Cover Stories – Accountancy SA

https://www.accountancysa.org.za Home Wed, 26 Aug 2026 08:45:42 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.1.2 Cover Story: Women’s month – Anisa Vallee CA(SA) – Embracing growth https://www.accountancysa.org.za/cover-story-womens-month-anisa-vallee-casa-embracing-growth/ Sat, 01 Aug 2026 08:39:14 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29738

South Africa has an abundance of talented women with the potential to lead. ‘The talent is already there,’ says Anisa Vallee CA(SA), CFO of Standard Investment and Asset Management, a division of Standard Bank Group. ‘It’s up to us to embrace opportunities, keep growing and use our strengths to make a meaningful difference. Often, the greatest growth comes from stepping into new challenges.’

ANISA HAS BUILT HER CAREER by embracing opportunities, particularly those that challenged her to grow. She relishes a challenge − not for its own sake, but because she believes that navigating complexity and uncertainty is how leaders develop. Throughout her career, she has consistently immersed herself in unfamiliar situations that have stretched her thinking and accelerated her growth.

It’s been that way from the beginning, when she decided to pivot from studying medicine to pursuing a career as a chartered accountant. This was after an accounting firm invited her, as the top achiever in her school, to learn more about the profession at a Women’s Day event. ‘It was incredibly inspiring to see women leading with confidence, intelligence and authenticity. They weren’t simply successful accountants; they were shaping businesses and influencing decisions. That made me realise accounting wasn’t just about numbers − it was a platform for leadership. Although I didn’t know much about accounting at the time, I left convinced that it was a career worth exploring, Anisa recalls.

Her appetite for learning was evident early in her career: her articles at KPMG laid the foundation for broadening her exposure and building a diversified portfolio because she ‘wanted to understand how different businesses operate and build a strong commercial foundation’. Her particular skills emerged early on, too. It soon became clear that Anisa had a natural aptitude for problem solving and leadership; teams increasingly looked to her to navigate complex problems and provide clarity during uncertainty − an early reflection of the leadership style that would define her career.

These traits earned her a senior role in KPMG’s technical accounting team; an appointment that led to her selection for KPMG’s London-based International Standards Group, giving her a chance to work with a high-performance global team comprising individuals from different countries and cultures.

The experience Anisa gained during this time led Sasfin to appoint her as Head of Technical Accounting. ‘That’s the power of the CA(SA) qualification. It unlocks opportunities and gives you the credibility, confidence and versatility to move across industries and tackle challenges that extend well beyond accounting,’ she comments. ‘I joined Sasfin during a period of significant transformation, where the business was navigating complex commercial, regulatory and strategic changes. Those experiences accelerated my growth because they required me to think beyond finance and become a trusted business leader.’ This experience positioned Anisa for her progression to Group and Bank Financial Director.

EXCELLENCE IS THE EXPECTATION

Recognised for her leadership capabilities, Anisa was approached by Standard Bank to take on her current role, which she started in January this year. The learning curve has been steep – but incredibly rewarding. ‘I’ve been fortunate to build a career around work I genuinely enjoy. I’ve always been passionate about what I do. I think it’s when you find meaning in both the challenges and the achievements that you are able to bring your best self to what you do,’ she reflects.

This passion has shaped the way Anisa approaches leadership and performance. ‘Excellence is the expectation. Passion is what determines how you show up every day. When you combine passion with purpose and understand your “why”, you create far greater impact − not only for yourself, but for everyone around you.’

Today, as CFO of Standard Investment and Asset Management, Anisa believes she has found a role where her passion and purpose intersect.

Investment and asset management is about far more than financial performance. Every investment represents someone’s retirement, education, legacy or future. The business helps people and institutions build, protect and transfer wealth across generations while directing capital towards investments that support economic growth across Africa. For Anisa, that makes finance deeply meaningful. Her role extends beyond producing financial results. It’s about ensuring that every rand entrusted to the business creates sustainable value for clients, shareholders, employees and society through disciplined capital allocation, trusted financial stewardship and strategic insight that enables long-term growth.

That said, living with purpose also requires intentional choices. For Anisa, who has two young sons, navigating the demands of a senior leadership role alongside family life has reinforced the importance of making choices rooted in her values and priorities.

Her values-driven approach to leadership has shaped how she defines success. That is why being named one of SAICA’s Top-35-Under-35s in 2022 held such significance. ‘This award is bestowed on people of all genders, cultures and even professions, so it’s truly about recognising excellence, wherever it may be. More significantly, it recognises that young people can achieve things that have traditionally been thought attainable only with time and experience. It showcases that success can take on many different forms.’

A PERSONAL DEFINITION OF SUCCESS

For Anisa, that experience also prompted reflection on what success really means.

‘Success isn’t about being everything to everyone all the time. It’s about being intentional with your time, your energy and your priorities.’

Anisa acknowledges that pursuing ambitious goals often requires thoughtful choices. This is especially true for working mothers, she says, where there is often a perception that you have to choose between career and family. ‘Whenever I’m faced with the next step in my career, my decisions are always guided by my values and the people who matter most. But I’ve learned that when your choices are rooted in your values and you are passionate about what you do, you can find a way to make it work.’

For Anisa, balance is not about giving equal attention to everything at every moment. It is about understanding what requires focus at different points in time and creating the structures that allow her to show up meaningfully in both her professional and personal life.

She believes organisations have an equally important role to play in creating environments where people can thrive. This is why Anisa has volunteered for initiatives such as her company’s Women’s Forum and continues to invest time in mentoring others.

‘Representation matters, but real progress happens when we actively create opportunities for other women to grow,’ she says. ‘I always encourage the people I mentor to look beyond where they are today and consider where they could go next. I want them to recognise their potential, understand how their strengths and experiences can create value, and embrace opportunities that allow them to grow.’

This message is particularly important for women, Anisa believes, as many continue to navigate the confidence barriers that can sometimes accompany stepping into leadership opportunities. ‘My advice is simple: don’t wait for perfection. Trust your capability and be willing to grow into the role.’

Looking ahead, Anisa is energised by the opportunity to contribute to something bigger than herself. ‘Finance has the power to shape economies, build businesses and improve lives. When we help people grow and protect their wealth responsibly, we’re contributing to stronger families, stronger communities and ultimately a stronger Africa. Knowing that the work we do helps create lasting value for future generations is what gives my role real purpose − and what continues to inspire me every day.’

Author
Lisa Witepski

]]> Cover Story: Women’s month – Benni-Lee Mossop AGA(SA) – Boundaries, balance and Benni-Lee https://www.accountancysa.org.za/cover-story-womens-month-benni-lee-mossop-agasa-boundaries-balance-and-benni-lee/ Sat, 01 Aug 2026 08:30:42 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29735

Sometimes, it doesn’t take years of introspection to find your purpose. Sometimes, it’s right in front of you.

THAT’S THE CASE FOR Benni-Lee Mossop AGA(SA). Her purpose is simple, she says, and she is reminded of it every time she comes home. ‘Everything I do is for my husband, who has stood beside me through every stage of my journey, and my three-year-old daughter. They’re my driving force,’ she says. Her determination to do her best for her family has seen Benni-Lee define new ways of working that help put work/life balance within reach. More importantly still, that drive was one of the motivations that led her to develop the automated timekeeping software and reporting platform that was recognised through SAICA’s Future-Fit Innovator Award in 2025.

SHUTTING DOWN STIGMA

There’s another factor that has helped to propel Benni-Lee forward: the determination to challenge misconceptions around the AGA(SA) designation and demonstrate that leadership is defined by capability, not title.

This is one of the challenges that she’s tackled during a career that has been crowned by the establishment of her consultancy, Elevate Finance Solutions, in 2024 and, more recently, her appointment as CFO and exco member of SwiftVee, Africa’s largest online livestock and game trading platform.

‘I never expected to find myself here,’ Benni-Lee admits – and, indeed, her route has taken many unexpected turns. For a start, Benni-Lee had set out to study law after school; a decision she regretted as soon as she attended court as an intern for the very first time. ‘The case involved a man who had stabbed his girlfriend to death. I realised that, as a person of integrity, I could never defend someone whom I knew to be guilty,’ she recalls. ‘I was shattered. I had a picture of what my life would look like, and now I had to reimagine it.’

