What Freedom Day means to a young black businesswoman
'Freedom Day reminds us that political liberation must be backed by social, economic, and environmental freedom."
As South Africa celebrates Freedom Day on Sunday – marking 31 years of a transition from apartheid to constitutional democracy – to entrepreneur Nombulelo Malinga, the day is about a commitment to building businesses that are 'aligned with purpose and sustainability'.
In an interview with The Citizen, the 34-year-old founder and CEO of Zizi Digital, maintains that freedom means 'shaping a communications company that is unapologetically young, black, female-led and deeply committed to driving positive change across South Africa and the continent'.
'Freedom means we get to choose differently. We are free to create businesses that don't just chase profit, but build a better and sustainable world,' says Malinga
Shaping the future
Based in South Africa's economic hub, Johannesburg, Zizi Digital is leading a new generation of thinkers, storytellers, and digital strategists who believe that success is 'no longer just about commercial milestones – it's about aligning brands to a higher calling'.
At the core of the company's work, is a deep commitment to supporting public and private sector initiatives, aligned with the United Nations' (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The agency specialises in behavioural change communications across South Africa and the African continent, focusing on campaigns that encourage meaningful shifts in communities and industries.
'This reflects a new kind of freedom – the ability not only to speak, but to influence, educate and inspire action in a world that urgently needs sustainable solutions.
'As a signatory to the Women's Empowerment Principles, supported by UN Global Compact and UN Women, we urge other organisations to align with the SDGs – recognising their critical importance in tackling South Africa's biggest challenges, from inequality to climate change.
'Freedom Day reminds us that political liberation must be backed by social, economic and environmental freedom.
'Our generation has the opportunity and the responsibility to actively shape that future,' says Malinga.
ALSO READ: Malema condemns SA's 'incomplete freedom' during Brandfort Freedom Day rally
Leadership values
To Malinga, leadership includes 'a conscious responsibility towards the environment'.
With a strong environmental policy in place, the agency prioritises sustainable practices in its operations – affirming that 'true freedom includes securing the health of the planet for generations to come'.
In 2024, Zizi Digital earned a recognition as 'Top Gender Empowered Company' by Standard Bank.
This honour, says Malinga, 'highlights the agency's commitment to fostering diversity, inclusion and leadership that breaks barriers – all vital elements in creating a truly free and equitable society'.
With its rallying cry 'get the conversation going', Malinga says the company is proving that communications 'can be a powerful tool for change'.
'By blending creativity with intention, the team is using the freedoms of today to create a legacy where leadership is dynamic, diverse and transformative.
'We are not just building a brand, but rewriting what it looks like to lead in South Africa and Africa – young, black, female and purpose-driven,' she says.
As South Africa – from Verwoerd to Nelson Mandela – reflects on the meaning of Freedom Day, Malinga has pledged to remind society that 'freedom is not the end of the journey, but the beginning'.
NOW READ: Freedom Day: 'SA a free and sovereign country, not a province of US,' Mantashe says [VIDEOS]
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
IOL News
4 hours ago
- IOL News
Joseph Kabila's return: What it means for the DRC's political landscape
Then Democratic Republic of the Congo's outgoing President Joseph Kabila (L) shakes hands with newly inaugurated President Felix Tshisekedi at a swearing-in ceremony on January 24, 2019 in Kinshasa. Image: AFP Dr Sizo Nkala The former president of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Joseph Kabila returned to the country last week after spending two years in self-imposed exile in South Africa. Kabila ruled the vast central African country from 2001 after taking over from his father, Laurent Kabila, until 2019 when he handed over the reins to the incumbent President Felix Tshisekedi. Kabila's relationship with President Tshisekedi has deteriorated further since the collapse of their coalition government in 2020. Tshisekedi's government has repeatedly accused Kabila of collaborating with the M23 rebels to overthrow the government and charged him with committing treason, war crimes and crimes against humanity. Kabila has denied these accusations. A few days before Kabila arrived in the DRC, the country's Senate which is controlled by the ruling Sacred Union coalition voted to repeal Kabila's honorary title as a lifelong Senator and lifted his immunity from prosecution on the 23rd of May. The former president responded in a video posted on social media denouncing Tshisekedi's government as a dictatorship and decrying the decline of democracy in the country. He arrived in DRC's eastern city of Goma on May 26. Goma, the strategic capital city of North Kivu province, has been under the control of the M23 since they captured it in January. As such, he will be safe from any arrest as the government in Kinshasa has effectively lost any jurisdiction in the territory. The M23 welcomed Kabila's arrival stating that it wished him a pleasant stay in the city. Since he arrived in Goma, Kabila has tried to portray himself as a peacemaker. He met with religious leaders from North Kivu to discuss the current situation in the DRC in what could be the beginning of a bid to drum up public support and stir an anti-government sentiment. To reduce Kabila's influence in the country, the DRC government has imposed a media blackout on the former president by banning all media outlets including television, radio, print and digital press from covering anything about Kabila and his political party, the People's Party for Reconstruction and Democracy (PPRD). This could be an admission on the part of the government of Kabila's potential to influence public arrives on the scene as the M23 and the DRC government have begun negotiations on the resolution of the conflict. President Tshisekedi and his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, whose government is believed to be backing the M23 rebels met in person in Qatar in March where they committed to an immediate and unconditional ceasefire. This meeting paved the way for the DRC government and the M23 rebels to begin direct negotiations for the first time since the beginning of the conflict in 2021. Eventually, the two sides agreed to stop the fighting to allow the Qatar talks to proceed. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading The Rwandan and DRC foreign ministers later met in Washington, US, in April where they signed an agreement pledging mutual respect for each other's sovereignty and a commitment to desist from availing military aid to non-state actors. The two parties also promised to produce a draft peace deal at the beginning of May. According to President Donald Trump's Senior Advisor for Africa, Massad Boulous, the draft peace plan was duly submitted early in May. Negotiations are underway to produce a final draft. However, the talks between the DRC government and the M23 have since stalled as fighting is continuing unabated despite the earlier commitments to an unconditional ceasefire. On June 4 pro-government forces clashed with M23 forces in South Kivu. The latter also announced that it would attack a government military base located between Masisi and Walikale districts. The continued fighting could be an indication that both parties are not willing to make major concessions in the negotiations and may be trying to bolster their negotiating positions through military presence of Kabila in Goma adds a new dynamic to the conflict. The fact that Corneille Nangaa, a former close ally of Kabila who served as his election chief, is the leader of the M23 rebels does indeed draw a direct link between the former president and the rebel group thus lending credence to the government's claims. Kabila and the M23 share a common goal of overthrowing the Tshisekedi regime. While the M23 has the forces and the military muscle, its influence seems to be localized. It is also struggling to shake off the image of being the proxy of a foreign power thus limiting its political appeal to the broad section of the DRC population. Having led the country for 18 years, Kabila still commands a significant following among the Congolese people and the political class. Just a few years ago he headed the Common Front for Congo (FCC) coalition that won almost 70 per cent of the seats in the Congolese parliament in the 2018 elections and managed to secure key posts in Tshisekedi's government until their fallout in 2020.
