman of South African Sugar Association (SASA) in 2009 until July 2010, prior to that, he served as Vice Chairman (SASA) for four years. Martin is an Advocates member of the High Court of South Africa. He is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Audrey Mothupi

Audrey Mothupi is currently a Director at Standard Bank in Inclusive Banking which is part of the Personal and Business banking (PBB) Division at the Bank and is an Executive Committee member of PBB. She recently Joined Standard Bank from Liberty Group where she held executive accountability since 2005, most recently fulfilling the position of Chief Executive: Group Strategic Services, a portfolio comprising Group Strategy; Human Resources; Corporate Affairs; Marketing and Communication; and Legal and Regulatory Affairs. Audrey has also served on the Liberty Health board since 2008. Commencing her career in 1995 as a management consultant for a Swiss based consulting firm Genhro, Audrey then became a founding partner of Dicke & Wicharz, Cachalia & Mothupi Management Consulting. In 1998 Audrey joined Monitor Company as part of the integration of the South African operation of Dicke & Wicharz, Cachalia & Mothupi. Audrey subsequently joined the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) in 2001 as Strategic Planning Manager and shortly after served as Head of Strategy for the Public Broadcasting Service (15 radio stations as well as SABC 1 and 2). She has an 8 year old daughter and loves travelling, reading but most of all cooking up a storm for friends and family. She is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Loyiso Mpuntsha

Loyiso Mpuntsha is CEO of the South African National Blood Service. Loyiso's career started in 1986 as a Medical Officer in Cecilia Makiwane hospital near East London. 3 Years later, she worked as a private General Practitioner in Khayelitsha near Cape Town. Whilst in Cape Town she became involved in community projects for physically disabled children, traditional healers and church groups contributing in health education and fund raising. She also involved herself in organising black medical doctors for integration with the established association which focused mainly on the needs of white doctors at that time. This involvement led to Loyiso working for the South African Medical Association (SAMA) as an Executive responsible for Health Policy and HIV/AIDS from 1997 to 2002. She developed and managed the SAMA Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programme for the medical profession before moving to the National Department of Health in 2002 as Director for Maternal, Women's Health and Human Genetics. Loyiso hails from the Eastern Cape, having been born in East London and matriculated at the former Healdtown in Fort Beaufort. She completed her Pre-Medicine at Fort Hare and her MBCHB medical degree at Medunsa. Later, she obtained a MPhil degree with a focus on Values based policy formulation, from Stellenbosch University. Loyiso's passion lies in supporting communities in health and welfare programmes. She is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Wendy Ngoma

Dr. Wendy Ngoma is the Acting Head of School and a Senior Lecturer at the Graduate School of Business Administration (Wits Business School), University of the Witwatersrand Johannesburg, South Africa. Previously, she worked at the Graduate School of Public and Development (P&DM) where she taught for eleven years. At the Wits Business School she teaches in various programmes such as the MBA, Masters in Entrepreneurship, Graduate and Senior Executive Programmes. She is currently one of the Crans Montana's New Leaders for Tomorrow: Africa and Arab countries. Presently Wendy is developing her interest on Social Entrepreneurship at the Wits Business School She is an active participant on Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship forum and is interested in exploring various opportunities to advance empowerment and employment of young people. Beyond the academic work, Wendy is the Director of Zikode OD and HR Management Consulting, where she works with various organisations on OD and HR projects. She is a reader, a researcher and a facilitator. Her academic qualifications include B. Ped, B. Ed (University Fort Hare), M. Ed, (University of the Witwatersrand), and a PhD (University of the Witwatersrand). She is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Marella O'Reilly

Marella O'Reilly is acting CEO and registrar at the Health Professions Council of South Africa. She has extensive experience in strategic leadership and management, combined with comprehensive financial management skills. She has held a number of management positions and has an entrepreneurial background. Marella believes the healthcare environment is a dynamic and ever changing one, and with new technological advancements, it makes regulation a vibrant career option along with people and facilities management. Marella thrives on challenges and believes the wide variety of experience gained in various fields continues to lead to her ongoing personal growth. She is also a firm believer in skills development. Her extensive travel experience has fostered a passion for people and she strives on embracing new cultures and methodologies, also making her customer focused. Whilst leading one of the world's biggest healthcare regulators, she has played a pivotal role in broader transformation within the international healthcare industry by the sharing of best practices and has represented South Africa on various forums. Marella has earned a Masters degree in Business Leadership and has successfully completed a Bachelor of Commerce. She is currently busy with her Doctorate on the ability to undertake strategy within regulatory constraints while achieving the strategic outcomes. She is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Tebogo Skwambane

