Anushka Singh-Bhima
I am hoping to connect with like-minded women to grow and shift society norms to a mother-centric approach. I am feeling excited to come together with other women who favour this model of community and women-led empowerment!
Founded in 2019, the Mamandla Fellowship provides an opportunity to harness the collective efforts of our work and passions for the good of all mothers, and to leverage the power of our diverse experiences through a network of relationships. Embrace is a national movement with a simple, powerful mission: to ensure every mother is supported from the start of their motherhood journey. The Mamandla Fellowship is uniquely designed as an accessible opportunity for mother-supporters who wish to lead a pro-mother agenda for social change in South Africa. The Fellowship is a year-long journey that includes compulsory in-person engagements, on-line learning and ad-hoc community conversation amongst the fellows. Attendance and participation at all fellowship engagements is compulsory. The Fellowship is designed to build community and networking. It is not an individual learning journey and fellows commit to showing up for each other during their fellowship journey. Every effort will be made to support logistics for participation. There will be no monetary contribution required for Fellows. Embrace sees this Fellowship as a deep investment into the growth of our movement. We entrust fellows with the platform and connections to act and further the work of the movement for mothers. As the Embrace movement grows, we believe we need a capable body of change-makers who understand the value of an investment in motherhood and are willing to lead the efforts of the movement in their local community and nationally. As the issues we’re passionate about gain traction, we’re looking to grow our community of fellows with individuals who desire to be at the forefront of these important conversations. We believe a Fellowship like ours offers an opportunity to come into a space that redefines who leaders are and refines what leadership is. Then Mamandla is for you I am hoping to connect with like-minded women to grow and shift society norms to a mother-centric approach. I am feeling excited to come together with other women who favour this model of community and women-led empowerment! Through the Mamandla fellowship, I aim to create a community of support where teen moms can share their experiences, uplift one another, and realize their potential. Together, they can conquer any obstacle and embrace a future filled with hope and endless possibilities. Being a Mamandla fellow as a health professional means an opportunity to bridge the gap between clinician and patient, to be part of the solution and not the problem. It’s an opportunity to not only hold a space for them but to learn how to advocate for a better future. I have contributed to holding the South African government accountable for this inhuman practice, from the National DoH to Section 19 organizations such as the Commission for Gender Equity and the office of the Public Protector. Being a Mamandla fellow is important to me as I am passionate about helping mothers who continue to face a triple oppression of race, class, and gender. To be a Mamandla Fellow to me means that, I am able to lift up the banner and stand firm on the wings of change, to be part of a transformation that enables me to embrace my uniqueness . I am able to share space and thoughts with women who are driven by the same conviction of driving towards becoming a collective voice for those misunderstood or unheard. Mamandla Fellow programme is an enabler to become, to be equipped to stand for what I needed most in crucial times in my life as a young mother. Being selected as a Mamandla Fellow/Alumni holds profound significance for me. It signifies an opportunity to collaborate with like-minded individuals, nurture my leadership abilities, and make a meaningful impact in the field of motherhood support and advocacy. I am thrilled to join a community that shares my unwavering passion for empowering mothers and driving positive change in the lives of families. I’ve experienced and learned a lot in the last few years of mothering that prompted my interest in care, social reproduction and matrescence. I strongly believe in the principle of “motho ke motho ka batho,” which emphasizes the interconnectedness of humanity. The journey of motherhood requires the support and involvement of the community to navigate its highs and lows, and Mamandla provides that space for each fellow to thrive. Being a Mamandla fellow as a health professional means an opportunity to bridge the gap between clinician and patient, to be part of the solution and not the problem. It’s an opportunity to not only hold a space for them but to learn how to advocate for a better future. As a mother myself I think it’s a responsibility of every mom to share love and support to those in need. To be a Mamandla Fellow, I want to continue learning and gaining more wisdom from other women to make