Leaving university, she took the only job available to her as a receptionist. Displaying the diligence and perseverance that are her trademark, she worked her way up, qualifying as a creditors clerk, and was later employed as a practice manager – and it was at this point that she decided that she’d like to start all over again. Thus began her career in finance.

SELF-TAUGHT, SELF-MADE

Benni-Lee’s choice of accounting for her new beginning surprised those who knew her. She admits that she hadn’t enjoyed the subject at school and probably wouldn’t have considered it as a profession; however, it appeared consistently when she started researching alternative career paths and seemed to offer job security and career opportunity. The idea became more appealing as she considered how much she had enjoyed working on the business side of the doctors’ practice.

‘Looking back, I was very naïve. I had no idea how much hard work it would take,’ she recalls. Long hours were only one part of the struggle: as an articled clerk, she was earning roughly a third of her previous salary, while working twice as hard so that she could fund her own studies.

Added to this, she had to transfer her articles when her husband was transferred from her home town of Bloemfontein to Pretoria due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

It was extremely difficult to adjust to a new life, especially in COVID’s volatile and unpredictable environment, but

Benni-Lee’s resolve didn’t falter. She completed her articles, was appointed as an audit manager, and later went on to work in financial and tax consulting.

The trajectory was not an easy one, Benni-Lee recalls. ‘I struggled to find people who believed in me. Often, people seeing the AGA(SA) qualification on my qualification would point out that I wasn’t a CA(SA).’ But, she continues, she is nothing if not tenacious. ‘If I have a goal in mind, I’ll pursue it with everything I have.’

Benni-Lee’s fight to break perceptions saw her working hours and hours of overtime. It wasn’t merely about proving herself, though: she wanted to educate herself, ‘because I wanted to be a well-rounded professional with expertise in diverse areas’. She embraced emerging technologies, including AI, as research and productivity tools to broaden her knowledge and develop practical solutions so that she could access more sources of information and, most importantly, implement them with impact. At the same time, she taught herself how to build reports and integrate it into various systems.

IMPLEMENTING FOR IMPACT

Although Benni-Lee is deeply grateful for the career she built, time has changed the way she views work. ‘I sacrificed a lot to get to where I am, but I think you
reach a point in your life when you are less willing to make those sacrifices,’ she reflects. That’s why she has become strict about implementing boundaries and being upfront about realistic deliverables. ‘I don’t want my daughter to look back and wish that I’d been more present when she was growing up.’ It’s easy for work to become all consuming – to allow that ‘urgent’ client request to sneak in during suppertime – but being firm with those boundaries is a sign of self-respect, Benni-Lee insists.

Her work at Elevate Finance Solutions speaks directly to this. When Benni-Lee won SAICA’s Top-35-Under-35, Future-Fit-Innovation Award, she commented that her goal has always been to make finance smarter. ‘By combining automation, AI, and cloud technology, we’re helping accountants and entrepreneurs focus less on admin − and more on impact,’ she wrote in a LinkedIn post.

START WHERE YOU ARE

Joining SwiftVee has meant that Benni-Lee has more precious hours to spend with her family – but that’s not the only reason she was thrilled to take up her CFO role with this dynamic company. She notes that SwiftVee has entered an especially significant stage in its evolution as it transitions from a Pan-African market leader to a global business. ‘We’re currently finalising a joint venture with the leading online livestock auction company in the USA as part of our international expansion. It’s an exciting time to be part of the business, and my focus is on helping scale the organisation for its next phase of growth,’ she explains.

Playing a part in this development resonates with her purpose, too: Benni-Lee takes pride in setting an example for her daughter and, she says, hopefully setting her up for a bright future. She takes her responsibility as a role model – not only to her child, but to future generations – very seriously: ‘The point isn’t to encourage them to follow in my footsteps, but to help them avoid the mistakes I’ve made,’ she says. To this end, she’s started mentoring young women in her space − ‘giving advice and finding them a place in the boardroom, because that’s where the decisions are made. It’s about building confidence and reminding women that they don’t have to change who they are to become great leaders. Their own voice is enough’ − and would eventually like to take on this role at a greater scale.

Her advice to those aspiring young women? ‘Start where you are. Don’t wait until you are ready to make a change; if I’d done that, I would never have become a CFO and exco member. You have to be prepared to take a leap. But don’t think you have to do it by yourself – you can ask for help whenever you need it, and you must, because that’s how you learn. Above all, remember that your career might not be a straight line, and that’s fine. Your starting point is part of your story, not the ending.’

Author
Lisa Witepski

]]> Cover Story: Women’s month – Sinempilo Ngubane CA(SA) – A brilliant second act https://www.accountancysa.org.za/cover-story-womens-month-sinempilo-ngubane-casa-a-brilliant-second-act/ Sat, 01 Aug 2026 08:24:59 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29732

It’s a long way from the fields of KwaMpande to the air-conditioned boardrooms where Sinempilo Ngubane CA(SA) takes her seat as a financial director – and further still to the glamorous stages, tiaras and evening gowns of the Mrs South Africa pageant, where she qualified as a finalist. However, the journey is one she cherishes and which has helped her crystallise her purpose.

Sinempilo acknowledges that it has not always been easy. Growing up as one of seven sisters, in the rural areas around Pietermaritzburg, her days were filled with thoughts of herding goats rather than governance, and she admits that she had little concept of what accounting entails. Nonetheless, when her marks attracted the attention of PwC (she earned six distinctions in matric), she eagerly took up the offer of a bursary to UKZN.

Sinempilo soon discovered that she didn’t just have a flair for accounting; she had a passion, too. ‘I realised that it was a calling. I have always been an accountant at heart; even as a child, I worked in my father’s tuckshop, ordering stock, and did the daily reconciliation for the taxi drivers who worked in his taxi business,’ she recalls.

EMBARKING ON A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY

Although Sinempilo readily took to corporate life, she made a point of balancing her career with downtime in nature. ‘My credo has always been that I’ll spend Monday to Friday behind the laptop, but on the weekends it’s time to get outdoors,’ she says.

Her hiking habit had made her both strong and fit – which is why she was shocked to find herself in ICU last year, recovering from surgery to implant stents as a safeguard against unstable angina. ‘It was a life-changing moment. I found myself thinking deeply about my life, where I am, and where I want to be. It was the start of a real voyage of discovery,’ Sinempilo says.

One of the most important things she discovered was that it was time to define herself outside of the boundaries that had, until now, marked her life. Yes, she’s a CA, a wife and a mother – but beyond all these labels, who is Sinempilo, she wondered.

She found the answers through what some may consider a surprising source: The Mrs South Africa pageant. For those who know her well, Sinempilo’s interest in pageants didn’t come as a surprise: she’d harboured aspirations to enter this world of glamour since she was a teenager.

What was surprising, though – to her, at least – was the amount of learning that took place during her time as a

Mrs South Africa finalist. Sinempilo points out that pageants aren’t typically regarded as a serious undertaking. But, she insists, behind the lipstick and glitz there is some serious skills acquisition. ‘Mrs South Africa finalists are expected to garner sponsorships and give presentations. It takes real confidence to do both, and I hadn’t realised how much I had to grow in this area. My work means that I spend most of my time involved in back-office activities, busy with my laptop. Now, I feel I’ve been given a chance to develop in new areas. I feel like I have found my voice.’

This is the real value of pageants, Sinempilo maintains. ‘It has been a joy to discover that, as a professional, there’s so much I haven’t yet been exposed to. I might be a CA(SA) with an MBA to my name, but there is still so much to learn.’

THE POWER OF CONFIDENCE

Sinempilo cherishes her newfound confidence, especially since she believes it is a quality every young girl should cultivate. ‘I am where I am because of bursaries, so I know the difference that can be made in an individual’s life if they know there is someone out there who believes in them.’ This insight means that Sinempilo is passionate about the school engagements she hosts, where she strives to inspire girls, alerting them to the possibilities that exist and giving them direction. In fact, she maintains that all South African women who find themselves in a leadership position have a responsibility to encourage others. ‘Your input doesn’t have to be financial. Spending time with someone who needs a role mentor is just as valuable,’ she points out. Her commitment to giving back sees her sponsoring one child’s schooling – from uniform to fees – every year.

