Refilwe Matenche is the founder and president of the African Women’s Movement (AWM), an NGO that houses over 1 000 emerging female professionals and aspiring leaders. These include CAs(SA), doctors, engineers, lawyers, and actuaries. AWM’s mission is to be a breeding ground for African change agents that shape emerging women leaders and to give them the confidence to occupy leadership roles in various sectors of society. The objective is to improve the socioeconomic reality of women in South Africa as well as the rest of the African continent. The inauguration and success of the AWM Women’s Learning Expedition launched in Kigali, Rwanda, in May 2018 cemented the position of the organisation as indeed a movement.
Besides being a CA(SA), Refilwe is a prolific academic having been a senior lecturer in taxation at the Unisa and engaging in many academic activities, including at some stage being involved in the ITC and APC qualifying examinations. She is at present the chairperson of the Health and Welfare Sector Education Training Authority (HWSETA), a government entity under the authority of the Department of Higher Education and Training. A firm believer in the importance of being engaged in socio-economic issues, she also serves as deputy chairperson at the Johannesburg branch of the Black Management Forum (BMF) and participates in a number of women and youth empowerment-focused speaking engagements. Refilwe also served as an IEC observer volunteer during the 2016 municipal elections.
Her previous professional role includes serving as a former audit and risk committee member for the Free State Tourism Board.
Some of her notable achievements over the years include being a member of the Golden Key International Honour Society, stemming from her outstanding performance at the University of the Witwatersrand.
