M&G 200 Young South Africans: celebrating our own

The University of Cape Town (UCT) once again commends members of its community featured in the 2025 Mail & Guardian (M&G) 200 Young South Africans.

The M&G annually honours a cohort of South Africans who are recognised as changemakers and influencers in the work that they do. The following young South Africans have or had an affiliation with UCT and appear among their peers, with the biographies as written by the M&G.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Chido Dzinotyiwe (28) is currently the chief executive of Vambo AI, a multilingual company supporting more than 44 African languages using AI, a transformative step toward inclusive technology. She holds a master’s in development finance from UCT and has, along her journey, partnered with South African universities to implement multilingualism policies, increasing access to education. Vambo AI’s tools have reached thousands of learners, providing content in African languages.

Arts and entertainment

Siya Charles (34) earned her undergraduate and honours degrees in jazz trombone performance from UCT and is currently based in the United States of America (USA) and, among other profiles, is an international student ambassador at The Juilliard School, helping new students settle into life in the USA. Her greatest role model is her late mother, Dr Sylvia Charles. In 2025, she was awarded the Standard Bank Young Artist Award for Jazz.

S’bo Gyre (30) is a public relations lead at Writersbloc, spearheading campaigns such as SuperSport’s Rugby World Cup coverage. Gyre also writes marketing scripts, television content and digital advertisements. Gyre obtained a Digital Marketing Certificate of completion from UCT.

Anelisa Mangcu (33) is an honours graduate of the Michaelis School of Fine Art and has established herself in the South African visual arts scene. She is the founder of Under the Aegis and plays a dual role as gallerist and curator, bridging commerce and scholarship to spotlight emerging Africans. Her leadership builds spaces where African creativity thrives. Mangcu envisions a space where art is treated as an economic force by government.

Sipho Alphi Mkhwanazi (32) is a public figure in South Africa’s entertainment scene and an inspiring role model whose influence continues to grow locally and globally. He is the chief executive of Isiphosethu Consultants and the force behind Brand Alphi with a portfolio including collaborations with Netflix, MTN, Absa and SuperSport. He holds a postgraduate qualification in digital marketing from UCT.

Civil society

Inez Patel (32) leads She Can Do, a non-profit organisation (NPO) empowering women through career support, training and mentorship. With an honours in media theory and practice from UCT, Patel credits her former manager, Alex Oloo, as a key figure in her career journey which has included serving as a design director for Absa’s award-winning banking app. She also mentors high school girls from under-resourced communities into STEM fields, building long-term relationships that stretch beyond matric.

Climate change and the environment

Wade de Kock (32) is an ocean scientist with an interest in inclusive scientific advancement. Now a lecturer, De Kock mentors the next generation of marine scientists while contributing to South Africa’s polar research ambitions. As engagement manager at the South African Polar Research Infrastructure, he led transformative outreach to underrepresented universities and pioneered the Mahlalela Mentorship Programme, named after his late friend and colleague Dr Precious Mahlalela, to foster a supportive network for early-career researchers. He obtained his PhD in ocean and atmospheric science from UCT.

Rejoyce Kgabo Legodi (29) is a climate justice advocate, conservation filmmaker and backyard farmer. She recently co-produced a health-related climate film that premiered at the United Nations headquarters in New York. In 2024, she received the Wildcard Award at the South African Climate Media Awards for presenting a fresh perspective on climate change. She obtained a certificate in film and media studies from UCT.

Entrepreneurship

Giancarlo Beukes (32) holds an MSc in Biomedical Engineering from UCT and combines healthcare, mechanical and bio-medical engineering and an entrepreneurial spirit to build life-saving technologies for underserved communities. He is the co-founder of Impulse Biomedical, which develops affordable, accessible medical devices like the ZiBiPen adrenaline autoinjector and the Easy Squeezy asthma assistive device.

Mcebo E’zra’ Mngoma (30) works as the founder and chief executive of Africuratoris, a digital innovation platform focused on curating Africa’s creative and entrepreneurial ecosystems. He credits his strength to mentors like Richard Perez from the Hasso Plattner School of Design Thinking Afrika (d-school Afrika) at UCT. Some of his achievements include forming the first Hult Prize South Africa national coordination team, while also helping build a vibrant student social entrepreneurship movement, positioning South Africa as the largest home of the Hult Prize initiative in the country.

Ntombezintle Raziya (34) centres her work on financial inclusion, youth empowerment and creating scalable impact that bridges corporate responsibility with grassroots development. She is a colleague engagement and social impact response manager at Absa. She leads volunteering and entrepreneurship initiatives that span multiple African markets. Her master’s degree from UCT’s Graduate School of Business (UCT GSB) focused on enterprise development solutions to complex social challenges. She also led a national entrepreneurship roadshow, culminating in Youth Entrepreneurship Week, and curated Absa’s global debut at the One Young World Summit.

Financial services

Nokuhle Kumalo (27) has worked across Philadelphia, New York and Melbourne as part of Deloitte’s international Just In Time (JIT) programme before returning to South Africa to launch Lomaku, a personal finance and career platform for young professionals. The programme has supported 85 young people across the country. She dedicates her YouTube channel – with over 100 000 subscribers – to offering relatable, practical advice on money, mindset and navigating adulthood. Kumalo obtained a Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting from UCT.