‘I think one of the most important lessons we can give these young people is that life is dynamic. You don’t have to be struck in the life you’re living. At any point, you can take a look at where you are and decide to change it. You never know what you might achieve, so it’s vital that you don’t limit yourself.’

Sinempilo includes herself when she speaks of the enormous scope of possibilities and what the future may hold. Indeed, one of the highly ambitious goals on her horizon is the establishment of a foundation that will encourage farming in rural communities. She’s looking to join forces with the Departments of Agriculture and Education in this regard, realising that their support may help to galvanise an initiative which could have significant implications for job creation and the alleviation of poverty. ‘We’re desperately seeking solutions for these problems, and the answer may be right in front of us. We have large amounts of fertile land that could become a tool for upskilling communities,’ she says. Thinking beyond subsistence farming and the ability to put food on the table, Sinempilo envisages the development of collaborative ecosystems with, say, one neighbour farming potatoes while another cultivates tomatoes, then joining forces to sell their produce to community retailers. ‘This can contribute to the development of economies,’ she observes.

GOING FULL CIRCLE

It’s interesting that Sinempilo’s introspection has led her back to where it all began: the farm. ‘I’ve done a complete 360,’ she laughs. She isn’t only interested in involving others in her plans for agriculture: following her surgery last year, she makes a point of spending time with her family. Their now regular trips include visits to a smallholding, where she relishes every minute spent under the sun.

‘My time on the smallholding has made me realise that there’s so much we can learn from nature – even in a business setting. After all, like business, nature is cyclical. Corporates have seasons, just as farms do, and the activities that require your focus change accordingly. While I think this understanding has strengthened my approach to business, it’s also great to be able to use my business skills in a setting outside of the office!’

Author
Lisa Witepski

]]> Cover Story: Women’s month – Tryphosa Ramano CA(SA) – Opening the doors for others https://www.accountancysa.org.za/cover-story-womens-month-tryphosa-ramano-casa-opening-the-doors-for-others/ Sat, 01 Aug 2026 08:04:47 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29729

Opportunity, once given to you, must be passed on. This is one of the beliefs that Tryphosa Ramano CA(SA) lives by.

It’s a philosophy that was forged through her own experiences, and which has guided nearly every step of her career, from taking on the role of CFO of South African Airways during its crisis years to establishing her mentoring organisation, A Seat At The Table.

Tryphosa explains that her resolve to ‘lift as you rise’ was born around the same time as her first child, when she was just 17 years old. ‘That child gave me a purpose I hadn’t had before,’ she says. ‘I had grown up very poor, in the township of Mamelodi, and I was determined my child would not go through what I went through. That focus on excelling − first for my child, and later for the generations of young people I now mentor − has never left me.’ Nor has the instinct to make sure the road is easier for others, Tryphosa says; all that has changed is that it has become broader, to include more people.

The instinct grew as Tryphosa came to understand how important it is to have someone who believes in you. This was especially true during her time at SAA: she admits that, since she had no prior experience as a CFO and had not envisaged taking on such a responsibility, she didn’t fully understand why she had been invited to take up the position. ‘Aviation was an entirely new industry to me. I had to learn fast, lead a team of people from every kind of professional background, and make hard, high-stakes decisions with the whole country watching,’ she recalls. Small wonder she feels that the period tested her leadership thesis. ‘It wasn’t about the version of leadership I believed in on paper, but whether it held up under real pressure. I’m deeply grateful to the people who believed I could do it before I believed it myself; Maria Ramos, Phakamani Hadebe, and Lesetja Kganyago among them. Their confidence in me became the foundation I built on.’

She reveals that she has looked up to these women at various points in her career, considering them – and Gloria Serobe – to be her mentors. ‘Maria lifted me when I was at my lowest point, giving me opportunities and believing in and supporting me when I most needed it. Phakamani was a colleague first, but peer mentorship turned out to be just as vital as senior mentorship – she taught me how to be a good professional and how to hold work and life in balance. Lesetja Kganyago has coached me consistently to be the best version of myself and instilled in me the discipline of always speaking truth to power and belief in families. And Gloria remains an active mentor to this day. She protects me, challenges me, and continues to open doors.’

There’s a common thread uniting these women, Tryphosa continues: none of them made it easy, but they all made it possible. These people, her champions, didn’t just open a door. ‘They stood behind me once I walked through it, and they told me the truth even when it was uncomfortable.’

MENTORSHIP AS A MANDATE

Because of the input of these women, Tryphosa has never viewed her career as a solo journey. ’ ‘It still isn’t. I continue learning to this day,’ she says.

She takes enormous joy in passing on that learning. In the early 1990s, while at RMB Asset Management, she established the Institute of Investment Excellence; a development programme to bring young people into the investment industry. ‘I wanted to create opportunities, because opportunities were created for me,’ she says simply.

Her other ventures speak to this aim, too, including the African Women Chartered Accountants, ABSIP, Young Leaders Connect and, most recently, A Seat At The Table (SATT). Tryphosa says that founding SATT, her vehicle for putting young Africans (and women, especially) on a pathway to board leadership, felt less like something new, and more like a continuation of the efforts that got underway 30 years ago. Her goal, through SATT, is to build a structured, scalable pathway so that the next generation of young leaders doesn’t have to rely on luck to find their mentors – the way she so often did. ‘I started the initiative because opportunity that stays with one person is opportunity wasted. I wanted to pass the baton and make sure that the circle is bigger than the one I was let into.’

This work is materially important to her, Tryphosa says, because she knows what it feels like to be lifted by someone who didn’t have to lift you. It’s because of this that she believes her work is not about her: she is entirely committed to developing and building the next generation of leadership and considers this her superpower. ‘Mentorship isn’t a side activity to a career. It’s been a mandate since the 1990s, when I built that first development programme at RMB Asset Management. It runs through every leadership role I’ve taken in organisations built around advancing others.’

JUST SAY YES

So, what advice would Tryphosa give the young women

she mentors? ‘Say yes to the room that scares you a little. And once you’re in it, remember that speaking truth to power, even when it’s hard, is part of what earns you the right to stay there.’

She has taken her own counsel on occasion − for example, when she joined SAA − and so she understands the discomfort of being one of few women in the room. Her own situation was made more complicated by the fact that, regardless of the industry where she was working at the

time – whether aviation, development finance or mining –

few people shared a similar background. This is how Tryphosa learned that it is not the absence of doubt that makes it possible to forge forward; rather, it is having people remind you that you do, indeed, belong.

This is why she exhorts any woman navigating a similar situation to remember that the discomfort of not feeling fully ‘qualified’ on paper is not the same as not being capable. ‘Let the people who believe in you carry you through the moments you can’t yet believe in yourself – and then pay that forward once you’re steady again.’

LOOKING AT THE HORIZON

Tryphosa says that she’s excited about where the accounting profession is headed – and her role in it. ‘It’s wonderful to watch the profession become a genuine engine for governance and accountability across the institutions that matter most for the country: development finance, energy, infrastructure. Chartered accountants are increasingly the people trusted to hold that process to account, and that feels like meaningful work for this moment in South Africa,’ she says.

As for her own future: Tryphosa is looking forward to steering SATT toward its goal of reaching one million young Africans by 2030. ‘Above all, I want to continue to build the kind of pipeline that means the next young person who is handed a role they don’t feel “ready” for − the way I was handed the CFO role at SAA − will have more support around them than I did,’ she concludes.

AUTHOR
Lisa Witepski

]]> Cover Story: Malesela Montja CA(SA) – Capital follows confidence https://www.accountancysa.org.za/cover-story-belinda-carreira-casa-making-mobility-matter-2/ Wed, 01 Jul 2026 06:45:44 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29674

Malesela Montja CA(SA) argues that Africa’s infrastructure opportunity will depend less on the availability of capital than on the quality of project preparation, governance, and execution. In sectors such as water, logistics and digital infrastructure, investors need clear risk allocation, credible operating models and confidence that projects can deliver measurable economic and social value over time.

