WeeklySA_AdminJOURNEY: Platform provides females with the opportunity to share issues such as gender-based violence, relationships and grief…
By Priscilla Malinga
Lihle Malinga was born in 1994 – the same year as when millions of South Africans democratically voted for a black president, but has no recollection of apartheid except for what she hears from her family.
She sees the youth roaming around the streets due to unemployment and wonders if apartheid was better after all as she heard there were hardly any people on the streets during the day, as everyone was either at school or at work.
Born and raised in Diepkloof Soweto, Lihle finished her matric in 2013 and was not granted the privilege of studying further due to the family’s economic hardships, and decided to look for a job so she can assist her family financially.
She was raised by a single mother and felt the need to get employed so she can play her part to contribute to her family’s needs. “Children do not need to quit school so they can make money,” Malinga said. Malinga landed her first job at O’Keeffe and Swartz as a sales consultant in 2014 and won title for the company’s “Sales Person of the Year” award that same year. Sales was not new to Malinga as she used to sell sweets at school at a tender age of 8 and was able to sell them out on a daily basis and the whole year without fail.
In 2015, she joined an insurance company, Different Life/ Stangen, and there she scooped the title of “Salesperson of the Year” for three consecutive years. “People were jealous of me as they did not understand how I managed to top the conversion set for all sales people, by almost or over 20%, every single month,” says Malinga.
When Stangen moved to Pretoria, she got a call from her previous boss from O’Keffee, who offered her a position as a market development consultant at Tarsus on Demand, and promised to give her a position in management after six months, which did not happen. This was because at the time she did not have an IT background and experience.
When Tarsus realised that she was good at that position, they refused to move her which caused her to not get the promotion she was promised. Here too she dealt with a lot of jealousy, she says. The Commission was cancelled as she beat the top performer who was sitting at 30% conversion by another 35%.
“At some stage I was investigated as they did not understand how I reached 65% conversion, but found that she did everything by the book,” she recalls.
In 2020, Malinga registered her own company, Black Ruby, in 2020 which promotes dialogue among young black women, as she feels women need to talk since they go through a lot in life. On August 10 2024 at Montecasino’s Col’Cachio, the dialogues will be entering the second round with about 100 to 150 women expected to attend, to discuss with the panel the issues faced by today’s young black women in the workspace and life, in general. The theme this year is titled “Young Woman What is Troubling You?”
More than two in five women experience some sort of abuse in their lifetime, and currently 41% of black women are unemployed, according to Stats SA.
Joining in on the conversations is Mpho Tshabalala, the wife of the late kwaito superstar Mandoza, whose music took the world by storm back in the 90’s. She will be speaking about “how to get over a grief”. She is the founder of Mandoza Foundation and an entrepreneur. She will be talking about challenges faced by widows, and about her journey towards healing.
Also as part of the panel is Thapelo Molewa, the Morning Live producer of a show airing on SABC 2. He will be addressing the topic: “Trusting the Process”.
Nompumelo Nkosi, a digital creator, will touch on issues around “discovering your passion”, while Christinah Nhlapo, who is the CEO of Siyakhanya Events and Catering, will share “things she wishes she knew in her 20s”.
Adds Tshabalala: “I am so glad to be a part of this venture as I am passionate about empowering women as we go through so much in life and our relationships”.
The Dialogues are set to be a platform for young black women to talk about issues affecting them concerning Gender Based Violence, life, career, dating, break ups, grief and women wellness including sexuality and surviving and coping in a male-dominated environment.
The dialogues also serve as a platform for entrepreneurs to showcase their businesses.
“As women, it is important that we find ways to be financially independent in these hard times and come up with solutions by supporting each other’s businesses,” Tshabalala adds. “Let’s get together at a comfortable venue and enjoy three-course meals and wine and build each other”.
Guests will also be given an opportunity to share their thoughts and engage in meaningful conversations. They will each leave with a goodie bag from the sponsors. She welcomes anyone or any organisation that would like to be a part of the event.
Tickets can be purchased by paying into the Capitec Bank account number 1949741395 or call Lihle Malinga on 0815376904.
