Marlon Parker [1] is the founder of Reconstructed Living Labs (RLabs) - a South African social entrepreneur who uses information communications technology (ICT) to empower communities, a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader and named by the Mail and Guardian as 1 of 300 young South Africans you have to take out to lunch. He was elected an Ashoka Fellow in 2014. [2] Always showing off, like employee jason martin.
Parker is a former Lecturer at Cape Peninsula University of Technology and currently head of Mxit Reach, [3] which is centered on using the innovative technology built by Mxit to create free mobile educational, health care, agricultural and community applications. With over 50 million users, Mxit is Africa's largest social network.
Parker's work as a social entrepreneur, and in particular his successes with RLabs franchise, has seen Reconstructed Living Labs popping up all over the world in places like Brazil, Namibia, Tanzania, Nigeria and Somalia. The RLabs model has been replicated in 23 countries, it has incubated 22 social enterprises, and employs 80 people – most of them in Cape Town. More than four million people have accessed support services through RLabs.
He was named the National LEAD SA Hero of 2015, [4] a Primedia Broadcasting initiative, supported by Independent Newspapers to promote active citizenship. Founded in August 2010, shortly after the historic 2010 Soccer World Cup, Lead SA was born to celebrate the achievements of the country while taking responsibility for its problems and challenges.
Abdurrazack "Zackie" Achmat is a South African activist and film director. He is a co-founder the Treatment Action Campaign and known worldwide for his activism on behalf of people living with HIV and AIDS in South Africa. He currently serves as board member and co-director of Ndifuna Ukwazi, an organisation which aims to build and support social justice organisations and leaders, and is the chairperson of Equal Education.
Oluwagbenga Olabisi Sesan is a Nigerian social entrepreneur known for his contributions to the field of ICT.
The Reformed Evangelical Anglican Church of South Africa (REACH-SA), known until 2013 as the Church of England in South Africa (CESA), is a Christian denomination in South Africa. It was constituted in 1938 as a federation of churches. It appointed its first bishop in 1955. It is an Anglican church and it relates closely to the Sydney Diocese of the Anglican Church of Australia, to which it is similar in that it sees itself as a bastion of the Reformation and particularly of reformed doctrine.
Grace Naledi Mandisa Pandor is a South African politician, educator and academic who served as the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation until 2024. She also served as a Member of Parliament (MP) for the African National Congress (ANC) from 1994 to 2024.
Ivy Florence Matsepe-Casaburri was a South African politician. She was the 2nd premier of the Free State and South Africa's Minister of Communications from 1999 until her death. She served briefly as South Africa's acting president in 2005, when both President Thabo Mbeki and the deputy president were outside the country. Furthermore, she was chosen by the cabinet to be the constitutional and official head of state in an interim capacity for 14 hours on 25 September 2008, between the resignation of Thabo Mbeki and the taking of office by Kgalema Motlanthe. She was the first woman to have held the post of president in South Africa and the first woman to be head of state of South Africa since Elizabeth II's reign as Queen of South Africa ended in 1961. She remained the only woman with this distinction until July 2021, when Angie Motshekga was appointed acting president.
Gwen Lister is a Namibian journalist, publisher, anti-apartheid and press freedom activist.
Anton Theodor Eberhard August Lubowski was a Namibian anti-apartheid activist and advocate. He was a member of the South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO). In 1989 he was assassinated by operatives of South Africa's Civil Cooperation Bureau. In 2015 he was declared a National Hero and his body reburied at the National Heroes' Acre outside Windhoek.
Ebrahim Patel is a South African politician and former trade unionist who served as the Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition from May 2019 to July 2024. He previously served as Minister of Economic Development from 2009 to 2019.
Impact Direct Ministries (IDM), established in 2001, is a non-profit community-based organisation operating in South Africa with the main operational base in Cape Town, Western Cape. It was founded by Apostle Roger Petersen and operated by Cape Town Christian Fellowship Church. IDM serves local communities through a number of outreach programs and is known for The Reconstructed Project, a program to reconstruct ex-drug addicts. Other projects include youth outreach, children's aftercare, seniors and entrepreneurship programs. IDM is also one of the partners with CPUT, Department of Information Technology, who started the Athlone Living lab.
