In an exclusive with FORBES AFRICA from Seattle in the United States, Melinda French Gates speaks about the billions pledged to support women and combat Covid-19, and the Bill &amp; Melinda Gates Foundation’s new Goalkeepers Report that features an updated global dataset explaining the pandemic’s adverse impact on progress toward the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.



Q. How can the world collectively come together to combat the shadow pandemic that women and girls are grappling within Africa, in the wake of Covid-19?



A. Even a cursory look at the latest data shows us how devastating the pandemic has been for women, particularly when it comes to the economy. This year, women’s employment globally is expected to remain 13 million jobs below the 2019 level — while men’s employment is largely expected to recover to pre-pandemic rates.



The reason for these striking gaps is that women have long faced barriers to economic participation – and those barriers have only worsened amid the pandemic. For example, women have a harder time accessing finance and credit than men, and they are disproportionately employed in sectors that have lower pay.



The evidence leaves us no doubt: With women making up 50% or more of the workforce in many African countries, we can either take action now or risk facing decades of growth-restricting inequality.



And if we want to avoid that fate, leaders must prioritize women within pandemic recovery planning and policy-making, and donors and global institutions must further expand their support for women-focused programs.



For example, our foundation recently pledged $2.1 billion to support women’s economic and health issues, which we hope will be just one piece of a larger puzzle. Our hope moving forward is that governments, philanthropies, non-governmental organizations, and everyone looking to improve their corner of the world will join us in supporting the empowerment of women and girls. It’s a step that will ultimately pay off for everyone, everywhere.



Q. What are the foundation&#8217;s plans for Africa in the coming months?



A. Our foundation has worked in partnership with African countries for decades, and the more than $1.9 billion we’ve contributed to the global effort to combat Covid-19 is just the latest part of that commitment. We believe strongly that all people deserve to benefit from the innovations and science developed to respond to the pandemic and save lives. Right now, the lack of equitable access to Covid-19 vaccines is standing in the way of our ability to put the pandemic behind us.



In this year’s Goalkeepers Report, we explain how Covid-19 vaccine access has been strongly correlated with the locations where there is vaccine R&amp;D and manufacturing capability. Though Africa is home to 17% of the world’s population, for example, it has less than 1% of the world’s vaccine manufacturing capabilities. That’s why we’re supporting the Africa CDC and African Union’s vision to create a sustainable regional vaccine development and manufacturing ecosystem in the region. These investments in low- and middle-income countries — which are too often left waiting for life-saving interventions— would better protect communities and families from diseases like Covid-19 in the future.



Our foundation is also committed to investments in Africa because we’ve seen the impact of African innovations on many health and financial challenges. As your magazine recently noted, the continent’s diversity and ingenuity inspires resilience and optimism for the future.



For example, one of South Africa’s leading scientists, Dr Penny Moore, discovered that a coronavirus variant first found in her country could circumvent the immune system. Another example we highlight in the report is Senegal. The country led an incredibly effective campaign to ensure forward momentum on routine immunizations, helping health workers adapt their strategic outreach to their communities during the pandemic.



With more forward-thinking, long-term investments in Africa and by continuing to encourage local innovation, we will all benefit from improved health security and pandemic preparedness moving forward.

French President Macron Hosts Counterparts Attending Generation Equality Forum

‘A Step That Will Ultimately Pay Off For Everyone, Everywhere’- Melinda French Gates In Exclusive Interview

In recent years, he has dominated Africa’s rich lists as the continent’s youngest billionaire. Mohammed Dewji, the shrewd entrepreneur and CEO of MeTL Group in Tanzania, has previously been on two FORBES AFRICA covers – in 2013 and 2015. In this new decade, he is eyeing a much bigger chunk of African business.



JUST BACK IN DUBAI AFTER A WHIRLWIND trip dropping off his 18-year-old daughter at the School of Foreign Service at his alma mater, Georgetown University in Washington DC, the 46-year-old Tanzanian businessman, known in the hallowed corridors of the continent’s elite as “Africa’s youngest billionaire”, is more emotional than jet-lagged.



“I had to let go of her, you know, but I’m going to visit DC more often,” says Mohammed Dewji.



He could be speaking for himself too. In FORBES AFRICA’s July 2013 cover, he had said he puts in 100 hours a week growing MeTL into a pan-African conglomerate.



Today, he admits to slowing down “a little bit” – after his headline-grabbing kidnapping incident in 2018 that gave him a new lease on life and made him veer towards philanthropy and impact investing a lot more than before, he says.



But this has in no way decelerated his ambitions to conquer more markets and more milestones.



The astute, hard-nosed businessman running Tanzania’s MeTL Group, operating in areas as diverse as food, agriculture, textiles, trading, energy, financial services, real estate, logistics, and distribution, has a vision for his company that covers every commerce and commodity on the African map.



“My problem is my mind, it runs like a train. I’m trying to slow it down. But I’m not working 100 hours a week anymore; I work 80 hours a week,” he laughs. “I’m still passionate about work, I just cannot have an idle mind.”



The entire MeTL Group, he says, is on course for a targeted revenue this year of about $2 billion. The group had its genesis in the early 1970s as a modest trading house; his father Gulam Dewji, in a few years, turned it into a flourishing import-export business.



Today, the younger Dewji is talking about buying an island with a landing strip “very soon” and venturing into the hospitality business. A half-hour interview with Dewji and he has touched every business there is: his renewed investments in tea, carbonated drinks, macadamia, cashews, textiles&#8230; the list is endless.



But there is the reason for him to feel bullish. With the country’s new President, Samia Suluhu Hassan, taking over early this year following the death of President John Magufuli, Tanzania is waking up to a new vision and positive outlook, hoping to join the continent’s economic giants Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, and Ghana.



“The new president is so business-friendly, investment-friendly, and FDI-friendly, she is doing good for Tanzania,” says Dewji.



“I have promised her that in the next five years, I’ll employ 100,000. Tanzania is one of the fastest-growing countries in Africa. I am going to continue investing more into the country and of course, in the region.”



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft size-full is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Screenshot-2021-10-05-at-14.40.35.png" alt="" class="wp-image-52721" width="236" height="134" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Screenshot-2021-10-05-at-14.40.35.png 474w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Screenshot-2021-10-05-at-14.40.35-300x171.png 300w" sizes="(max-width: 236px) 100vw, 236px" /></figure></div>



Dewji has his ear to the ground and is well-attuned to the purchasing power of consumers in his target markets in East and Central Africa.



“When I got out of university in Georgetown in 1998-1999, the per capita income in Tanzania was $300. So I was like, ‘okay, how do I become a rich man?’ Today, the per capita income is over $1,000. From the time you wake up in the morning, to the time you sleep, I need to dig deep into your pockets to at least take 70% of your purchasing power, right?” he explains simply.



