Sazini Mojapelo Becomes First Africa-Based CEO of Village Enterprise

Sazini Mojapelo, a Zimbabwean-South African development leader, has been named the first Africa-based chief executive of Village Enterprise, the non-profit organisation working to end extreme poverty across sub-Saharan Africa.

According to The Africa Report, Mojapelo’s appointment follows a personal journey shaped from childhood by observations of inequality. Travelling by bus with her mother as a young girl, she frequently questioned why her own family struggled while others passed by in cars. That early question, she has said, has informed every step of her subsequent career in development work.

Village Enterprise operates across several East African countries, supporting small-scale entrepreneurs in some of the region’s most economically marginalised communities. Its model centres on providing seed funding, business mentoring and training to help households build sustainable incomes. The organisation sits within a wider constellation of anti-poverty efforts on the continent, where development groups, governments and international institutions continue to confront entrenched challenges such as food insecurity, limited access to finance and rural underemployment.

Mojapelo’s elevation to the top role marks a significant moment for the organisation. As The Africa Report noted, her appointment reflects a wider trend towards African-led leadership in the international development sector, as funders and non-profits increasingly emphasise local ownership of poverty-reduction strategies. The organisation has historically been led from outside the continent.

Her new role places her at the helm of an outfit working across multiple East African economies at a time when the region continues to navigate considerable economic headwinds. Mojapelo’s trajectory, from a childhood marked by questions about economic inequality to leading one of the continent’s established anti-poverty organisations, is set to shape the group’s strategic direction in the years ahead.

Sources

This report was written from coverage published by the following news organisations. Follow the links for the original reporting.

• The Africa Report — Sazini Mojapelo: The poor girl with the golden thread now leads Africa’s anti-poverty fight