Meet our team

Surika is passionate about mobilising and motivating those around her towards reaching goals for the greater good.

She started her career as a journalist and has since gained over 10 years experience in project management in the non- and for-profit sector. Her projects include starting an education centre for impoverished children in the inner-city of Pretoria and rolling out ECD reading programmes at disadvantaged schools.

Since she moved to Cape Town in 2015 she worked as a Business and Operational Associate at the global startup accelerator TechStars and as Corporate Matchmaking Manager at the South-African Innovation Summit. Surika enjoys assisting organisations in the upliftment sector with business development and project management.

She joined the Academy in March 2017.

He has over 13 years of experience working in the private sector, public sector, and the NGO space, dedicated to fostering the growth and development of social enterprises and entrepreneurs, which has benefited Small, Medium, and Micro-sized Enterprises (SMMEs) across various industries.

In his role as Project Lead/Community Manager at Social Enterprise Academy Africa, he is working to establish an empowering ecosystem for social enterprises and entrepreneurs. Through the Social Enterprise Connect program, in partnership with IDC, which aims to unite and support social entrepreneurs on a national scale, providing vital resources such as information, market access, and networking opportunities.

His successful track record includes implementing and managing development programs, facilitating mentorships, and advocating for sustainable SMME practices.

A large part of his role involves developing and implementing the Academy’s visual brand.

With a background in Graphic Design, Sabele has worked with some of the country’s leading brands and has helped them develop and create successful marketing strategies.

He is very passionate about social entrepreneurship and looks forward to contributing towards the fourth industrial revolution through his knowledge and skills.

Has 17 years of professional experience in communication, customer service, event coordination, marketing administration, project administration, and report writing. She has a proven track record of contributing to organizational improvements, team collaboration, and achieving key business goals. Zinziswa’s energetic personality, community involvement, and leadership experience as the chairperson of a school governing body make her well-suited for a role as a learning coordinator.

As a Learning Coordinator, Zinziswa’s role is supporting Learners, Programme Officers and Facilitators in the delivery of all our learning programmes, ensuring everything runs as smoothly as possible and our learners have a fantastic experience from beginning to end.

Zinziswa is a seasoned professional with strong interpersonal skills, a commitment to lifelong learning, and a passion for community engagement. Her qualifications in Business Administration and Management, Project Management, and Public Administration with diverse skill sets make her a valuable member of our team.

After beginning her career in Administration Melanie-Anne became an assistant accounts clerk and has since achieved numerous courses in administrative duties.

After almost 18 years in this field, she truly loves what she does believing that this industry, although challenging, can also be very rewarding.

She is a highly dedicated worker, is married and has 2 beautiful children!

Gabriel Mukubvu is our Senior Accountant. He is a specialist management accountant familiar with group reporting, management reporting, budgeting and forecasting, payroll processing, and project audits.

Gabriel is also a registered tax practitioner. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce (B.Com.) in Accounting from Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University.