“So you wake up in the morning, there is tea, sugar, maize flour, carbonated drinks, water; there’s a bicycle, there’s a motorcycle, there’s garments etc etc, So I have been able to just fight to enter. And I’ve been competing with Unilever and Procter &amp; Gamble, and Coca-Cola. I believe that in the next maybe four or five years, my carbonated drinks business, which I am expanding, will be at least over a billion dollars in terms of valuation in East and Central Africa.”



Dewji has big plans in Rwanda.



“I told President Paul Kagame that I was going to invest $50 million. And I’m going to put in an edible oil refinery and a soap plant, I’m going to put in wheat milling, I’m going to put in maize milling, I am going to put petroleum, we’re putting carbonated soft drinks. And they have been amazing. They are punching above their weight. You are welcomed like a king in Rwanda,” says the man, also known to his family and friends as ‘Mo’.



Agriculture is a mainstay business, and in 2022, Dewji says he will be the single largest sisal producer in the world. In addition, he is converting his tea business to organic tea.



“I’m going to invest another $50 million into planting a couple of thousand hectares of new hybrid tea that I can export, and also make more tea locally. I am looking at macadamia in a big way; we’ve invested in Mozambique in the maize milling business, in the cashew processing business. And in textiles, you know that I am one of the largest. If you were to visit my factory, it’s 3,800 people spinning, weaving, processing, dyeing, printing&#8230; For now, I want to also go into denim. We need to create more jobs,” he reels off breathlessly.



Dewji was in Iraq too recently and found a big gap in FMCG – “businesses that I know already”.



In the last few years, he has also found the time to part-own a football club, Simba SC, and is channeling more funds into it.



“And now, we [are among] the top 15 clubs in Africa. We have had back-to-back leagues, and I have invested $20 million. It’s just like having a plane or a yacht; you bleed money. But I just love the club and am so emotional about it.”



In 2015, Dewji also created his eponymous foundation educating underprivileged children right up to the university level in Tanzania, he says. As Tanzania’s only billionaire, he also signed the Giving Pledge in 2016, promising to donate at least half his fortune to philanthropic causes.



“Bill Gates convinced me and I signed the Giving Pledge and it has been amazing. And then, of course, the worst the part was my kidnapping in 2018.”



Kidnapped at gunpoint in Dar es Salaam, the Tanzanian capital, in October 2018, outside his gym at 5 AM, Dewji was released after nine days.



“I went through a near-death experience; they basically stripped me and blindfolded me, and I was in a room with two people, without moving for all those days,” he recalls.



It gave him a new life-altering perspective.



“I think by the age of 50, I want my kids to get a little older, and I just want to step down and do philanthropy, because it gives me a lot of satisfaction. When we run businesses, we invest and we want the maximum per dollar, right? So I look at philanthropy the same way; that you spend that dollar or the $100 or $100 million that you want to put to have maximum impact, and I’m going to focus on that!&#8221;

Final Press Release

Get, Set, Mo! $1.6 Billion And Counting

One of America’s most successful self-made women, Hollywood actor Jessica Alba’s journey to entrepreneurship began 13 years ago. Her business, The Honest Company, debuted on the Nasdaq in May this year. In this exclusive interview with FORBES AFRICA, the Los Angeles-based star speaks about living consciously, taking ownership and her new YouTube series, Getting Honest.



Q. Being a newcomer to business when you first started, how did you pick up the tricks of trade and enterprise? What were the significant challenges? 



A. One of the biggest challenges I faced early on was doubting myself – doubting that I could do it if I didn’t have a business degree. I navigated through it by listening, learning and trusting myself on what matters most. I think there is also this assumption that starting a business is easy when you are a celebrity, but success in one industry doesn’t necessarily open doors in another. I had the drive and I had the idea, but I still needed the funding and the infrastructure. When I was pitching room after room of (mostly) men to raise initial seed funding, I was also pregnant with my second child. Some thought I should be a spokesmodel for other brands, others thought I should start smaller. That’s the part of business where being an actor helps: rejection. The more I was rejected, the more I honed my pitch. I am also really driven by my curiosity, I’m constantly asking questions and I surround myself with people who have different strengths than I do, so I’m always learning and growing.



Q. The Honest Company has just debuted on the Nasdaq. Where do you see it in the next five years?



A. We are currently in a quiet period&#8230; What I can say is we are excited to be able to continue to shift the clean lifestyle conversations in the industry – driving our mission forward – inspiring everyone to love living consciously. We made the decision to become a public company because it will help enable us to do just that – driving further accessibility and product innovation, so that we can meet consumers however they want to shop – every day, at every age and through every life stage. The possibilities for an ‘Honest’ world are significant.



Q. What were your own learnings, and the things you would do differently if you had to do it all over again?



A. I think that when you are building a business, doing something you truly believe in, you just want everything to be perfect from day one, but that’s impossible to achieve. The process of building a business is complex and comes with a lot of trial and error. You learn to pivot as yougo.SolookingbackonwhatIwoulddodifferently, I would try to be a little kinder to myself in the process. I&#8217;m such a perfectionist and I was learning on the job so I was really hard on myself if something didn’t go exactly as I thought it should.



Also, I know now that I didn’t need to be insecure about being the only woman at the C-level. I think if I did it all over again, I would really own that this business was my idea and be proud of that. It took me a long time to stop being shy and apologetic and take more ownership over the conversation. I started this company, I had the vision and I brought the right people together to make it happen.



Q. What are the top three challenges facing female entrepreneurs?



A. The first is a lack of representation. When you don&#8217;t see people like yourself in the room, it can be hard to feel like you deserve to be there. That creates a feeling of insecurity that can hold women back.



Secondly, women get less funding from investors. Not only do they get funding less often, but when they do, they get fewer dollars. There&#8217;s a comfort level investors have with what they know and they are used to seeing male entrepreneurs.



Unfortunately, when it comes to investment, it’s not just about having a great idea or a great business, it’s about whether or not you can get the people in the room to believe in you and women have historically been at a disadvantage.



Finally, there’s an unfair expectation around ways women should and should not act. There are social norms that people associate with women and a way they expect women to behave. In business, however, to get things done, you need to be assertive and exhibit boss behavior – it&#8217;s what moves the needle but society doesn&#8217;t necessarily appreciate this type of behavior when it comes from a woman. The way people want to see women act doesn&#8217;t always align with the traits you need to push your idea, vision and business forward.



Q. Be it cinema or business, what are the fundamental traits that you need to bring to the table to shine in both? 



A. You have to be prepared and bring your best self to work everyday, but you also have to be able to go with the flow and pivot when necessary.



Q. With Covid-19 lockdowns, how did your business fare?



A. The Honest Company was built around the ethical values of transparency, trust, sustainability, and a deep sense of purpose. As part of these values, we have always been focused on the importance of omnichannel and accessibility; during the Covid-19 lockdowns, this approach helped us to maintain the strength of our business. We manage an agile global supply chain of highly- qualified, third-party manufacturing and logistics partners that allows us to scale quickly and effectively. Because of this, we were able to mitigate disruptions caused by the pandemic.