Across Southern Africa and the wider continent, infrastructure has become one of the clearest tests of investment quality. In South Africa, the World Bank has linked infrastructure constraints to an estimated 3% loss of growth in 2023, with rail and port inefficiencies reducing exports by around 20%. The pressure is visible in specific sectors. The automotive industry exported 68,7% of local vehicle production in 2024, while port delays, customs inefficiencies and road congestion continue to affect OEMs’ ability to meet export schedules. Water is becoming an equally material risk, with the OECD warning that municipalities often lack the resources to provide water services and maintain water infrastructure, while climate change will place further strain on water supply, Digital infrastructure now carries the same strategic weight, with the DBSA estimating that South Africa needs R108 billion to R142 billion, in 2025 real terms, to connect all households to high-speed broadband by 2035.

This is the context in which Malesela Montja CA(SA), Associate Principal, Africa Infrastructure Finance, Nedbank Corporate and Investment Banking division, thinks about investment. His experience spans investment banking, corporate finance, fintech and public-sector transactions, with exposure to water, rail, ports, logistics and digital infrastructure. He began his career at Deloitte, later worked at Discovery and Deloitte Corporate Finance, and joined Nedbank in 2014. He stepped out of banking during the COVID years to work in fintech before returning to investment banking.

‘Impactful investment means deploying capital in a way that produces measurable, durable benefits beyond the financial return,’ he says. ‘In practice, that means asking whether the investment improves access, productivity, resilience, affordability or inclusion in a way that can be sustained over time.’

For Montja, the keywords are measurable and sustained. The market is familiar with projects that use the language of impact. They speak about transformation, sustainability, inclusion and community benefit. Those claims carry weight only when they can be linked to outcomes.

In infrastructure, the outcomes are usually concrete, and the investment has to continue delivering – homes connected to potable water, businesses with reliable access to logistics corridors, jobs created, operating costs lowered, emissions reduced, communities gaining access to digital or financial services.

‘True impact must be measurable, bankable, affordable and institutionally sustainable,’ he says.

In African infrastructure, strong economic or social need does not make a project bankable.

Instead, a bankable project needs credible legal, technical, contractual and financial structures. It needs realistic demand assumptions, a clear revenue model, enforceable agreements, capable sponsors, permits in place, a resilient funding structure, and an operating model that can sustain operations after construction.

‘The biggest gap is often preparation,’ he says. ‘Capital is available for well-structured projects, but many projects reach investors too early, without enough certainty around revenue, cost, implementation risk or government support.’

This is a recurring problem. A project can be necessary, strategically sound and economically important, but still not ready for private capital. Feasibility, procurement, approvals, offtake and risk allocation may still be incomplete. Some projects approach commercial funders before the case has been structured for private capital, or before blended finance, public-sector support or development finance has been secured.

Montja points to an Africa Finance Corporation 2025 estimate of a USD4 trillion capital pool from African-domiciled financiers, including commercial banks and institutional investors. African capital can play a larger role in African infrastructure, provided projects are structured so that banks, pension funds, DFIs and institutional investors can participate.

This is more urgent as external funding becomes exposed to sanctions, geopolitical shifts and changing risk appetite. Local and regional capital is available, but it needs bankable projects, policy certainty and credible execution.

‘Capital follows confidence,’ says Montja. ‘Confidence depends on stable policy, workable procurement, clear risk allocation and credible institutions. When policy is rigid, or government and private capital are not properly aligned, this slows down execution. Uncertainty around tariffs, offtake, regulation or dispute resolution makes even strong projects difficult to fund.’

Risk allocation is central to the funding model. Montja’s view is that each risk should be carried by the party best placed to manage it. Government has an important role in creating a stable policy, regulatory and procurement environment. It may also need to provide targeted support for risks that private capital cannot price efficiently, including political, regulatory, land and some demand-related risks.

Development finance institutions can provide patient capital, guarantees, concessional funding, technical assistance and early-stage project preparation support. Multilaterals such as Afreximbank and the World Bank’s Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency can reduce risk in complex transactions. Private investors can then take commercial, operational and financial risk where it is clear, understood and properly priced.

The objective is to make projects investable while protecting public value. That often requires blended structures, where public or concessional capital absorbs specific constraints and creates room for institutional and commercial capital to participate at scale.

WATER INFRASTRUCTURE

Water is a constitutional right and a social good, but delivery still depends on capital, maintenance, reliable operations and service quality. Tariffs are often not cost reflective, vulnerable users may need targeted support, and industrial and commercial users need reliable supply. For investors, the funding case still requires enough certainty to support long-term capital.

Montja is currently involved in a major water project whose details remain confidential. He describes it as a first-of-its-kind funding structure that brings together government, commercial funders, a DFI, impact funds and industrial players. The project is centred on a water-scarce community and reflects the kind of collaboration required when infrastructure has to balance public value, affordability and commercial discipline.

Logistics requires the same level of discipline. Port inefficiencies, rail underperformance and road congestion affect exports, imports and regional trade. Montja sees logistics moving higher up the investment agenda, particularly as freight shifts from rail to road, adding cost and congestion. With the right structures behind current reforms, he expects more freight to move back to rail over the next few years, with a direct effect on efficiency and GDP growth.

He also expects private capital to play a larger role in sectors historically led by government. This is not about replacing the state. It is about enabling delivery, with government, DFIs, multilaterals and commercial institutions each taking a defined role.

Projects that create long-term value usually have the same foundations: real demand, strong governance, disciplined execution, institutional ownership and a clear operating model. They solve a genuine constraint and are designed around the end user, whether that is a municipality, household, commuter, business or industrial customer.

Assets that become costly or underused often show the warning signs early. Demand analysis is thin, affordability assumptions are unrealistic, stakeholder alignment is weak, or maintenance planning is inadequate. In some cases, the asset is built, but the tariff framework, operating model or institutional capacity cannot sustain it over time.

‘A good infrastructure project continues to deliver economic and social value over its life,’ Montja says.

THE NEXT PHASE OF FINTECH

Fintech has expanded access, lowered transaction costs, improved payment convenience, enabled digital lending and helped small businesses through faster onboarding and alternative
data. In markets with limited traditional banking infrastructure, mobile money and digital payments have given more people and businesses a first route into the formal financial system.

Montja is, however, careful about how inclusion is measured. ‘Access to an app is not the same as meaningful financial inclusion,’ he notes. ‘Customers can still face high costs, opaque terms, limited recourse, weak data protection, or products that do little to improve long-term financial health.’

The next phase of fintech must be assessed by whether it improves resilience, savings, responsible access to credit, and productive economic participation. That principle applies to digital infrastructure more broadly. Adoption numbers are useful, but they do not prove long-term value. The stronger test is whether the investment improves access, affordability and economic participation.

The continental opportunity depends on integration. Montja argues that Africa needs greater harmonisation of regulations, stronger regional infrastructure, deeper local capital markets and more predictable cross-border trade and investment frameworks. Investors need certainty regarding rules, currency convertibility, taxation, dispute resolution, and capital repatriation.

Regional trade depends on both physical and digital infrastructure. Roads, rail, ports, power pools and fibre networks move goods, energy and data across borders. Interoperable payment systems, digital identity, data governance and financial market infrastructure make it easier for capital and services to move with them. The African Continental Free Trade Area provides the platform, but its value will depend on implementation and whether it reduces friction in practice.

Montja also places significant weight on leadership and governance. His work across banking, corporate finance, fintech and public-sector transactions has reinforced his view that execution risk is closely linked to the quality of people and decision-making behind a project.

He looks for leadership teams that are ‘transparent, realistic and accountable’. He also assesses whether they understand the risks, whether governance structures allow timely decisions, and whether there is a credible plan to manage complexity once a transaction moves
from strategy to implementation.

In infrastructure, weak governance often manifests as delays, unclear accountability, shifting assumptions, and poor stakeholder management. Technical analysis remains essential, but judgement, discipline and conduct under pressure are just as important to delivery.