Tebogo Skwambane is a Monitor Group Global Partner and Managing Director of Monitor South Africa. In 2005 Tebogo co-founded North Road Consulting, a strategy and operational consulting firm in South Africa. North Road Consulting has worked with listed and private clients in industries ranging from mining, manufacturing, logistics, and financial services to advertising. Tebogo has worked with clients on growth strategies, operational turnaround, performance improvement and management, organizational restructuring and organizational effectiveness. In early 2011 North Road Consulting merged with The Monitor Group. Before founding North Road Consulting Tebogo worked for Bain and Company, in the US, UK and South Africa. Tebogo has held managerial positions at Eskom Enterprises where she was Strategy Manager in the CEO's office, and in financial services at the International Finance Corporation in Washington D.C. and at Brown Brothers Harriman and Company in Boston. Tebogo is an independent non-executive director on the boards of Actom, EOH Holdings, Polyoak Packaging Holdings, Spartan Technologies and the Entrepreneur's Organisation. In addition she is a Trustee of The Lonely Road Foundation, a foundation that supports orphans and vulnerable children in disadvantaged communities. In February 2011 Tebogo was selected as a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader Tebogo obtained her BA in government from Dartmouth College in New Hampshire, USA, and her MBA from Harvard Business School in Massachusetts, USA. She is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Catherine Smith

Cathy Smith is the Human Resources Director for IBM Middle East and Africa, responsible for the delivery of HR services. In this role, Cathy leads a team of HR Partners and Country HR Managers which focuses on people solutions to ensure that the business delivers on its strategies. Cathy has been with IBM for 18 years. During her tenure she has had many roles, including Application Development Manager, Project Manager and Service Delivery Executive. Part of Cathy's career at IBM was a 3 year assignment in the United Kingdom, where Cathy held various European and Global roles in the Services business. Cathy reports to the Vice President of the Regional HR Partner Organization and holds a position as director on the board of IBM South Africa. On a personal front, Cathy is married with two daughters. She enjoys travelling, meeting new people and learning about different cultures. She is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

David Storey

David Storey is CEO and co-founder of the Resolve Group, a collection of specialist consulting companies that, since its inception in 1997, has assisted more than 750 organizations to improve performance, realize the potential of their people and navigate change. Resolve has three subsidiaries and three associate companies and is one of the largest majority black-owned consulting businesses in South Africa. Before founding the Resolve Group, David held the following positions: research officer and trainer with the Centre for Applied Legal Studies, Deputy Director of the Wits/Vaal Regional Secretariat of the National Peace Accord, Consultant to the National Chief of Operations at the Independent Election Commission'94 and Managing Director of Conflict Management Services. David has a Bcomm LLB from Wits where he was an Abe Bailey Fellow and Vice President of the SRC. He also has an LLM from Harvard Law School where he was a Fulbright Scholar. David is an accredited Tokiso Dispute Resolution (SA) and Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (UK) mediator and was previously accredited as a mediator by both IMSSA and the CCMA (part time). David is also an accomplished trainer, and has published papers and presented at conferences both locally and abroad in the fields of policing, crowd management and conflict management. David is married with two children. He is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Réjane Woodroffe

Réjane Woodroffe is the Director and a founding member of the Bulungula Incubator, a not-for-profit organisation engaged an integrated rural development programme in a remote part of the former Transkei region of the Eastern Cape. Réjane has previously held the positions of Chief Economist and Head of International Portfolio Investments for Metropolitan Asset Managers and Research Analyst for US invesment bank, Merrill Lynch, in the economics and fixed-income sales and trading departments. Réjane is a trustee of TCOE, the Trust for Community Outreach and Education, a non-governmental organisation that focuses on land and fisher people's rights, where she has been appointed as the National Treasurer. She has previously served as a volunteer counselor and a member of the board of directors of the Rape Crisis Cape Town Trust and continues to act in a supporting and advisory role for the organisation. She is an economist and a CFA charterholder. She completed her undergraduate degree in business science at the University of Cape Town and her masters degree in development economics at the University of Sussex, UK. She is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Gloria Yekani-Peni

Gloria Nomncedisi Yekani-Peni is divisional director for group finance and risk at Liberty Life. She joined Liberty Group in 2003 as head of IT finance. She previously worked at Accenture and Chevron (Caltex). She serves on the Libcare Medical Aid and Katlego BEE boards of trustees. She is a chairman of the procurement and enterprise committee of the Association for Savings and Investment of South Africa. She is a founding member and chair of Inkwenkwezi High School Alumni. She is also involved with Dorah's Ark, an NGO that provides for orphaned, vulnerable, and impoverished children. She loves cooking, reading, going to the gym, and spending time with family and friends. She is married to Mbongeni Peni, and they have three children. Gloria has a computer science degree from the University of Cape Town and has studied financial management and finance. She is a Fellow of the seventh class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.