As an essential business, we were able to get our products to our customers regardless of Covid-19 lockdowns due to our omnichannel strategy. Additionally, as a nimble, modern company with internal labs, we have the ability to pivot quickly to adapt to and meet the consumer&#8217;s needs through modern innovation. Because of this, throughout the pandemic, we were able to pay close attention to trends and respond as they evolved, shifting focus toward sanitization, wellness, and self-care. In fact, in less than six months after the onset of Covid-19, we created and launched a new Stay Safe cleaning collection, a complete set of cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting solutions. We will continue to take a similar approach as everything continues to open back up as well.



We also continued to prioritize our community and give back efforts. During Covid-19, these efforts focused on our ongoing partnership with Baby2Baby as well as our March of Dimes partnership. I am proud to say that since the launch of the company, we have donated over 25 million products to families in need.



Q. Are there any upcoming personal creative projects, besides new films?



A. During Covid, I launched my YouTube channel and a series called, Getting Honest, where I sit down with guests from different industries and we have intimate, funny, raw, real conversations about whatever is on our mind at the moment. We often do something fun, like a skincare or makeup routine, while we are chatting. It’s a really casual but entertaining way of talking about all the things – motherhood, business, health, family, etc. I’ve had some amazing guests like Alex Rodriguez, Kate Hudson and Molly Sims and many more to come. It’s been such a fun, creative way to create this community and use my platform to have really honest conversations around what matters most to people.



Q. What does the word ‘impact’ mean to you?



A. It means making a difference and leaving the world better than you found it.



Q. You were the official spokesperson of the ‘for Tomorrow’ project for sustainable innovators with UNDP and Hyundai. Your advice to the next generation of female leaders on the African continent?



A. As I reflect back on my own journey, I wish someone had told me early on that no one would give me permission to lead or to challenge the status quo. So my advice to the next generation of female leaders is don’t wait for someone to give you permission. Trust your gut and, if you believe in your idea, go for it. Don’t let one rejection stop you from achieving your goals. In fact, let the hurdles motivate you. And always remember what the great Eleanor Roosevelt said: “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”

Jessica Alba Speaks At AT&T 5G Immersive Event

‘Need To Be Assertive And Exhibit Boss Behavior’: Jessica Alba Exclusive

Abi Mustapha-Maduakor, the CEO of the African Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (AVCA), on what lies ahead for fintech in Nigeria.



Q. There has been significant activity in the African tech ecosystem. Do you see this sector growing, at least in terms of diversity of funding for fintech startups in Nigeria? Are there any figures to quantify or further illustrate this?



<meta charset="utf-8">Abi Mustapha-Maduakor (AMM): Technology has developed into one of the highest interest emerging sectors for private equity and venture capital investment in Africa. According to AVCA’s Sector Snapshot on Technology, published in April 2021, there were 572 reported Private Equity (PE) and Venture Capital (VC) fund investments in technology in Africa between 2015- 2020, totaling $6.5 billion. Technology has certainly disrupted various sectors on the continent resulting in the development of innovative homegrown solutions to address challenges therein. In 2020, investments



in technology and tech-enabled companies operating across a variety of sectors accounted for 55% of the total PE and VC deals recorded in Africa, according to AVCA’s 2020 Annual African Private Equity Data Tracker. The sector is poised for exponential growth as the continent catapults further into a digital revolution, bringing efficiency, reducing fragmentation and driving innovation within and across entire sectors. The improving depth and breadth of digital connectivity on the continent is gaining international recognition: eight of the 25 economies identified as outperformers (countries with high Global Innovation Index scores relative to their level of economic development) in the 2020 edition of the Global Innovation Index were from sub-Saharan Africa. These strides towards digitalization across the continent will catalyze further public and private investment in the sector. Nigeria attracted 14% of PE and VC fund investment in Africa’s technology sector (2015-2020) and we expect this trend to continue going forward. Particularly, the fintech industry in Nigeria experienced significant increase in 2020 and attracted increasing [interest] from a wide range of domestic and institutional investors. In 2020, fintech companies in Nigeria raised $112 million from investors; we can certainly expect to see an increase in commercial capital allocated to the same.



In particular, fintech in Nigeria is attracting significant investor interest. In 2020, fintech startups headquartered in Nigeria raised capital from investors based in the United States, Nigeria, United Kingdom, Japan, Singapore, Ghana, and Morocco to name buta few. The sector is further fueled by a number of growth drivers. Regulatory changes were a key enabler to growth in the fintech industry in Nigeria in 2020. The Central Bank of Nigeria implemented the Regularity Sandbox, allowing CBN-licensed firms to live test new and innovative products in a controlled environment before launching their products to the public. This push to create a strong and dynamic digital finance ecosystem set Nigeria on a positive path to receiving diverse and multiplied funding for startups in the fintech space.



Q. Do you see momentum picking up for the fintech industry in Nigeria going forward this year too with Covid?



AMM: The Covid-19 pandemic was not a headwind but rather a catalyst for innovation in Africa’s tech ecosystem. Although the pandemic ushered a period of subdued investment activity in Africa, this lull in deal-making was short-lived. By mid-2020, investors were exhibiting renewed confidence in the continent, and the year saw several PE and VC deals benefitting fintech startups. Examples include the $60 million Series B investment round in Thunes led by Helios Investment Partners and the $30 million Series B investment in Chipper Cash.



Examples of late-stage PE deals in the second half of 2020 include the $30 million investment in mobile-technology insurer BIMA by Leapfrog and other investors in September 2020, as well as the $20 million investment in digital payment solutions provider Global Accelerex by African Capital Alliance in November 2020. Looking ahead to 2021, we can expect the pace and volume of technology investment in Africa to continue gaining momentum. Fintech startups Chipper Cash and Flutterwave, the two most recent additions to the continent’s limited breed of ‘unicorns’ (startups that reached a $1 billion valuation), both successfully raised $100 million + Series C funding rounds in 2021. 



Long-term growth fundamentals remain in place driving the expansion of technology in Africa. Within the fintech space, the rapid growth of mobile and internet penetration in sub-Saharan Africa, coupled with challenges related to traditional banking infrastructure and services in the region, have laid the foundations for fintech to flourish and transform the financial services sector on the continent. According to AVCA’s 2020 Annual African Private Equity Data Tracker, financial technology accounted for 70% of the total number of deals within the financial sector in 2020, and consistently attracts a significant proportion of the value of private equity funding channeled to the continent.



We expect this trend to persist into 2021.

Abi Mustapha-Maduakor

Fintech Is On A Positive Path

So what would a historic pandemic year throw up? Ground-breaking entrepreneurs and thinkers. Our 2021 class of Under 30s are just that: influential creatives, imaginative business owners, innovative techies and gifted sports stars. Celebrating seven years of the FORBES AFRICA 30 Under 30 list, Renuka Methil, Managing Editor of FORBES AFRICA, speaks to the cover stars headlining the list and representing their cohorts from across the African continent. 



