BY Nkosazana Ngwadla
Thembiso Magajana of Social Coding SA was recently named the 2023 Santam Social Entrepreneur.
Social Coding SA, a non-profit digital skills training organisation, recruits, trains and employs young people from rural areas to teach digital literacy and coding at high schools.
Thembiso says that winning the Social Entrepreneur Award will provide Social Coding SA with a platform to attract more partners and funders, raise awareness about the urgent need for digital inclusion, and kick-start the for-profit arm of Social Coding SA.
Recently recognized as one of South Africa’s most influential youth (2020), Thembiso is a self-described Inclusion Activist and Technophile who partners with corporates, government, and family foundations to help bring digital inclusion to Rural Communities.
After spending nearly, half a decade working in Financial Services, Thembiso left to start Social Coding. She wholeheartedly believes that digital upskilling holds much promise for future economic growth in remote rural areas.
Thembiso is mostly recognized for designing, landing, and leading the strategic workshops that have impacted 5355 young people, across three provinces in the last 5 years.
She has developed and managed Social Development models for high-end enterprises such as Exxaro, the University of Pretoria, and SAGE; her models have helped incubate new programs that ensure that corporate entities practice sustainable philanthropy, as well as impactfully help, develop rural communities.
An award-winning social entrepreneur, Thembiso is a recipient of the 50 most inspiring women in tech award and the Margaret Hirsch Heroine Award. She is also a World Economic Forum Global Shaper, A TEDx Speaker, and Spark* International Alumni and was recently been invited to judge the 2020 Global Citizen x Cisco Youth Leadership Award.
Image: LinkedIn