That same view informs the way Montja thinks about people, ethics, and inclusion. He sees mentorship and inclusion as investments because they build future capability. Ethics protects trust, reputation and decision quality. Leaders, he argues, should be assessed on financial performance, retention, promotion pathways, skills development, mentorship outcomes, ethical conduct, and the culture they create.

‘The most important thing to remember is that capital follows well-prepared, well-governed projects,’ he says. ‘Partnerships between the public and private sectors are essential to unlocking infrastructure investment. The role of private and capital markets is to match capital with execution, enabling projects to move “from concept to delivery”. Africa’s infrastructure opportunity will depend on preparation, credible governance and the ability of institutions to turn funding into assets that perform over time.’

Author
Monique Verduyn

]]> Cover Story: Belinda Carreira CA(SA) – Making mobility matter https://www.accountancysa.org.za/cover-story-belinda-carreira-casa-making-mobility-matter/ Fri, 01 May 2026 06:10:12 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29627

Belinda Carreira, founder and CEO of SustainableDNA and first ever winner of SAICA’s Chairman’s Difference Makers Award for Sustainability back in 2022, has a unique take on ‘people, planet and profits’ – and she’s hoping others embrace it.

PICTURE THIS. You’re a farmer, struggling to produce crops without a steady water supply. That’s not your only challenge, though: when you are able to produce a good harvest, it’s a battle to get your fruit and veg to the market.

Creating the right conditions for sustainability – by building a dam close to the farm, to channel rainwater – could definitely help, says Belinda. But what if you went one step further, going beyond sustainability, to offer regeneration? Belinda explains what this would look like: It starts by linking the dam to an irrigation system on the farm. Sustainability is ensured by harnessing AI to, for example, make sure that the system works only at specified times, preventing evaporation of the precious water. Next, you help the farmer access markets by connecting them with an app that links to a logistics company that uses low-carbon transport solutions. Finally, the app could also connect the farmer to consumers – so, while the farmer benefits from market access and more stable income and the environment is looked after through water and transport efficiencies, communities also benefit from access to nutritious food. This is the shift from sustainability to regeneration. Sustainability makes the system work, ensuring the farm has water and can operate properly, while regeneration connects the system end to end so that it gives back more than it takes in a commercially viable way.

THINKING SMART

This kind of scenario might sound like an ideal, but it’s perfectly plausible, says Belinda. It’s simply a matter of thinking smart and using the resources that we have in a manner that allows us to create more connected systems. ‘The reality is that we’re never going to stop consuming, or extracting. And we shouldn’t. We need to extract resources from the earth, and we need people and energy for our organisations to operate. At the same time, we need to consume to live comfortable lives. In fact, consumption will increase as living conditions improve and inequality is addressed, including as people move into better housing.’

If that sounds like a counterintuitive observation, coming from someone who has dedicated her life to sustainability, Belinda has added a caveat: ‘We need to start making sure that sustainability is built into every aspect of operations. For instance, by applying circular economy principles to the designing of processes and products, we can prevent waste from being created in the first place and ensure resources are reused, repurposed or recycled. Done properly, the system becomes more abundant, not depleted.’ SustainableDNA is a case in point, as it has a zero-waste policy in place that applies these principles.

How did Belinda’s concept of sustainability evolve to this level? It all starts with her family, she explains: ‘Values were very important to my parents. They raised us to look for ways we could help others.’ Belinda never grew out of this mindset; in fact, it amplified as she advanced along her professional path.

Although Belinda never expected to fall in love with accounting (having chosen the profession on the advice of her father, who was also a CA), she proved to have a natural aptitude for it. She was recognised as one of Deloitte’s top-rated auditors during her articles, with her drive and insistence on excellence seeing her selected for international assignments. That’s how her passion for the environment came about: during her travels, she was astounded by the beauty of the world and moved to do what she could to protect it.

Belinda found a channel to do just this when she attended FinBiz 2030 in 2020, an event which brought her into contact with members of One Young World. The serendipitous connection with others who shared her enthusiasm for sustainability led to the establishment of her first platform: #SustainableSA, a project to help South Africa achieve the SDGs. The initiative was sponsored by SAICA and published on its platform, marking her formal entry into the domain.

This built on a foundation she had already established in 2018 when she founded WELL, a company focused on employee health and wellbeing. This work was important to Belinda, since she had personally experienced burnout, and reflected a long-standing commitment to supporting people through various initiatives and mentorship.

‘#SustainableSA made it possible for me to connect all the dots,’ she explains. ‘I had always been focused on people, and my background as a CA meant I was also addressing financial sustainability. The SDGs then formally brought in the environmental dimension, enabling me to do this work in a more structured and impactful way.’

The next step? The establishment of SustainableDNA. Belinda says that, while her work with WELL focused on employee health and wellbeing, she was eager to expand this work into a broader sustainability focus, incorporating environmental and financial dimensions in a more strategic way.

SUSTAINABILITY AS A DIFFERENTIATOR

This means that, since 2020, Belinda has been working to make CEOs realise that sustainability is not a tick-box exercise or something that should be addressed purely as a matter of compliance. Her goal is to help them see it as something that is embedded in every aspect of operations, and she does this by targeting several different areas, from developing organisational strategy rooted in sustainability to training (Belinda believes that education is the critical starting point for any sustainability-related initiative), as well as reporting. The company also provides software to guide clients’ approach.

‘We help companies harness sustainability as a differentiator,’ Belinda notes, ‘and we do this by shifting the focus: rather than viewing it as something that can be driven by implementing fragmented projects, it becomes the foundation on which the company is built.’ The objective is to make sure that sustainability is considered ‘business as usual’ – and, from there, to take even greater strides by moving towards regeneration. ‘Sustainability is about establishing equilibrium and restoring balance; it’s putting back what we take out of the earth or from communities. Regeneration goes further. It’s about adding value and giving back more than we take. If you think about alchemy, it’s transmuting a resource into something even more valuable, like using solar and wind to create energy.’

EVERYBODY DESERVES A CHANCE

Creating the connections required for regeneration might sound like a daunting task, but Belinda insists that it’s within reach. ‘The truth is that we have access to a wealth of resources; plus we have a tremendous asset in the form of Africa’s youth,’ she notes. This, she maintains, makes the SDGs imminently achievable, and puts South Africa – and the rest of the continent – in the running to become an example to the rest of the world.

She’s also confident that South Africa’s business fraternity will come to share her view. ‘Essentially, sustainability is about ensuring that your business remains a going concern into the future,’ She points out that developments such as IRBA’s adoption of ISSA 5000, the global sustainability assurance standard developed by the IAASB, are creating additional incentive for organisations to take a proactive stance on sustainability reporting and assurance.

Belinda is also adamant that the accounting profession has a critical role to play here. After all, CAs occupy positions as trusted leaders. ‘We have both the privilege and the responsibility to create opportunities for entities to not only survive, but thrive.’ With this in mind, she urges industry players to apply the rigour they have developed throughout their careers to the issue of sustainability: simple actions like asking whether organisations are doing what they said they do, whether this is supported by data, and whether it can be improved on (and how) are all integral to this. Ensuring that sustainability-related projects are able to attract investors is also key.

‘I have always approached sustainability with a simple philosophy: everyone deserves a chance. This highlights the need to work towards an inclusive economy. As CAs, we need to understand that sustainability is not separate to the work we do, it’s central to it. We need to use our influence to make sure that people move from dialogue to action.’

Author
Lisa Witepski

]]> Cover Story: Kavita Vanmali CA(SA) – Getting things done https://www.accountancysa.org.za/cover-story-kavita-vanmali-casa-getting-things-done/ Wed, 01 Apr 2026 12:07:45 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29572

From an early start in audit to work across finance transformation, finance operate and other sectors, Kavita Vanmali CA(SA) has stayed focused on how systems work, where they fail and what can be improved. She speaks about chartered accountancy as a broad foundation rather than a narrow path, and believes leadership starts with making it easier for others to ask questions. She also embraces AI and wants to make it real for CFOs. Curious and direct, Vanmali brings the same approach to business and the realities of working parenthood alike.