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</div><figcaption>Video edited by Chanel Retief </figcaption></figure>



And they are Mihlali Ndamase, a creative and digital influencer from South Africa, Reinhard Mahalie, the founder of RM Fashion Styling in Namibia, Cleo Johnson, the founder of Nuecleo in South Africa, Shakemore Timburwa, the founder of Energy Plus in Zimbabwe, and Antonio Depina, the founder of Overseas Basketball Connection based in Cape Verde.



<a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/cover-story/2021/06/11/class-of-2021-change-makers-in-a-historic-year/">Read more about the FORBES AFRICA 30 Under 30 Class of 2021 </a>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="683" height="1024" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/IMG_5029-683x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-51313" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/IMG_5029-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/IMG_5029-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/IMG_5029-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/IMG_5029-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/IMG_5029-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/IMG_5029-scaled.jpg 1707w" sizes="(max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px" /><figcaption>Photo by Motlabana Monnakgotla</figcaption></figure></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-to-look-out-for">What To Look Out For</h2>



Our FORBES AFRICA 30 Under 30 curators, Karen Mwendera, Chanel Retief and Simone Umraw will have be in conversation with some of the changemakers who made the Class of 2021 on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/forbesafrica/">Instagram</a>. Stay tuned for more!

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Panel: In Conversation With The 2021 FORBES AFRICA Under 30 Cover Stars

27 years of South African democracy and 27 years of Wiphold, which broke barriers and brought black South African women into the mainstream. FORBES AFRICA spoke to its co-founder and corporate leader Louisa Mojela, also about her new doctorate degree and what’s limiting female entrepreneurs.



Just as South Africa is set to observe Freedom Day on April 27, we look at Wiphold or the Women Investment Portfolio Holdings, one of the country’s best-known first generation empowerment companies owned and led by women.



Founded just weeks before a free South Africa was emerging from the dark shadows of the apartheid in 1994, it gave financial power to grassroots black South African women, driving broad-based economic empowerment, and among other milestones, it also became the first women-only empowerment company to list on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in 1999.



One of South Africa&#8217;s most accomplished leaders in business, Louisa Mojela, the Group CEO and co-founder of Wiphold, was recently awarded a doctorate degree by the faculty of economic and management sciences at Stellenbosch University in Cape Town for her leadership in establishing platforms to empower women in Africa.



In this interview with FORBES AFRICA, she shares some “transformative and impactful” anecdotes on the beginnings of Wiphold, which she started as part of the ‘Wip Four’ including Gloria Serobe, Wendy Luhabe and Nomhle Canca – and how it has stayed the course.



One of the main focus areas for the company currently is agriculture.



“We have incorporated that sector into our strategy and encourage our women shareholders that we support them in attaining the dream of food security,” says Mojela, who also graced the cover of FORBES WOMAN AFRICA in 2014.



Mojela also founded Bophelo BioScience &amp; Wellness in 2018 in Lesotho (focusing on medicinal cannabis), and is now creating new social and transformational development opportunities in the growing cannabis sector.



In this interview, she also speaks about the future of women’s entrepreneurship on the African continent. “To the women, I say, turn obstacles into opportunities. Success is never easy, it’s a long road.”



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</div><figcaption>Edited by Chanel Retief</figcaption></figure>

JPP_0622

Lessons From Wiphold’s Louisa Mojela On Turning Obstacles Into Opportunities

An audit coordinator, Arora Akanksha is challenging the status quo, declaring herself as a candidate to be the next Secretary-General of the United Nations.







Arora Akanksha speaks to us from New York in a bright African print dress, one of the nine colorful outfits in her wardrobe that she brought back from her trip to the African continent in 2016.



Every time she wears one of these dresses to work, walking down the streets of Manhattan, she receives compliments, she says, with people alluding to her as “an African princess”.



Looking up from those streets in Manhattan, at the towering, 154-meter glistening slab of steel that is the United Nations (UN) Secretariat, her hopes and ambitions run as high, as she boldly attempts to foray into a slew of unprecedented firsts.



The Indian-Canadian, who prefixes her name with her family name, joined the UN in 2016 and is the audit coordinator at the United Nations Development Programme. Today, she is known to her friends and supporters – and the global media she has recently approached in her personal campaign – as the 34-year-old bidding for the top job at the UN.



In February this year, Akanksha announced her candidacy, challenging incumbent UN Secretary-General António Guterres in the UN elections to be held later this year.



Hired to serve on the UN’s financial reforms, Akanksha says, prior to that, she was a manager at accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in Toronto, Canada. She was also the youngest audit professor at the University of Toronto, at the age of 28, teaching audit at the master’s level. She graduated from Canada’s York University with a Bachelor in Administrative Studies and has a Master in Public Administration from Columbia University in New York.



Aiming for more firsts, Akanksha, who spent her formative years in Saudi Arabia and India, says she is “the first woman and first millennial candidate for the position of the UN Secretary-General and the first known candidate to challenge an incumbent”. If she wins, she will be the youngest-ever and first female Secretary-General of the UN in its 75-year history.



In early January, Guterres, a long-serving international diplomat and former UN High Commissioner for Refugees, presented himself as a candidate seeking a second five-year term. To succeed as Secretary-General, any candidate must finally win the approval of the five veto-wielding permanent members of the UN Security Council, namely, the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia, China and France.



When contacted by FORBES AFRICA for a comment on Akanksha’s candidacy and details on all the candidates who have presented for the position of Secretary-General, Brenden Varma, Director of Communications and Spokesperson for the President, Office of the President of the General Assembly, says: “As of now, there is only one candidate whose name has been jointly circulated to Member States by the Presidents of the General Assembly and Security Council – and that is António Guterres of Portugal.”



The UN notes on its website regarding the selection and appointment process: “The position of Secretary-General is one of great importance that requires a person with the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity, and a firm commitment to the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations.”



Given that Akanksha has only been with the institution for four years – and that currently she is in discussion with member states to support her candidacy – what are her chances, I ask, and how is she responding to the naysayers?



She is not daunted.



“My decision to run for this position is not influenced by some long-held ambition. I believe in the UN and I know it is capable of doing great work,” she begins. “My candidacy is to restore the UN’s trust, credibility and respect in the world and to bring it back to serving people in humanitarian crises, in development needs and in climate action.



“The naysayers will always be there, and for me, I love to engage with them where I am challenged that I don’t have the experience as the Secretary-Generals of the past. I always tell them I acknowledge that I don’t have the same profile as them, but I do bring a lot. I was an auditor for PwC. I have written guidelines for elections in Canada, and in seven years working in audit, I have excelled and proven myself to be a leader in Canada and internationally. What I bring is the perspective of taking a decision and implementing it. As millennials, we have moved mountains in every profession&#8230; And I bring the force of an entire generation. We are ready to take the baton and make the UN an organization that serves all of us.”



