Congratulations to Takalani Malivha, an African Leadership Academy alumna who has recently received the 2017 Mandela Rhodes Foundation Scholarship!
Takalani hails from the Limpopo Province in South African and graduated from ALA in 2011. Ever since her early days as a student, her talent and potential have set her apart. While on campus, Takalani was a student director of the school choir and served as Attorney General of the student Honour Council. She was also appointed CEO of a student-run unisex hair and beauty salon, TEN50. Under Takalani’s leadership, TEN50 was recognized as the best enterprise with the student-run business award.
Beyond ALA
After graduating from the Academy, Takalani enrolled at the University of Texas at Austin (UT) and pursued a degree in Economics and Psychology. While at UT, she was the co-founder and president of Exceeding Economics Expectations, an organisation aimed at diversifying the student experience for all Economics majors at UT. She continued to explore her interest in leadership by serving as a Peer Leadership Educator and joining the University’s Burnt Orange Society. This student society supports personal leadership initiatives among UT learners. She graduated from UT in December 2016 with a major in Psychology and a minor in Economics.
She recalls learning about the Mandela Rhodes Foundation (MRF) when she was deciding on prospects for her postgraduate career and immediately, her interest was piqued. The organisation advocates for African talent and is dedicated towards student support and leadership. She chose MRF because she felt their work resonates with her values. She applied for the MRF Scholarship to get a Masters in Economic Development at the University of Cape Town. Now that she has been awarded the scholarship, Takalani is excited to pursue her Masters at UCT in 2017.
The Mandela Rhodes Foundation Scholarship
The vision of the Mandela Rhodes Foundation is to build exceptional leadership capacity in Africa and to foster entrepreneurship through its various programmes. Mandela Rhodes Foundation scholars should exemplify purposeful leadership, strong moral character, and impressive intellect. It is important for the scholars to acknowledge that education is both a gift and a tool for the advancement of human development. The Mandela Rhodes Foundation’s focus on entrepreneurship and leadership mirrors the values of African Leadership Academy. Takalani had this to say about being awarded the scholarship, “I am looking forward to my course. I am excited to get down to understanding economic impact and policy at the grassroots level. I am looking forward to how I am going to impact the field and how I am going to be challenged and changed as a person.”
We know that Takalani will use the skills she has acquired while at ALA and at UT, to embody this entrepreneurial and leadership spirit that will allow Africa to prosper and be competitive in the global world.
Congratulations Takalani, we are proud of you and we wish you all the best!