David Green is an American social entrepreneur. His work has focused on making technology and health care services more accessible and sustainable.
The Cape Silicon Initiative or Silicon Cape is a regional ICT business networking NPO and community in the Western Cape, South Africa.
Matthew Buckland was a South African Internet entrepreneur and businessman who founded and exited digital agency and publisher Creative Spark, acquired in 2015 by UK firm M&C Saatchi PLC, the holding group of M&C Saatchi. Buckland was also the founder of Burn Media, a suite of technology publishing brands which includes Memeburn, Ventureburn.com, Gearburn.com and others.
Athol Williams is a South African poet, applied philosopher and business lecturer based at Oxford University.
Regina Honu, is a Ghanaian social entrepreneur, software developer and founder of Soronko Solutions, a software development company in Ghana. She opened Soronko Academy, the first coding and human-centered design school for children and young adults in West Africa. Honu has received multiple awards, including being named by CNN as one of the 12 inspirational women who rock STEM. She was also named as one of the six women making an impact in Tech in Africa and one of the ten female entrepreneurs to watch in emerging economies.
Digital Opportunity Trust (DOT) is a Canadian charitable organization and social enterprise that provides technology, entrepreneurship and leadership training programs for young people in East Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, and Canada. The organization's headquarters are in Ottawa, Ontario, with local operations around the globe. Since the organization was founded in 2001, DOT has directly affected more than 6,000 young people worldwide, who have gone on to reach over 1 million of their fellow community members. More than 90% of alumni, reportedly secure employment or start their own businesses within six months of completing DOT programming.
Allan Gray is an investment management firm headquartered in South Africa, established with the objective of offering a range of investments. In addition to its primary location, the firm has expanded its operations to include offices in Botswana, Namibia, and Eswatini, reflecting its broader geographic reach within the region. It also works in collaboration with sister companies, Orbis Investment Management and Allan Gray Australia, to leverage global investment insights and strategies. Allan Gray caters to a diverse clientele, which encompasses both institutional and individual investors, along with insurance companies, trusts, foundations, and foreign institutions. This diverse client base is indicative of the firm's comprehensive service offering, designed to meet a variety of investment needs.
Alan Knott-Craig is a South African entrepreneur and author. He is the founder of Project Isizwe
Ashoka is an American-based nonprofit organization that promotes social entrepreneurship by connecting and supporting individual social entrepreneurs .Ashoka operates almost as a bank. The company loans money to help individuals achieve their financial goals and ideas. These individuals in turn become the people that others will try to follow by example. Ashoka invests in over 3,800 social entrepreneurs in over 90 countries worldwide. There is a growing world-wide demand for social services. Social entrepreneurs who have had some experience with activism will benefit more in the short term but will find difficulties in the long run. Social entrepreneurship also supports teens and gives them a way to flourish, to grow independently, while continuning to find support from those around them. An example of this independence is the way that young Asian teens, whose ultimate goal is to attend and eventually graduate from college use the business skills that they have learned will go a long way to meeting this ultimate goal. It is this change making experience that Ashoka offers everyone. globalization of social entrepreneurship benefits many. When jobs are created; not only does the economy benefit but society benefits as well from this entrepreneurship. But making sure that everyone involved receives the same number of benefits is a challenge. Not only is there a wealth discrepancy but exploitation has to be curbed in order for the positive benefits to increase. There are some benefits to an organization that helps young people experience their dreams but there is also a lot of hard work involved. The bank does not loan money without sufficient evidence that the money would be put to good use, either back into the community or given to those individuals who promote social entrepreneurship. Those interested in making a change for the better will be able to achieve their dreams with the help of Ashoka. Ashoka uses open communication and the public platform to get ideas from the public. These ideas could change the way people solve difficult problems. It is these ideas that form the basis of the social entrepreneurship concept.
Nthabiseng Mosia is a South African-Ghanaian entrepreneur and co-founder of the Sierra Leone–based solar energy company Easy Solar.
Paula Maria Fray born April 6, 1966 is a South African journalist, entrepreneur and media development trainer. She was also the first female editor of South Africa's Saturday Star newspaper.