One of the critical issues Akanksha wants to bring to the fore is the refugee crisis, especially on the African continent that’s home to more than 33 million of the world’s displaced people. She says she has a personal affiliation for the cause, hailing from a family of refugees.



“All four of my grandparents moved from Pakistan to India after the partition [in 1947], so I know what it’s like to be in a position to have nothing and build life back for yourself.”



On Africa, she adds: “We need to depopulate the refugee camps through repatriation, local integration or resettlement… Local empowerment, government engagement and listening to the people directly are what is critical, so I am proposing a development approach that empowers people on the ground through universal education and internet access.”



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<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">“As millennials, we have moved mountains in every profession&#8230; And I bring the force of an entire generation. We are ready to take the baton and make the UN an organization that serves all of us.”</blockquote>



Akanksha says her candidacy and her pressing call for a new UN has not been a surprise for her colleagues.



“My candidacy has been received well by the employees of the UN… Within the UN universe, people are expecting that we might be able to change things. Everyone is aware of the shortcomings but no one has dared to challenge the system and status quo. &nbsp;



“We need to shape the new world order, and we need a new UN, and specifically for Africa&#8230; Africans have always presented themselves with dignity no matter their hardships and been able to forgive and get to work collectively to move things forward… The UN has to give more to Africa, to give them adequate humanitarian assistance to meet their basic needs.”



Akanksha’s daring candidacy has also found her positive endorsement as “the voice of young people”.



“Arora’s candidacy is important,” says Simone Filippini, a senior Dutch diplomat and President of the Leadership4SDGs Foundation in the Netherlands, when contacted for a comment by FORBES AFRICA. “She is a talented, smart young woman of the world. She has a clear view of what needs to happen to make the UN a more effective and inclusive organization in her perspective… We need disruption and Arora is a disruptor; she is courageous to challenge power and deserves admiration and support… I hope that she will be able to get the support of many, especially of the younger generation.”



Agrees Agustin Matteri, Senior Portfolio Manager, Climate Change Unit – Latin America &amp; Caribbean, UN Environment, about the need to spread the voice: “Her chances are high, but only if we make common people aware of the importance of the UN in their daily lives.”



At the moment, Akanksha is preparing to submit her vision statement and is on leave from the UN without pay until the conclusion of the election, but does she have a plan B if she does not win?



“I am in this to win,” she affirms. “I am so optimistic in the member states to realize that the world after Covid cannot go back to the old ways of doing things… I have no plan B other than serving those not served by the system.”

1Arora Akanksha for a new UN_01_16x9

The 34-Year-Old Aiming To Run The United Nations

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Siddharth Chatterjee was recently appointed by the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General&nbsp;António Guterres&nbsp;as the UN’s Resident Coordinator in China, a role he will take up in January. Most recently, he has served as the UN’s Resident Coordinator in Kenya. &nbsp;



Having held leadership positions in various parts of the world with the UN, he has more than 25 years of experience in international development and cooperation. &nbsp;



In this interview with FORBES AFRICA from Nairobi, Kenya, Chatterjee speaks about&nbsp;his new job in the world’s second largest economy, implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and&nbsp;placing human rights at the center of all Covid-19 recovery efforts. &nbsp;



We ask what the world needs at this crucial hour, and he speaks about “strengthening multilateralism as a clarion call”.&nbsp;



A decorated officer in the Indian army before joining the UN in 1997, he is also a proud feminist, having worked towards furthering gender equality in all the countries he has worked in, including some of the&nbsp;conflict-ridden regions of the world such as Somalia and South Sudan, also drawing interesting anecdotes from those experiences. In this interview, he also dwells on&nbsp;how the African continent can realize its full human potential.&nbsp;&nbsp;

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What Does The World Need At This Hour?

Saray Khumalo shares the humbling and enthralling experience of breaking barriers and summiting some of the world’s highest mountains. &nbsp;



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In May 2019, Saray Khumalo became the first&nbsp;black African woman to summit Mount Everest.&nbsp;In a recent interview with FORBES AFRICA, Khumalo speaks about her emotional, adrenaline-driven experience getting to its peak. &nbsp;



The South African has also just launched&nbsp;a&nbsp;Malaria&nbsp;No More&nbsp;emergency response&nbsp;campaign called&nbsp;The Bigger Picture Campaign&nbsp;alongside marathon runner Eliud Kipchoge and World Cup winning South African rugby captain Siya Kolisi.&nbsp;With Covid now taking up so much airtime,&nbsp;Khumalo, who has herself had&nbsp;malaria many times growing up, is helping refocus the attention on malaria, as it’s still one of the world’s deadliest diseases and especially in the African context. &nbsp;



Khumalo is also the founder of 7 Summits, an initiative that raises money for underprivileged schools through her climbing, and is now aiming for the Explorers Grand Slam involving summiting all seven of the highest peaks on the seven continents, completing a technical rock climb and reaching the North Pole as well as the South Pole.&nbsp;



With a day job as an executive at Momentum Multiply looking after e-commerce, Khumalo started mountain-climbing in 2012.



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="alignright size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/IMG_3503.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-48530" width="222" height="222" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/IMG_3503.jpg 720w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/IMG_3503-300x300.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/IMG_3503-150x150.jpg 150w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/IMG_3503-80x80.jpg 80w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/IMG_3503-600x600.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/IMG_3503-100x100.jpg 100w" sizes="(max-width: 222px) 100vw, 222px" /><figcaption>Photo: Supplied</figcaption></figure></div>



In this interview, she says: “I made a commitment to step on top of the highest peak on every continent, but use the journey to raise money for education. And that&#8217;s where the journey started. I&#8217;ve built five libraries. And I&#8217;ve raised money. And it&#8217;s the only way we can change the narrative for the next generation.”&nbsp;



She also speaks of her harrowing experience surviving an earthquake in Nepal in 2015, and returning to summit Mount Everest in 2019, and valuing every breath.&nbsp;



“The higher you go, the more appreciative you become about where we live, and the oxygen and a lot of stuff we take for granted.&nbsp;



“I remember thinking about my mother telling me and my sisters, that ‘the sky&#8217;s the limit’ and suddenly, the clouds were beneath me. I could not see any ground. And also because it was my fourth attempt [climbing Mount Everest], you know, all the people that said I couldn&#8217;t do it, nobody like me had done it before. How wrong they were at the top! &nbsp;



“It&#8217;s just a humbling experience and it also helps you realize how much of a speck we are in the bigger scheme of things.”&nbsp;



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/296135805560457128_928A0540-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-48528" width="388" height="258" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/296135805560457128_928A0540-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/296135805560457128_928A0540-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/296135805560457128_928A0540-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/296135805560457128_928A0540-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/296135805560457128_928A0540-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/296135805560457128_928A0540-600x400.jpg 600w" sizes="(max-width: 388px) 100vw, 388px" /><figcaption>Photo: Supplied</figcaption></figure></div>