a different in my community. I want to share many universal experiences and, most importantly, to make every woman to rise by lifting each other. Frequently, the gritty, unpretty side of motherhood is overlooked. I want women to know that they have the right to question at every stage of motherhood, that they have a voice and that it deserves to be heard. The less isolated we feel, the more we can harness strength in unity and empowering each other. I’m a speaker and always focused on making sure we have what we need in this life. I use different platforms to educate women of their bodies and to help women understand what is available to them what their rights are and help empower them on an individual level so as to influence communities. I am also passionate about adolescent health and empowering girls from a young age. I have been involved with various projects and various organisations that involve women upliftment. Being a Mamandla Fellow/Alumni holds immense significance for me. It means being part of a vibrant community of inspiring individuals who share a common goal of uplifting mothers. I take the role of continuing to support younger and new mothers as well as those who have been on the journey for longer in all my lives as a professional and one who lives and operates in a rural, urban and global contexts. As a Mamandla fellow, I hope to contribute to Embrace’s work for changing the narrative around teenage pregnancy and obstetric violence in South Africa, to join and learn from a powerful network of women working towards dignified pregnancy, birth and postpartum experiences and ultimately, to make health systems work better for mothers! I am truly grateful to be part of the Mamandla Movement. Being a fellow of the movement to me means serving with the capacity to “influence others through inspiration, motivated by passion, produced by conviction and ignited by a purpose” (Dr. Myles Munroe). I believe that I was born for a time such as this to let mothers and woman suffering with depression know that, ‘We Hear You!’ It is one of my goals to ensure that all women get to experience the pregnancy and birth they desire and deserve. And I am so excited about this journey with the Mamandla fellowship as it is directly aligned to what I wish to achieve. It is a true honour and privilege to be a part of the Mamandla Fellowship. I believe in holding space within the small business community for the crucial conversations that Embrace is pioneering My personal goal is to evolve into a social entrepreneur that empowers women to own their time and income. I’m grateful for the opportunity to be part of a movement that can spearhead change in the generations to come. I haven’t had it easy but I never allow my situation to define me. Being a member of Mamandla means now I can get to meet other women with whom minds put together we can change the whole perception of a mother and empower mothers so that they become self sufficient and have access to arms/means that can propel them to reach their optimum. Being a Mamandla Fellow will allow me to network with like-minded women who are passionate about supporting mothers in communities and will enable me to grow. It’s such a great honour to be a Mamandla Fellow because I get the chance to meet and connect with like-minded women. It is such a great pleasure to be part of the Mamandla fellowship 2022. This opportunity will allow me to expand my knowledge and create relationships with amazing women. Being a Mamandla fellow means that I can further my passion and get deeper with my involvement and intentions. I want to contribute to the fellowship using my experience and also by becoming a sponge and absorb as much wisdom and knowledge as possible. My background incubated a personal philosophy of social justice which led me to seek communion in the fellowship of like-minded people that is Mamandla. Within the broad range of issues affecting motherhood and mothers’ rights, I have a particular interest in breastfeeding, the laws regulating maternity leave and early childhood development. I am excited about being part of the Mamandla Fellowship and I look forward to the learnings, the amazing networks, and changing the world one day at a time. I want to use the Mamandla Fellowship as an opportunity to learn the skills I need to return to the community, both my own and those in more under-resourced areas, and be a better supporter of mothers! A breaker of generational-chains! A sharer of beneficial knowledge and resources! A listener of stories! And an all-round advocate for the many issues that affect mothers in this country. My name is Beverley. I have two sons who help me to stay in tip… I’m Cindy Mkhize and I am a 29-year-old mother of one beautiful energetic daughter from Port Shepstone, KZN. I am a regional manager in corporate social responsibility for a construction company. Gaopalelwe Phalaetsile is a journalist, mom blogger and content creator @mommy_feminist, who writes about conscious… Joey Dlamini is a parenting expert with a heart and message