At the start of her career at Deloitte in 2004, Kavita Vanmali’s first audit client was in the telco sector. That was the year South Africa’s first commercial 3G network was launched. The Nokia 3300 and Motorola RAZR V3 were everywhere. Vanmali wanted to understand how it all worked. What made a cell phone call possible? What systems sat behind it? What controls had to be in place? ‘I’ve always had an inquiring mind,’ she says. ‘I have a need to learn and understand.’ That was how she began to specialise in technology, media and telecommunications (TMT) advisory. Today, she’s a Partner in the Audit and Assurance at Deloitte Africa, leading finance operate and specialising in digital finance transformation.

Vanmali’s career makes a bigger point about the profession, which she believes many students still misunderstand. Too often, she says, school-leavers assume the CA(SA) route comprises three years of audit and then life as an auditor. For her, that misses the point. Articles build technical skill, but they also open doors, expose young professionals to different industries, and show them how organisations really work.

One of the profession’s biggest strengths is its range. Vanmali sees the CA(SA) qualification as a foundation. ‘You can be the CHRO, you can become the CEO, you can take on pretty much any role in a business,’ she says. In her view, its greatest advantage lies in the broader grounding it gives people in leadership and problem-solving.

That was also true in her own career. Her move beyond pure audit began with a clear understanding of what a strong control environment should look like, and how often clients did not have that. ‘I started to see where the advisory gap was,’ she says, ‘and that we should be coming up with the solution.’

THOUGHTS ON AI

The real value of AI is practical, Vanmali says. Never mind the hype, the point is to see where finance teams are losing time and then use AI as a strategic advisor to the business.

‘In Deloitte’s finance transformation work, which starts with talking to CFOs about pain points and identifying where AI can genuinely help,’ she says. ‘One example is a secure internal tool that lets accountants search company policies and technical guidance quickly, instead of paging through manuals and standards. Another is using AI to pull faster insights from financial data rather than waiting days for the usual analysis process to run its course. It’s really about finding realistic areas in finance where you can actually use an AI assistant,’ she says.

AFRICAN TELCOS HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY

Connectivity is the baseline for participation in work, education, healthcare and modern citizenship. ‘That puts pressure on Africa’s telecoms sector to make access cheaper and more widely available, even as legislation changes and infrastructure differs from one market to the next.’

She stresses that solutions cannot simply be imported into African countries and expected to work. They have to be adapted to local conditions. She speaks about building ‘skills within our own soil’ and making sure digital tools match the quality of connectivity, the needs of different sectors and the realities on the ground. ‘What works in Waterfall may not work in a rural town.’

Vanmali is as focused on people as she is on systems. ‘Our work depends on relationships, managing teams, drawing information out of clients and building trust
under pressure.’

LEADING WOMEN IN TECH

Many young women say they hesitate to join tech discussions not because they lack ability, but because the conversation is often saturated with jargon they don’t fully understand. Vanmali makes a point of helping her junior female colleagues feel confident enough to walk into a meeting and speak the language of the industry. At Deloitte, she says, that’s a key part of leading women in tech.

It’s not about being perfect; it’s about having permission. Women entering the sector need leaders who make it visibly acceptable not to know everything. ‘If I’m uncertain about something, I ask,’ she says. ‘And if they hear me ask a question, then they know it’s okay for them to do that too. It’s our job to create an environment where other people feel able to learn openly.’

Vanmali recalls coming back from maternity leave and realising how little thought had been given to what working mothers actually need. ‘There was no proper, hygienic place to express milk. Other mothers were doing this in the bathroom, or even in their car. I used those conversations to push for practical changes to support women returning to work after having a baby, including a private mothers’ room where mothers can store milk safely, which we now have.’

These experiences have influenced the way Vanmali thinks about work and home. She prefers the term ‘work/life integration’ because, in reality, there’s no balance. ‘It all has to happen,’ she says. ‘So it’s about integrating everything into my day. One calendar, one system, everything in one place.’ By being open about school pickups and the logistics of family life, she’s shown younger women around her that this was possible, and acceptable, too.

STANDING UP, SHOWING UP

Vanmali does not believe in the idea of one perfect mentor guiding a career from start to finish. In her experience, mentorship is more layered than that. Different leaders helped her in different ways at different points. ‘One might open doors, another might push you to think differently, and another might show you how to lead. Over time, I took those different lessons and built my own way of working.’

She concludes: ’Support matters, but so does making your ambition visible. Leaders need to know you are willing to take on more, try something new and step into opportunity when it comes. You have to have leadership and mentors that believe in you,’ she says, ‘but you need to also come to the party.’

No problem without a solution

‘Probably my ability to get things done.’ That’s Vanmali’s answer when asked what people underestimate about her. She’s persistent and refuses to accept dead ends. ‘There’s always got to be a solution, and there must be a way.’

A mindset like that usually comes from a mix of personality and habit. Some people are naturally more curious and more persistent. In psychology, this is often linked to a strong sense of agency – the feeling that you can act on a problem rather than just put up with it. You see it in people who notice when something still does not make sense and keep probing until it does. They test different ways through a problem rather than accepting the first blockage, and they tend to deal with muddled processes instead of working around them. What drives that is a low tolerance for loose ends, combined with a belief that most problems become manageable once you understand them properly and break them into parts.

Author
Monique Verduyn

]]> Cover Story: Andrew Alt CA(SA) – The systems thinker in an accounting world https://www.accountancysa.org.za/cover-story-zanele-maduna-casa-from-profit-to-purpose-2/ Sun, 01 Mar 2026 07:49:08 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29521

Andrew Alt helps developers and finance professionals understand each other. He sees AI as powerful but with limitations, useful for structured tasks but no substitute for human judgement. His message to newly qualified CAs(SA) is to think broadly, question assumptions and understand how systems work. In a profession being reshaped by rapid technological change, adaptability and curiosity will be career defining.

ANDREW ALT COMES FROM A HUMBLE background. An only child, he was raised in Queenstown (now Komani) in the Eastern Cape by a single mother.

Despite these early hardships, he was regularly top of the class at school. ‘I loved words,’ he says. ‘I wanted to be an actor. I wanted to write the great South African novel. I wanted to be a published poet with something important to say about the world.’

But when he applied to Rhodes University reality set in. ‘Drama students were watching each other’s auditions. Sitting there, I realised that most of the people around me were far more talented than I was. As much as I loved acting, I was not the best at it.’

At school, he had enjoyed computer science. Programming was logical and practical; it made sense. He decided he would make a living from that rather and enrolled at NMMU (then UPE). But life had other plans for him. ‘I was chatting to a friend on registration day and ended up being in the wrong queue, so I accidentally signed up for a CA slash BSc degree. And that’s how I became an accountant.’

At the time, he was studying computer science, − the course contained pure maths and classical Greek logic. His BSc lecturers insisted that if he was to study the logic of programming, Aristotle was the place to start.

‘That mix of subjects changed my perspective,’ he says. ‘Accounting is technical and rules based. It teaches compliance, standards and precision. Computer science looks at systems from multiple angles. It asks how parts connect, how inputs produce outputs, and what happens when one variable shifts. It’s more about understanding whole structures.’

‘I don’t think CAs(SA) are numbers people,’ he says. ‘I think we’re translators.’

‘A good CA(SA) can sit across from a small business owner and make a set of financial statements make sense, strip away the jargon, and show people what matters. This is where there are similarities with programming. When something breaks, you do not fix the surface problem and move on. You trace it back and identify the systemic problem that allowed it to happen.’

MAKING A CAREER CHANGE

Alt completed his articles at Charteris & Barnes in the Eastern Cape and went on to become a partner. He stayed with the firm for more than two decades. In addition to audit work, he took responsibility for IT and infrastructure and was comfortable working with large volumes of data. He admits he did not always fit the traditional mould of a practice partner, but he focused on the areas where he added value.

At 47, he chose to step away from the profession. The pressure had been building for years, as regulation increased and responsibility continued to grow. Burnout was becoming normal. Then a serious health scare made him stop and think seriously about what he wanted next.