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‘Suddenly, The Clouds Were Beneath Me’: Why The Sky’s Not The Limit For This African

She has had a life of struggle and adventure, and even before being known as the mother of South African-born tech billionaire Elon Musk, was a star sashaying down the runway at the New York Fashion Week at the age of 67, rewriting the rules of the modeling industry. Maye Musk speaks to us from her home in Los Angeles about her new memoir, A Woman Makes A Plan, released by Jonathan Ball Publishers, and how Elon was always her ‘genius boy’ and is now set on exploring Mars. Excerpts from the interview:



You are 72 years old and a grandmother to 12 grandkids. How do you manage to look great and also be a model, dietician, author and entrepreneur? Women can do anything and everything… I have to eat very well to maintain a healthy weight and have a lot of energy. I have also never smoked, which is great and I wear a hat in the sun and sunscreen. You need to look after yourself and stay healthy and then, of course, the world is the limit. And then there’s Mars…



You grew up in Pretoria (South Africa) and in your book, recount your trips traveling with your parents across the Kalahari Desert every winter. Your family motto was ‘live dangerously — carefully’. Have you always been adventure-seekers? With my parents coming from Canada, from a small town, to South Africa, they just wanted to explore Africa and the world in a single engine plane. They did a lot of that and then they took all five children to the Kalahari Desert… with a compass and we would map it out and we would map the hills… [when] all my friends went to the beach… but it’s so weird my parents were so adventurous, it was wonderful!



Your older son Elon Musk, as the founder of Tesla, makes electric cars and launches rockets into space. Your second son Kimbal is a food entrepreneur and your daughter Tosca a filmmaker. What was it like raising three successful kids as a struggling single mother? How did you navigate great sadness and stress along the way?



Funny enough, when I told my children my book agent wants me to write about my life and the lessons I’ve learned and they said, ‘you’ve got to bring your struggles into your book’, and I said, ‘oh you know, I never complain’, so they said, ‘no, people need to know what you’ve been through’. So I put the struggles in and then when I read it with my editor, I said ‘oh, I have got to take some of these chapters out’, and she said, ‘no, women will relate to them’, and that’s why my struggles are in there.If you are in a bad situation, you just have to get out; you have to get out quicker than I did. You have to find a way and share your problem with your family and friends. Interestingly, my twin sister and my two brothers had no idea what I was going through. I never came across as struggling as I never complained. I was always happy. My point is, if you complain all the time, then you’re not interesting or fun or beautiful because you are just miserable. That’s why I never told anyone what I had been through, but nowadays, if you need help, you need to tell people.



What is your advice for overcoming stress and depression? I never went through depression. Depression means you can’t get up in the morning. I had to get up, get the kids to school and be at work at 7.30AM. So I didn’t have depression but I had a lot of sadness and rightly so, because I was scared and had to feed the kids. And then my ex-husband, after my divorce for 11 years, had me in lawsuits. That was exhausting and you live in constant fear. When it comes to depression, because I’m a dietician, and I’ve counseled patients for 45 years, and many of them were depressed and some had a reason, sometimes poor health, and I could help them eat better. If there is a reason for the depression, you need to talk it out. If it is because of things that have happened in the past, then I recommend they don’t continually complain about their past, because it just makes them less interesting.When it came to dating, every time I met a man, he would tell me about his miserable life and I would say, ‘I feel like I’m counseling, I am getting out of here!. When they want to date someone, men also need to be fun and have some kind of interest other than their miserable lives.



You have called Elon your ‘genius boy’ in your book. He got his first computer at 12, and learned to use it and wrote a computer program, BLASTAR. He published it at the age of 13. How did you see that interest in technology in him bloom? I told people when he was three that he was a genius and people were like, ‘oh, you are such a mother’, because all mothers think like that. Then, I would say, ‘no, really’. He would read the encyclopaedia and remember everything in there, so he really was our encyclopaedia. I mean I can read a book and I would forget it soon afterwards but he does not forget those things. It was when he was 12 [that] he showed me his computer program when I was teaching modeling to university students. I showed it to some of the computer students and they said, ‘oh, he knows all the short cuts, it looks great’. So, I told him he had to submit the program to a magazine and he did. I don’t think they knew that he was only 13, and he got R500 for it; how cool is that?



What does it take to raise a billionaire? I did not raise a billionaire – [Elon] was sleeping on the floor on a mattress. And that wasn’t his aim [to become a billionaire]. His aim is to save the planet and he also loves the thought of going to Mars. I raised all three of my kids the same way my parents raised me, to be independent, to make your own choices and be responsible for them, and also to take on work that will benefit other people. For example, Tosca has a platform called Passionflix and she takes best-selling romance novels and makes them into movies. In these movies, the women are paid as much as the men and they are strong, and confident and successful. They aren’t beaten up, violated and abused and there are always happy endings. It makes me feel good she is making movies that make people happy. With Kimbal, besides his farm-to-table restaurants, which helps the farmers, he does vegetable gardens in underserved schools. He has built 650 vegetable gardens in schools; he wanted to do 1,000 by the end of the year, but of course, everything’s got delayed with the lockdown. The children get so excited to plant seeds and water them and pick them out of the ground and prepare them and eat them. I mean to get kids excited about vegetables; well, it makes a dietician like me very happy.



Your son Elon’s pioneering work is to one day inhabit Mars. Did you always see that interest in him for space? Do you share that with him? I get very excited every step of the way. We all do. Kimbal and Tosca and I go to the main launches, we can’t go to all the launches, as Elon has launched, how many now… 50 rockets? I’m not sure. I lose track. But we go to the main ones, and we are anxious beforehand and excited afterwards and we are very proud of him and support him with all this. He just feels that we should be inter-planetary, starting with Mars. Mars seems to be the most friendly [planet], and that is what he would like to explore.



What do you call Elon Musk’s youngest son (whose name is X Æ A-12)? I call him ‘X’. We are all still in quarantine so we are Covid-free. We see each other when we can but not as often we used to.



What next for Maye Musk? I am just getting started and once the airports open up and will accept Americans into other countries, my book launch will go into all the major countries, hopefully South Africa too, and then I can give talks in [all these] different countries. The goal of my book is to inspire people to have happier lives.



What is the strength of South Africa’s women according to you? I have always found South African women to be strong, confident and fun. I miss their sense of humor. They just need to support each other, and the men need to support women so they can advance, because when women advance, the country does better.

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‘I Am Just Getting Started’: Maye Musk On Her New Book, Modeling, Mars And Her ‘Genius Boy’ Elon

In this exclusive interview with FORBES AFRICA, successful Dubai-based Emirati businesswoman, author and artist, Sheikha Hend Faisal Al Qassimi, shares some interesting insights on fashion, the future, and feminism in a shared world.