that we should normalise… Hi, I’m Kayla-Tess (she, her) – mom of two, wife to one, passionate social worker,… Maggie Marx is a research communication specialist at the University of Cape Town, a wife… My name is Memory Linzie Simwaka, a wife, mother, business administrator, strong supporter of mothers… My name is Nomfundo Mkhaba. I am based in Roseneath on the South coast of… I’m Nompumelelo Zethu Sakhile Mathibe, a 28-year-old married mom of one, based in Rustenburg but… Ntokozo is a proud antenatal and postnatal class host. Her passion for empowering mothers stems… Nwabisa Mzamo is a married woman with three children. She was born and bred in… Rachel Kinloch is a mom to two gorgeous little boys, Hunter and Maverick. She is… Sometimes before you can be a ‘mover and shaker’ you need to be moved and… I’m Tlotlisang Amanda Mokoena. I was born in Soweto, South Africa. I am a teacher,… Christie is a medical doctor with a special interest in HIV/Aids research. She is currently… Dithoriso, or ‘Dee’ as she’s affectionately known, is a community activist and social entrepreneur who… Dudu and her twin, Smangele are BoMme, “a movement that celebrates a beautiful motherhood. We… Our beloved Gillian Bird – or Mama G or Gills, as she was affectionately called by… The Mamandla Fellowship is uniquely designed as an accessible opportunity for mother-supporters who wish to lead a pro-mother agenda for social change in South Africa. The Fellowship is a year-long journey that includes compulsory in-person engagements, on-line learning and ad-hoc community conversation amongst the fellows. Attendance and participation at all fellowship engagements is compulsory. The Fellowship is designed to build community and networking. It is not an individual learning journey and fellows commit to showing up for each other during their fellowship journey. Every effort will be made to support logistics for participation. There will be no monetary contribution required for Fellows. Nolwazi is a community organizer and business owner from Gauteng. She feels that “if the… Nomfundo is the dynamo behind the KwaZulu-Natal based Women of Worth Society (WoW). Palesa has a passion for empowering women and creating spaces in which young women can… Portia’s passion lies in bridging the generational gaps between older and younger mothers… mangele, together with her twin sister, Dudu, are BoMme, “a movement… Someleze “Somi’s” passion is to offer mothers support specifically with respect to mental health. She… Tabea’s passion is in developing women’s sense of self-worth, outside of their identities as wives,… Tana is passionate about birth. In her work as a doula, she has seen first-hand… Taryn-Zoë believes that “the mom is the heart of every home”. Her journey and relationship… Tasmin is the founder of Preemie Connect, an online support group for parents… Yvette’s passion for mothers was fuelled by watching her mom take care of the community,… Embrace is an exercise in harnessing the game-changing strength of this community-in-practice to improve the social, economic, political contexts in which mothers mother. Mamandla is the central part of this social experiment. It is based in Embrace’s core belief that lasting positive change can and should be driven by the lived experiences of the individuals at whom change initiatives are directed. If we want to improve the lives and experiences of mothers in South Africa, we must allow these mothers to lead the charge. In this first edition of our yearbook, you will meet a group of women connected by and to the common aim of building and mobilising communities of support for mothers across the country. We hope you see your own patterns of care and communities in these pages. And, if you think you might belong here, we hope you’ll consider joining Mamandla. Mamandla Fellowship
Dear Fellow Mother-Supporter,
The Mamandla Fellowship is an opportunity to:
If you are:
Mamandla can offer you:
Meet previous Mamandla fellows:
Anushka Singh-Bhima
Ayanda Mthethwa
Bolanle Enang
Bongie Msibi
Kebotlhale Motseothata
Kefilwe Sibenya
Kudzai Fatokun
Lutfiyah Suliman
Mapula Gethe
Monique Koopman
Rolinah Mathebula
Rowlene Jantjes
Sanele Vilakazi
Sibuyiselwe Lubelwana
Thandoluhle Vilakazi
Ukhona Ntsali Mlandu
Bronte Davies
Chimonay Masumbe
Jolene Tromp
Lyndall Moodley
Mahlatse Kgatle
Mildred Hlatshwayo
Nodumo Makaza
Noloyiso Williams
Nomgcobo Galela
Nqubeko Shezi
Palesa Mphambani
Pamela Mkhize-Madonsela
Qaanita Rossier
Beverley Kambarami
Cindy Mkhize
Gaopalelwe Phalaetsile
Joey Dlamini
Kayla-Tess Pattenden
Maggie Marx
Memory Linzie Simwaka
Nomfundo Mkhaba
Nompumelelo Zethu Sakhile Mathibe
Ntokozo Mabhena
Nwabisa Mzamo
Rachel Kinloch
Roeline Van Eck
Tlotlisang Amanda Mokoena
Christie Roberts
Dithoriso Mputhi
Dudu Mathebula
Gillian Bird
Mamandla Fellowship: Apply Today!
Nolwazi Serero
Nomfundo Msomi
Palesa Mshungu
Portia Mahlobo
Smangele Mathebula
Someleze Swana
Tabea Nong
Tana Makgoka
Taryn-Zoë Gurr
Tasmin Tiffany Bota
Yvette Zihhalirwa
Welcome to The Power Trip
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