‘I don’t think you’re a real accountant until you’re driving to work in traffic and you think to yourself, “you know, if I just slip into this oncoming lane, the pain will end.” So, I left without much of a plan other than to lie by the pool and have a few beers.’

Before leaving the firm, he received a call from Draftworx, the financial reporting and audit software company his firm had used. The CEO asked if he would consider coming on board.

The next day he was offered a job with the title line left blank. Alt filled it in, half-jokingly, as Chief Imagination Officer. The name stuck. He works between coders and accountants, translating accounting requirements into practical instructions for developers, and explaining technical limits and possibilities to finance professionals.

‘When our product teams build new features, I can anticipate where an accountant might struggle with a workflow or where a developer might misunderstand how a reporting standard is applied in practice,’ he says. ‘When our larger clients are implementing the system, I help them understand how it fits into their existing processes and what changes they may need to make. This bridges a gap that often causes friction in audit software development.’

Finance and technology are now tightly connected, Alt says. ‘CAs(SA) can no longer treat technology as something separate from their profession. A working understanding of how technology functions is essential, not optional.’

AI IS CENTRAL TO THE CONVERSATION

Alt believes AI is powerful but overhyped. In finance, he says, it works best in clearly defined, rules-based environments. Financial systems have playbooks and they operate within structured frameworks. That makes them suitable for machine learning tools that can process repetitive tasks and flag anomalies. But he’s cautious about exaggerated claims.

‘AI can handle rule-based work and large volumes of data. It can speed up repetitive processes and surface information that might otherwise be missed. What it cannot do, at least not yet, is replace judgement or human nuance. It does not carry lived experience. It does not understand context in the way people do.’

He sees its role as reducing the time spent on routine work so that professionals can focus on higher-value conversations. In his words, it can give you a ‘heads up’ about what matters.

He also draws a distinction between broad, general large language models and more specialised AI tools. ‘Specialised AI applied to specific problems in finance is more useful than systems that attempt to be all-purpose solutions. Data privacy and data quality remain real constraints.’

Systems thinking has always helped him understand risk more broadly, and where the gaps lie.

The risk lies not in AI itself, but in ignoring it. ‘Professionals who refuse to engage with it will become inefficient. At the same time, those who assume it will solve everything sorely misunderstand its limits.’

His advice to young CAs(SA) is consistent with how he developed his own career.

‘First, do not specialise too early. Many graduates narrow their focus before they have properly understood the breadth of the profession. A broader base creates stronger professionals in the long run. It’s like studying medicine – general training first, specialisation later.’

He encourages young professionals to be deliberately curious and to read widely. ‘Not only tax updates or accounting standards, but history, science and ideas that challenge your own views. Makes a point of reading arguments you disagree with so you can understand other points of view.’

For Alt, modern risk is tied to polarisation and algorithm-driven media. ‘The real risk in our current environment is intellectual complacency. If you do not actively step outside your own echo chamber, you distort your understanding of what may affect markets, clients and business decisions. Social platforms and digital news feeds reinforce existing beliefs. For CAs(SA), that has an impact on professional judgement,’ he says.

‘Risk is not only about numbers. It is political, social and behavioural. If you only see one side of an argument, a dispute, an ideological position, a political opinion, you are highly likely to miss something.’

Author
Monique Verduyn

]]> Cover Story: Zanele Maduna CA(SA) – From profit to purpose https://www.accountancysa.org.za/cover-story-zanele-maduna-casa-from-profit-to-purpose/ Sun, 01 Feb 2026 10:01:05 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29222

Disciplined, well-designed businesses are increasingly driving sustainable social impact. Instead of relying on donations or short-term grants, B2B social enterprises sell services to organisations and institutions. We asked Zanele Maduna CA(SA) to explain why.

An estimated 10 million social enterprises operate globally. Those built on B2B models align closely with corporate ESG priorities while delivering practical solutions to real problems, from youth unemployment and education gaps to skills shortages and social exclusion. They report on results and are held accountable, setting them apart from many traditional NGOs.

In South Africa, where unemployment remains stubbornly high and the education system continues to battle low throughput and deep inequality, this model is gaining traction. It brings financial discipline to social investment.

One example of this approach in action is No-Valo Learning Centre – a black female-owned, Level 1 B-BBEE-accredited Skills Development Provider that works with bursary funds, universities, employers, and scholarship programmes to support student success. Founder Zanele Maduna CA(SA) maintains that education interventions work best when they recognise the full reality of a student’s life, not only what happens in the classroom.

A Thuthuka Bursary Fund recipient, Maduna began her career in the corporate world and later moved into lecturing, teaching accounting at higher education institutions, including Unisa. Those early years informed how she thinks about performance, systems, accountability, and governance.

While lecturing, she began to notice a recurring pattern. Students were failing not because they lacked intelligence or access to content, but because they had no self-management skills. They crammed, burned out, and struggled to cope with the transition from school to university.

‘They didn’t understand that being a student is about more than studying,’ she explains. ‘Looking after your mind, your energy, your general well-being, and how you manage yourself is critical.’

LESSONS FROM EARLY VENTURES

No-Valo was not Maduna’s first venture. Like many entrepreneurs, she learned through trial and error. One of her earliest businesses, started with a friend, was a learning platform designed to host development events for women. The idea was sound, but it was poorly executed.

‘At our first event, exactly one person bought a ticket,’ she says. ‘That taught me very quickly that you need a powerful brand if you want people to show up.’

In her early ventures, Maduna tried to do everything herself, which stalled progress. ‘What changed everything was learning to partner and build a team,’ she says. ‘Entrepreneurship is not a solo sport.’

That’s why she built No-Valo with structure and long-term sustainability built in from the start.

BUSINESS FIRST, IMPACT BY DESIGN

No-Valo Learning Centre launched as a skills development business and pivoted fully into its current model in 2020. Maduna went full-time in the business in June 2023, which explains its recent growth.

The organisation operates through two distinct entities, the No-Valo Learning Centre and the No-Valo Foundation.

The learning centre is a commercial, fee-based business. It’s accredited and delivers structured programmes in study skills, psychosocial support, and work-readiness training. Its clients are bursary funds, scholarship programmes, employers, and higher education institutions. These partners pay for interventions because they need better student outcomes.

The foundation, by contrast, focuses on challenges that education alone cannot fix.

‘It’s pointless to try and break the cycle of poverty through education while ignoring hunger and infrastructure,’ Maduna says.

This separation is deliberate and strategic. The business generates revenue and remains financially disciplined. A percentage of profits is channelled into the foundation, which funds hunger alleviation projects, library renovations, psychosocial support initiatives, and other targeted interventions. From a governance perspective, the split allows for focus and accountability. Impact work is not allowed to weaken commercial sustainability, and profitability does not outweigh purpose.

No-Valo’s work focuses on three of the most persistent challenges facing South African youth: academic underperformance, mental health strain, and unemployment.

Rather than duplicating academic content, the organisation works on what Maduna calls ‘the person behind the student’.

For first-year university students, this often means helping them transition from school to varsity life. Programmes include change management, energy management, emotional regulation, and performance coaching. For senior students and graduates, the focus shifts to work readiness, including professional behaviour, self-confidence, and meeting workplace expectations.

No-Valo works closely with institutions that already invest heavily in students. Many bursary funds and universities provide tutoring, accommodation, and financial support, yet still see high dropout and failure rates.

‘What we realised is that the missing piece is not academic ability,’ Maduna says. ‘It’s self-management.’

By shifting the focus away from memorisation and towards performance skills, No-Valo aims to improve outcomes over time. This approach also makes impact easier to track and assess.

EDUCATION BEYOND THE CLASSROOM

Currently, around 95% of the foundation’s funding comes directly from the business, with the remainder raised from the public. Its hunger alleviation programme provides groceries for matric students and their families during exam periods and team members check in regularly with beneficiaries.

‘The feedback is that students are able to focus better because they don’t have to worry about food,’ she says.