Sheikha Hend Faisal Al Qassimi wears many hats, as an artist, architect, author, entrepreneur and philanthropist based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). She currently serves as the CEO of Paris London New York Events &amp; Publishing (PLNY), that includes a magazine and a fashion house.



She runs Velvet Magazine, a luxury lifestyle publication in the Gulf founded in 2010 that showcases the diversity of the region home to several nationalities from around the world. 



In this recent FORBES AFRICA interview, Hend, as she would want us to call her, speaks about the future of publishing, investing in intelligent content, and learning to be a part of the disruption around you.



As an entrepreneur too and the designer behind House of Hend, a luxury ready-to-wear line that showcases exquisite abayas, evening gowns and contemporary wear, her designs have been showcased in fashion shows across the world.



The Middle East is known for retail, but not typically, as a fashion hub in the same league as Paris, New York or Milan. Yet, she has changed the narrative of fashion in the region. “I have approached the world of fashion with what the customer wants,” says Hend. In this interview, she also extols African fashion talent and dwells on her own sartorial plans for the African continent.



In September, in Downtown Dubai, she is scheduled to open The Flower Café. Also an artist using creative expression meaningfully, she says it’s important to be &#8220;a role model of realism&#8221;.



She is also the author of The Black Book of Arabia, described as a collection of true stories from the Arab community offering a real glimpse into the lives of men and women across the Gulf Cooperation Council region.



In this interview, she also expounds on her home, Sharjah, one of the seven emirates in the UAE and the region’s educational hub. “A number of successful entrepreneurs have started in this culturally-rich emirate that’s home to 30 museums,” she concludes.&nbsp;

Sheikha Hend

From The Arab World To Africa

Nasty C, the award-winning South African rapper hailed ‘The Coolest Kid In Africa’, recently signed with Def Jam in the United States, through a joint venture with Universal Music Africa, which sees him joining the likes of Kanye West and Justin Bieber. The 23-year-old rapper, also one of FORBES AFRICA’s 30 Under 30 list-makers in 2018, tells us more.



Mainstream South African rapper, Nsikayesizwe David Junior Ngcobo, popularly known as Nasty C, recently made his US debut with the song, There They Go, a single launched just before the lockdown in South Africa in March. Shot in Durban, in the country’s sunny KwaZulu-Natal coast, it’s the first advance track of his forthcoming album Zulu Man with Some Power.



Known as the most-streamed South African artist on Apple Music for four years in a row, he is effecting the crossover to the global stage and helping change stereotypes about African music. The Universal Music Group also recently announced the launch of Def Jam Africa, which shows new interest in talent across the continent.



Says Nasty C, who has been rapping since he was nine years old, and shot to fame with songs like Juice Back and Bad Hair, to FORBES AFRICA: “I hope to change that whole stereotype and just show them that we have a lot of depth and different flavors, and there are a lot of things we can teach outsiders that they don’t really know about. Hopefully, by exposing more African artists and if I can open the gates and have hundreds of artists follow after me, I feel we can bridge that gap. They will see Africa in a different light.”



While on lockdown in Johannesburg, the rapper has been building his online presence.



“I have had to focus on the digital side of things, and also be able to go live on YouTube and connect with fans; give them a taste of music that’s still to come.”



Through technology, even if the pandemic pursues, he feels music will survive.



“Music is very unpredictable. With the whole TikTok thing, artists are able to go viral&#8230; And that’s been working out very successfully and help them earn a little bit of money. I don’t think artists are going to be struggling if this pandemic continues… But nothing can top the energy of being in an arena with fans.”



Ten years from now, the young rapper hopes to be seen as an artist for generations.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">“I hope to be a legend, I don’t want it to be about how rich I am or how my music career is, as long as I have changed the way my people think…”</blockquote>



His new song album Zulu Man with Some Power, he says, is about taking more pride in his people and culture and showcasing it on the global stage.



He says he looks up to artists like Burna Boy and Wizkid “who are representing Africa and uplifting Africa in the world”.



“My idols are living testimony that there are powers in the universe that could allow you to go from zero to hero. That’s what I hope to teach my fans. I come from a place where dreaming is not a thing, where people’s ceilings are this low. They feel they are undeserving of the finer things in life. I am just here to tell them that they are wrong. They should go for their dreams no matter how crazy and outrageous they are!”

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The Def Jam Star And Trend-Setter In African Music: ‘I Come From A Place Where Dreaming Is Not A Thing’

Swimming sensation Chad le Clos had planned on returning from the Tokyo 2020 Olympics with gold but with the games postponed, he’s for now focusing on family, fitness and his foundation.



For many athletes, the postponement of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games to 2021 has meant stalled training regimes. South Africa’s 28-year-old Olympic gold medalist swimmer Chad le Clos, at home in the coastal town of Durban while in lockdown in South Africa, says this year, he had hoped to return from the Olympics with another gold medal.



“I planned on hopefully winning a gold medal and coming back home and celebrating with the country. I was planning on doing a lot of great things this year. It is quite sad but I am looking at the bigger picture. There are a lot of things I want to achieve inside and outside of the pool. The Olympics is the biggest goal I will ever have. And hopefully, I can make South Africa proud next year.”



Posing in front of his haul of medals at home in Durban, in a Zoom interview with FORBES AFRICA, Le Clos, who was also one of FORBES AFRICA’s 30 Under 30 list-makers in 2019, says he is waiting to get back into the pool.



“Before the lockdown in South Africa, I was away in Europe training. For the last five weeks, I have not been able to train but I was very lucky to spend time with a family friend on his farm on 36 acres of land with horses and dogs, so I was mostly training outdoors.”



The sports star, who is also recovering from two recent surgeries, says swimming is different from any other sport.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">“As a runner or athlete, you can run, but as a swimmer, you need to have that feel of the water. It’s a very different fitness. I am a terrible runner, I can’t run at all. But when I am in the pool, I can be as fit as I can… So focus is important, once you lose that feel, it will take weeks to get back to that fitness.”</blockquote>



Le Clos, who has been swimming competitively from the age of 10 and is a 17-time Commonwealth Games medalist, speaks about the Chad le Clos Foundation and the special projects coming up in the townships also serving underprivileged communities.



How about becoming an entrepreneur at some point, we ask in this interview.



“I don’t want to close any doors. I want to dive into everything head on. Right now, my big focus is the Olympics. I am in a great mental head space. My family is the most important thing and they are safe. Once swimming has firmly shut, I will focus on the next chapter and it will be some sort of business. I have a lot of passion projects like I have said with my foundation&#8230;”



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Le Clos says he has looked up to swimmer Michael Phelps his whole life (and even beat him at the age of 20 by 0.05 seconds at the 2012 Olympics in London in the men’s 200meters butterfly), but the iconic boxer Muhammad Ali is his “ultimate idol”.