Tekane Ledimo (29) was raised in Lesotho. He is the co-founder and chief executive of Nisa Finance, a fintech startup unlocking access to capital for small businesses using technology and alternative data. Furthermore, he also leads Nisa’s credit and investment committee, assessing funding applications from underserved entrepreneurs. Since launching in 2017, Nisa has earned accolades from AlphaCode, Telkom Future Makers and UCT’s Bertha Centre for its innovation and impact on South Africa’s small medium and micro enterprises (SMME) landscape. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from UCT as well as a Postgraduate Diploma in Development Finance from the UCT GSB.

Health and wellness

Waheed Amanjee (23) is on a mission to one day help families facing rare diseases, inspired by his mother’s health battles. He is currently a fifth-year MBChB student at UCT. As a master’s researcher at UCT’s Neurogenomics Lab, his research explores the epigenetics of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). Amanjee co-founded WiZmed, a student-led medical supply enterprise and the African Research Society, a continent-wide student movement strengthening research capacity. He is a 2025 Mandela Rhodes Scholar.

Aviwe Funani (34) is a senior policy and advocacy officer at United for Global Mental Health. Among her qualifications, Funani obtained a strategic business management certificate at UCT. She co-founded the Emergent Girls Business and Coding Academy, empowering unemployed young women in the Cape Flats. Her biggest mentors are her parents.

Ashraf Moosa (25) co-founded WiZmed, South Africa’s leading student-run medical supplier, now serving over 50 000 healthcare professionals. Moosa’s philosophy is “Build systems, not just solutions.” He is driven by a belief that thoughtful technology can radically improve healthcare, particularly resource-limited environments. He is currently completing an MBChB at UCT. Among his achievements, he created a WhatsApp-based AI assistant to capture clinical histories in emergency centres, available in multiple South African languages, streamlining workflows and improving patient care.

Zahra Parker (23) is a fifth-year MBChB student at UCT. Parker combined her clinical training with an honours in human genetics, part of UCT’s Intercalated Medicine-Medical Science Track. Her interest lies in the intersection of science, community and system change. Her leadership journey includes serving as the youngest president of the UCT Surgical Society, where she co-led the society’s flagship charity ball in support of the Smile Foundation. The event raised R500 000, enabling surgeries for children with facial deformities.

Yanelisa Pulani (25) grew up in Mpepheni, in the Eastern Cape and is currently a final-year MBChB student at UCT. She has used personal loss to inform her purpose in service and building systems that her community had never had. As the founding chief executive of the African Research Society (ARS), she leads a youth-driven, Africentric movement connecting 2 000 students to research, mentorship and leadership opportunities. Under her leadership, ARS became the first student-led body in South Africa to host five Nobel Laureates, including Professor Joachim Frank.

Mbali Pfeiffer Shongwe (26) is the founder of Mindful(l). She holds a Bachelor of Social Science in Psychology and Sociology from UCT, and her organisation offers free counselling services, workshops and digital resources. Her leadership earned her recognition as part of Nike’s Well Collective. She also serves as a programme manager for BLKHLTH South Africa, a platform amplifying black mental health through education, events and advocacy.

Bulela Vava (35) is the president of the Public Oral Health Forum (POHF), where he leads national efforts to integrate oral health into South Africa’s broader public health objectives. His additional training includes completing a systems change course at UCT. He supports initiatives advancing the rights of persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities and volunteers for the Special Olympics.

Justice

Halalisani Xulu (27) earned a master’s in commercial law from UCT. Xulu recently founded a mentorship programme for LLB students, connecting them to a network of legal professionals, including attorneys, advocates, and judges. He also mentors high school learners from his alma mater and co-funds an under-18 football club KwaNongoma, KwaZulu-Natal, creating safe spaces for teenage boys to avoid drugs and crime.

Kevin Smith (34) has a legal career which includes cases such as interdicting mineworkers’ union Numsa’s elections, the reinstatement of South African Federation of Trade Unions executive members and contributing to the fundraising efforts for Caster Semenya’s legal battle. Smith is a partner at Ahmed Gani Attorneys. He holds a certificate in copyright law from UCT.

Mining and manufacturing

Beth Dealtry (27) is the head of policy and regulatory affairs at the National Association of Automotive Component and Allied Manufacturers (NAACAM). Dealtry plays a critical role in shaping policy to support local manufacturing, including advocacy efforts around the Automotive Production and Development Programme (APDP 2) and the New Energy Vehicle White Paper. She is seen as one of the leading policy minds in South Africa’s automotive components sector. She holds a Bachelor of Commerce honours (cum laude) in Economics from UCT.

Thembisile Zamangwane Ndlovu (32) is a big admirer of Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the director-general of the World Trade Organization (WTO), and leads with brilliance and humility as a development partnerships specialist at Anglo American. She spearheads a global employee volunteering initiative spanning 15 countries and is a volunteer at an African social enterprise (Inergy²) working to advance access, innovation and inclusion in the clean energy sector. She has obtained multiple certificates in occupational health and safety from UCT.

Politics and governance

Thaafir Mustapha (21) is currently in his second year at UCT and the founder of SoWeVote, mobilising South Africa’s youth to vote and engage politically. South Africans have responded to the visualisation on social media with political education. On the horizon for Mustapha, he is looking into a school’s programme combining voter registration, leadership training and relational organising.

Sports

Eliza Stewart (23) co-runs the Mowbray branch of Good Food Club, a hyperlocal, values-driven food distribution hub operating out of her family’s garage. She is also a committed ultimate frisbee player and serves on the Bafazi Diversity Fund board, which supports women of colour in the sport. She is currently in her final of a Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences and UCT majoring in environmental and geographical studies, and sociology.

If we have left anyone out, please accept our sincere apologies and please let us know.

Access the full list.