A recent project was the renovation of a Tembisa school library. When the organisation first became involved, the space was not usable. There were no shelves, bookswere piled on the floor, and everything was covered in dust. Hygiene was a concern, and there was nowhere for learners to sit, read, or study.

‘It was heartbreaking to see,’ Maduna says. ‘We started by securing and repairing the floors and walls to keep out dust, damp, and pests. We installed shelves, sourced books through partners such as Unisa and other donors, and created dedicated study areas so learners had a quiet, safe place to work. The school now manages the library day to day, with our continued support.’

Around 81% of Grade 4 learners cannot read for meaning in any language. Teachers have told Maduna that some Grade 10 learners struggle to read fluently. ‘If young people are exposed to proper infrastructure early, it helps build a culture of reading,’ she says.

LEADERSHIP AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN PRACTICE

At 32, Maduna has already made a strong impression. Her work has earned high-profile recognition, from the 2021 Mail & Guardian Top 200 Young South Africans award in Education to the 2024 African Women Chartered Accountants Leading Entrepreneur of the Year award. She’s also been featured on CNN and eNCA.

Maduna describes her leadership style as firm, fair and people centred. At No-Valo, small wins are noticed and celebrated daily. An avid reader, she counts Radical Candor by Kim Scott and The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz among her recent favourites. What resonates with her is not leadership technique, but behaviour – how leaders listen, show respect, make clear decisions, and invest in people.

Although she loves what she does, Maduna is careful to make time away from work. Outside the office, she spends time with friends and goes for regular walks with her much-loved Pomeranian, Millow.

LOOKING AHEAD

No-Valo has reached more than 11 000 beneficiaries. Maduna’s target is 100 000 by 2030. Her plan is to grow its physical presence across provinces and to work more closely with universities. She’s increasingly aligning the organisation’s work with UN Sustainable SDG 1 (reducing poverty), SDG 4 (improving education), and SDG 8 (decent work and economic growth).

Her message to social impact entrepreneurs is that the business must be financially viable. ‘Build organisations that can stand on their own, deliver value, and be held accountable. Let’s prove that financially viable businesses are among the strongest tools we have for real, lasting social progress.’

Zanele Maduna’s Top 8 Tips for Entrepreneurs, Students & Young Professionals

1. Know your WHY — whether you’re building, studying, or starting out
Your why is your anchor. When the pressure rises, the work feels heavy, or progress is slow, clarity of purpose helps you stay committed long after motivation fades.
2. Happiness is choosing your struggle
There is no path without resistance. Studying hard is a struggle — but so is not studying and failing. Working hard is a struggle — but so is staying stuck. Building a good business is a struggle — but so is watching potential go unrealised. Choose the struggle that moves you forward.
3. Start before you’re ready
Waiting for perfect clarity often leads to inaction. Momentum is built by starting — even on a Friday — and allowing learning and confidence to meet you in motion.
4. Discipline is self-respect
Discipline isn’t about being harsh on yourself. It’s about keeping promises to yourself — showing up consistently in your studies, career, or business, even when it’s uncomfortable.
5. Learn to enjoy failing forward
Growth requires getting things wrong. Failure isn’t a setback; it’s feedback. The faster you learn, adjust, and move forward, the stronger and more adaptable you become.
6. Never eat alone — relationships matter at every level
Success is rarely a solo journey. Be intentional about building meaningful relationships wherever you are — in classrooms, workplaces, and entrepreneurial spaces.
7. Don’t confuse busyness with progress
Full calendars can be misleading. Progress comes from focused work on the things that actually move the needle, not from doing everything at once.
8. Focus on your input, not just the output
You can’t always control marks, promotions, or revenue. What you can control is preparation, effort, and consistency. Strong inputs compound over time.

Author
Monique Verduyn

]]> Cover Story: Women’s Month – The Power of starting over – Patricia Malahlela AT(SA) https://www.accountancysa.org.za/cover-story-womens-month-the-power-of-starting-over-patricia-malahlela-atsa/ Fri, 01 Aug 2025 09:25:43 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=28979

It’s been said time and again that the CA(SA) qualification takes grit and guts. Patricia Malahlela, a senior accountant at Mckenzie & Associates, has shown that she has these qualities in droves – and then some.

It’s no exaggeration to say that Patricia has become a master at overhauling her life: she has already done it several time in her pursuit of the career − and the life − she dreams of.

Her first big change came when she realised that a lifetime in Lephalale, the small Limpopo town where she grew up, was not for her. ‘Nothing ever happened there. I wanted more for myself, and I decided that Gauteng was the place where I could make all my goals a reality.’ Patricia says that several people tried to change her mind, but she was always steadfastly focused on forging a new reality.

Her first step was securing a NSFAS bursary to study a diploma in accounting at the Tshwane University of Technology. ‘I had my sights set on the field since the first time a teacher told us what a CA is,’ Patricia recalls. Although her interest was piqued, Patricia’s school didn’t offer accounting as a subject until she was in Grade 10. She jumped at the chance to further her knowledge, at first struggling to make sense of a subject that felt very foreign but pushing on because she knew that it was essential to her future plans. Luckily, by Grade 12, she had honed her understanding and passed with flying colours. ‘I realised that I really enjoy working with numbers, and I love the challenge of solving problems,’ she says – which confirmed her conviction that, whatever field she found herself in, it would somehow involve accounting.

Stuck in a rut

That conviction propelled her forward while studying her diploma and was at the forefront of her mind when some friends completing the same stream persuaded her to join them in upgrading their qualification to a degree. Patricia duly enrolled at Unisa to upgrade her Diploma to a Bachelor of Accounting Sciences in Financial Accounting degree. At the same time, she signed on with Guarantee Trust, a six-month FASSET funded work readiness programme, so that she could polish her professional skills, and which led to placement at her current employer. And then she hit a brick wall.

‘Quite simply, I got into a very bad relationship,’ Patricia explains. Her experience highlights the issue of mental wellness, which took a very heavy toll on her progress. ‘I lost myself completely: lost sight of my goals, lost my motivation. I watched all my peers working their way through the course, but I felt like I was living someone else’s life and watching my own actions from the outside.’ Patricia’s depression was exacerbated by the pressure of work, as well as the financial stress she faced at the time.

Then, in the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, she took a long look at where she was, and how far it was from where she wanted to be. Mustering all her internal strength, she decided to leave her partner.

It was far from easy: as someone who loves other people, who looks for the best in them and believes in giving second chances, Patricia may have been convinced to keep trying. But, she says, she had found a mentor and a mother figure at work (her own mother having passed away when she was 10 years old), who persuaded her that the best way she could look after herself was by starting over.

Many challenges

Patricia admits that it took a lot of hard work to rebuild her morale. Not only had her partner’s constant criticism left her unsure of herself; she had supported him and his family (and had taken out several loans to do so), and so she was financially strapped. Again, her mentor stepped in to help, sharing her food whenever possible. This kindness helped nudge Patricia past a state of survival, to a place where she could consider what she needed to do in order to thrive. And so her dream of becoming a CA was rekindled.

It was slow going at first, Patricia confesses. ‘It took a lot to rebuild my confidence – and I’m still working on it – but I looked at the amazing women around me, doing amazing things, and I reminded myself I want to be like them.’ Joining SAICA, after her employer suggested she do so, has also helped, because it has brought her into contact with inspiring figures and reinforced her belief that, as a CA, she will be able to do great things.

‘I am more determined than ever to pursue this path. I feel like I am carrying the expectations and hopes of so many people, especially my family. Becoming a CA will open so many doors, giving me opportunities to help them and give back.’

One of the ways Patricia sees herself giving back is by supporting women who wish to better their lives, but do not have the funds or other resources to do so. Ideally, she would like to help them find an entry point to establishing a career.

In the meantime, she has started helping others on their journey through her involvement in Remembering the Goal, a mentorship programme offered by Enock Soko Tutoring Services. Patricia is currently working with a third-year accounting student who aspired to be a CA, offering study and career advice ‘and walking alongside her for the period of the mentorship’. She maintains she is benefiting from the programme as much as her mentee: ‘My communication, time management and organising skills have improved; but most of all, I am learning more about myself and how I show up for people.’

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