“For what he stood for, the greatest boxer of all time, he was the people’s champion. I am not as outspoken as he was, but I have always seen myself too as a people’s champion, I have seen myself swimming for my family, my people and my country. Muhammad Ali is my hero and icon. And my big inspiration outside of the pool.”



During the lockdown, besides “playing a lot of poker with my family and losing”, it has also been a good time to reflect.



“I like to visualize positive things. As a kid, I always visualized success, the Olympics, the gold medal, you create that moment, and let that percolate. The more positives you put out are the positives you will get back. Focus on the positives. During this time, make yourself stronger mentally. You can come out of this stronger, and it will help you going forward.”

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Making South Africa Proud And His Inspiration Outside The Pool

Recovering from a knee injury the last two years, this Olympian sprinter was all set to defend his title at the Tokyo 2020 Games. In lockdown in South Africa, the ardent Mo Salah and Liverpool fan shares how he has been building his endurance and finding positivity in the chaos.



Nothing can get a good sportsman down.



Ask Cape Town-born Wayde van Niekerk, who made history at the 2016 Rio Olympics with a record-breaking performance as a track and field athlete.



In a way, the five-week government-imposed lockdown in South Africa was an extension of Van Niekerk’s own time away from the limelight, when he was already used to living and training indoors, consistently building on his physical and mental endurance.



The serious knee injury in 2017 that kept him away from the track had meant “a hibernation” of a different kind when he was steering himself for the next big competition returning to the field again in 2020.&nbsp;&nbsp;



This was also going to be the year he was going to defend his 400m world record at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.



“I came out of an injury, and it led to me entering a hibernation period of my life where a lot happened, internally, indoors, away from the TV screens,” says Van Niekerk on a Zoom interview with FORBES AFRICA from his home in Bloemfontein in South Africa’s Free State province, a day after the country lifted the lockdown with Level 4 restrictions.



“As this year started, I had shifted my mentality to becoming an athlete again, and getting ready for the next major competition, and then Covid-19 started, and that led to me taking a step back and shift back to the hibernation stage of training and strengthening myself.



“I am blessed and privileged to have equipment around me and a gym setup at home. So I was well-prepared before even the pandemic… but you do miss the track but this pandemic is something we all have to face.”



The 28-year-old, who showed promise from an early age, and who was also listed as one of FORBES AFRICA’s 30 Under 30 achievers in 2019, says he has been using the time to find peace in chaos.



“What I have learned is to try and find that peace, that positivity and calm in this storm. It’s a mentality shift that I had to meditate on, that I build a positive foundation, that I reap every strength and positivity invested in me, that once I come out of the injury, I &nbsp;come out stronger. Now, I am making sure my physical and mental strength can complement one another.”



With the Tokyo 2020 Games now postponed owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, did it give him the gift of time?



“Not really. Every time is a blessing,” says Van Niekerk. “I prepared myself for that this year, but reality is what it is. And we can’t be dwelling on the losses… we can either see it as time lost or there is a goal I have set for myself, the way I am going to get it is not important. It doesn’t matter the platform it happens on, as long as it happens. I have been investing my time into it.”



From 200m events as a junior athlete, to a 400m specialist later in life, Van Niekerk is clearly among the most versatile sprinters in the history of the sport.



You can sense it’s no fake modesty when he tells you that the time away from the track has also made him want to do more for the less fortunate around him. The attention is not on himself.



“I find it difficult to focus on just me… I am very passionate about helping those around me. I am not a fan of wanting to do things that become a media event,” he says simply.



“We are going through this period to cleanse and strengthen ourselves&#8230; Forget about who you are, and see whose lives you can make easier. The people who are struggling now are the people who will give you the biggest smile and who will give you the confidence. And now it’s time for us as sports people and as human beings to find ways to consider those around us who are less fortunate and not as blessed as we are.”



The transition from indoor fitness to outdoor training, once the lockdown regulations are fully lifted, is not going to be an easy one.



“There are a lot of technical things to it in terms of getting 100% race-fit for an international stage and trying to do some competitions; to just shake off that rust and to get the legs going and the body moving and the blood flowing again. There is a massive difference between a gym workout and being a track athlete. There will be a whole few months before we get to be at the level and shape where we can improve ourselves as athletes,” he says.



The ardent Mo Salah and Liverpool fan has also been engaging with his network of sports comrades around the world. Jamaican former sprinter Usain Bolt is a good friend. You ask if he has been in touch.



“I communicate with most, but Usain is more about the banter. He’s always teasing me about the Premier League not going to finish, so they keep trying to tap into that nerve of mine as I am a passionate Liverpool supporter. So I am trying not to entertain that side of them,” laughs Van Niekerk.



As a child, Van Niekerk dreamed of becoming the fastest man in the world. It’s a dream that still keeps the speedster going.



“It is what I have been investing in ever since I was young, and what I want to achieve. With the barriers I broke came confidence, and why not believe in what I can achieve? I am invested 110% to want to improve the 100m, 200m and up to 400m, and I am more hungry and determined than ever before!”

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Wayde van Niekerk: ‘Lockdown Meant Shifting Back To Hibernation To Train And Strengthen Myself’

A poem exclusively penned and performed in lockdown in the US for the readers of FORBES AFRICA, by Rwandan artist Malaika Uwamahoro.



Malaika Uwamahoro, an artist born in Rwanda, and a Theatre Studies BA graduate from Fordham University in New York City, has performed her own poetry on stages around the world including at the United Nations headquarters in New York, and at the African Union summits in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) and Kigali (Rwanda).



In 2014, she made her Off-Broadway debut at Signature Theatre in the world premiere of Katori Hall&#8217;s Our Lady of Kibeho.



Currently resident in Portland, Maine, in the United States, she speaks to FORBES AFRICA about her life in lockdown, and about a poem she penned exclusively for the readers of the magazine: “To fight this pandemic, essential workers and medical doctors are doing their best on the frontlines to ensure everyone in need gets the necessary support and best care possible… Before we are all choked and out of breath just by thinking about this, I extend this poetry piece as an invitation to look inward.”



How did she come up with the poem, titled I Don’t Mind!, and its accompanying video?



“It was late in the night, my fiancé was fast asleep, and I thought to myself, ‘how do I really feel about all this, what are my true thoughts about this pandemic, what can I do’? I opened my notes and the words began to flow.”



A few days later, she shared the poem with her fiancé, Christian Kayiteshonga, a filmmaker.



“We had previously been pondering ways to make art in our home. This poem seemed like the perfect push to set us in our new path. Our home became the film set, using blankets and cake mix as props, windows and office space as locations, myself as the talent, him as the crew, and now you as the audience,” says Uwamahoro, who also performed for the ‘In the Spotlight’ segment at the FORBES WOMAN AFRICA Leading Women Summit in Durban, South Africa, on March 6.

Author: Renuka Methil

FORBES AFRICA SOCIAL MEDIA