SMag celebrates women in power

A glimpse of women leading in their respective fields

Emmanuel Tjiya S Mag Editor-in-chief
TV and radio personality Lerato Kganyago.
TV and radio personality Lerato Kganyago.
Image: Steve Tanchel

Introducing SMag’s third annual Women of the Year issue, which honours SA’s most powerful and influential women shaping our world.

The six great women hand-picked to anchor this edition are TV and radio personality Lerato Kganyago (entertainment), JSE COO Itumeleng Monale (business), multidisciplinary artist Lulama Wolf (fashion & art), associate professor at University of Pretoria Nombulelo Sepeng (health & education), former Springbok Women's captain Babalwa Latsha (sports) and food content creator Nompumelelo Nkosi (digital content creation). Through their wisdom, passion, drive and being their authentic selves, they inspire us.

Kganyago, Wolf and Nkosi are on the three covers, out tomorrow. Here are some exclusive highlights from the issue:

Kganyago on her marriage to Thami Ndlala: It was nerve-wrecking in the beginning. A lot of negative things were said about my marriage, which affected both of us. He didn’t understand the media and found himself having to explain himself a lot. Until it got to a point where we made our marriage about us.

Every marriage has challenges and right now we are having the time of our lives because we have become each other’s friend. Now we just wait for our baby.

Nkosi on her sexuality: “Before all the titles and designations, I’m me and I’m gay. Being gay is not my personality and I want people to acknowledge that I’m gay before anything else,” she says. “Representation is paramount to me, in that there are spaces where I won’t go in no matter how high the price tag is because those spaces don’t accommodate people like me.

Even though I haven’t experienced a lot of homophobia, it doesn’t mean that I won’t fight homophobia. I’m thankful to God and my family that I never had to hide who I am. I was given the space to be confident in who I am.

Sepeng, 36, on her success: “I am the youngest associate professor in the department of nursing science at the University of Pretoria,” she says, proudly. “I grew up in a three-room mud house with my seven siblings, my parents, Kesaobaka and Bokie Zulwayo, and my grandmother. My mother worked as a domestic worker and my father was a bricklayer.

Monale on her rise to the top: I was exposed to very senior people at a very early stage. I got to almost be a fly on the wall in boardroom conversations, [which helped me] understand how captains of industry thought, the types of conversations they were having, the types of problems they were trying to solve, and I participated in finding solutions to those problems. I think that was the best start I could have had.

Wolf to those who want to follow in her footsteps: My girls, if you believe this is something you want to do, you first have to be decisive about it. The second step is to research the thing you want. The third thing is to practice – you must practice your craft every single day, even if it’s just for 30 minutes. There is a lot of power in resilience and allowing yourself to conquer the smaller, daily hurdles. If you give yourself enough time and opportunity to do that, you will eventually get to the other side. It’s not about the destination but the processes and decisions that you make to become that.

Latsha on leading change in rugby: To be at the forefront of the revolution in women’s rugby is a big honour, but also a responsibility that I’ve embraced because I’ve learnt how to use my voice, I’ve learnt how to use my platform – and what better way to use those things than to advance women’s rugby? It’s an incredible vehicle to change the lives of young people, especially young women.

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