Page 43 - Forbes - Africa (March 2020)

FORBES AFRICA
COVER STORY • POWER WOMEN

nothing.Mathebaisintentionalabouteveryactionandeverymove–acaptured
metaphorofherjourney.Mathebahasspent15yearsbuildinghername,aprop-
ertysynonymouswithpopculturethattranscendsaudiences,lifestylesandplat-
formsinSouthAfrica. ShehasleddiscussionsattheUNGeneralAssembly.
Shehaswonseveralinternationalawardsincluding,E!EntertainmentAfrican
InfluenceroftheYearAwardin2019andthe2019AwardforBestInspiration
&InfluenceattheGlobalSocialAwardsinPrague.Inherwords,thehardest-
workingwomaninentertainmenttalksaboutherphilanthropicendeavorsand
growingintoaformidableentrepreneur,havingalsolaunchedHouse of BNG.

WhatledyoutoestablishtheBonangMathebaFoundation?
Myfoundationwasinspiredbythe#FeesMustFallmovement,whicherupted
inSouthAfrica.Ithought,‘howcanIusemyinfluenceandmypowertomake
adifference?’Iestablishedthebursaryfundin2017,andwe took in our first 10
girls[who]allgraduatedin2019.
Thisyearagain,wewillfundanothergroupof10 girls.

Whatismostfulfillingaboutgivingback?
Forme,seeingpeople’sliveschange.Ayounggirl[Karen]wefoundstayingin
Pretoriadidn’thaveawaytofinishschool,andshewantedtogetintotheartsin-
dustry.We[supported]herthroughanundergraduatemarketingdegreeand
radiocourse.Shemovedontoauditionformanyshowsand[landed]aradiojob.
Sheisnowgeneratingincomeforherfamily;buyinganew car for her mom and
buyingschooluniformsforherbrothersandsisters.

WhathasyourexperiencebeenrunningHouseofBNG?
It’squiteapainfulone.Ittakesalot of sacrifices, lots of risk and lots of money,
butitisallveryworthwhile.

Whatadvicecanyougivefemaleentrepreneurs?
Youneedtohaveaclearplan.Bepatientwithyourself, be kind to yourself,for-
BONANG MATHEBA, giveyourselfanddon’tbetoohardonyourself.
SOUTH AFRICA Whatdoesitmeantobeapowerfulwomanin2020?

Itmeansthatyoucreateyournarrative.Itmeansthatyouarestrongenoughto
MEDIA PERSONALITY, ENTREPRENEUR makeyourowndecisions, to be free and to break the status quo that people have
Wecannevertakelightly,BonangMatheba’sdedicationtohardwork.Herac- setupforwomen.
complishmentscomeasnosurprisetoher.Ifshecandreamit,shewillachieve
it.Ifshedesiresit,shewillaccomplishit.That’showyoudescribeAfrica’smost Whatdoyouenjoymostaboutbeingawoman?
in-demandmediamaven. Though it has not happened yet, I think the most incredible thing about being
ArrivingattheFORBESAFRICAphotoshoot,witheveryshutterofthecam- a woman is bringing life into the world. Only women can do that, and that’s a
era, it becomes clear why Matheba stands tall in an industry that promises you great deal of power.

FATMA SAMOURA, SENEGAL

SECRETARY-GENERAL, FIFA
atma Samoura made history in 2016 when she was named the first
woman, first African and first Muslim Secretary-General of FIFA,
one of the most powerful positions in professional sports. She was
Fappointed after spending 21 years in various roles with the Unit-
ed Nations (UN). She was the deputy Humanitarian Coordinator in eastern
Chad, where she worked with a team composed of several UN agencies and
over 40 international non-governmental organizations to support the return
of over 280,000 refugees and over 170,000 internally displaced persons.
In her current role at FIFA, she has become an authoritative voice for equal-
ity in the footballing landscape. The proportion of women within FIFA's
administration has risen from 32% in 2016 to 48% in 2018, as reported by
Forbes. Under her steer, FIFA has unveiled its first-ever Women's Foot-
ball Strategy which lays out FIFA's game plan for working together with
several stakeholders to give women's football a clear pathway to success.
The strategy focuses chiefly on broadening female participation in foot-
ball, and to bring more women into the upper ranks of the football in-
dustry.

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