eNCA
7 hours ago
- eNCA
World leaders head to France for UN summit on ocean threats
NICE - World leaders descend on the French Riviera on Sunday ahead of a high-level summit to tackle a deepening crisis in the oceans driven by overfishing, climate change and pollution. The United Nations says oceans face an "emergency" and leaders gathering in Nice will be under pressure to commit much-needed money and stronger protections for the ailing seas and the people that depend on them. The UN Ocean Conference must try to turn a corner as nations feud over deep-sea mining, plastic litter and exploitative fishing, against a backdrop of wider geopolitical tensions. Some 50 heads of state and government are expected to attend, including Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and his Argentine counterpart Javier Milei. On Sunday, French President Emmanuel Macron is expected to sail to Nice from Monaco, where he is attending a related event aimed at raising private capital for ocean conservation. He will be joined on the shimmering Mediterranean Sea by other vessels in a colourful maritime parade, before touring an exhibition centre on land transformed into the cavernous belly of a whale. That evening, Macron will host leaders for a dinner of Mediterranean fish ahead of the summit's formal opening on Monday. Peaceful demonstrations are expected over the five-day event and France has deployed 5,000 police to the heritage-listed city where scientists, business leaders and environmental activists are also attending in big numbers. A strong turnout is also expected from Pacific Island nations, whose delegations will demand greater financial assistance to fight the rising seas, marine trash and plunder of fisheries that threatens their very survival. The United States under President Donald Trump -- whose recent push to fast-track seabed mining in international waters sparked global outrage -- is not expected to send a delegation. - Political will - Conservationists have warned the summit -- which will not produce a legally binding agreement -- risks being a talk fest unless leaders come armed with concrete proposals for restoring marine health. Chief among these is securing the missing finance to get anywhere near protecting 30 percent of the world's oceans by 2030, a globally agreed target. "We've created this sort of myth that governments don't have money for ocean conservation," Brian O'Donnell, director of Campaign for Nature, told reporters. "There is money. There is not political will," he said. So far, only around eight percent of oceans are designated marine conservation zones and even less are considered truly protected. Greenpeace says at this rate, it could take another 82 years to reach the 30 percent goal. In a boost this week, Samoa declared 30 percent of its national waters under protection with the creation of nine new marine parks. Conservationists hope others at Nice follow suit. "All eyes should be on the many Pacific leaders attending... Their ambition and dedication to ocean protection can serve as inspiration to all countries," said Kevin Chand from the nonprofit group Pristine Seas. There has also been a concerted push for nations, including France, to ban bottom trawling -- a destructive fishing method that indiscriminately scrapes the ocean floor. On Saturday, Macron told the Ouest-France newspaper that bottom trawling would be restricted in some national marine protected areas. Inching closer toward the numbers required to ratify a global treaty on harmful fishing subsidies, and another on high seas protection, will also be a summit priority. France is spearheading a separate push in Nice to build support for a moratorium on deep-sea mining ahead of a closely-watched meeting of the International Seabed Authority in July. On Sunday, an expert scientific panel will hand Macron a list of recommendations for leaders at the summit, including pausing seabed exploration when so little is known about the deep oceans.
Eyewitness News
a day ago
- Eyewitness News
Zambia declares national mourning for ex-president Edgar Lungu
LUSAKA, Zambia - Zambia on Saturday declared seven days of national mourning in honour of the country's former president Edgar Lungu, who died in South Africa on Thursday, the government said. Lungu, who died at the age of 68, ruled the large but sparsely populated southern African nation from January 2015 until August 2021, when he lost to current President Hakainde Hichilema. "The government of the republic of Zambia wishes to inform the nation that President Hakainde Hichilema has accorded a state funeral to the sixth president, Edgar Lungu, who died on 5 June," said the secretary to the cabinet, Patrick Kangwa. The government announced that all flags would fly at half-mast from June 8 to 14 and that entertainment events would be suspended during that time. Kangwa said that the body of Lungu would arrive in Zambia next Wednesday and that Belvedere Lodge in the capital Lusaka had been designated as the official place of mourning. Lungu was receiving specialised medical treatment in a clinic in Pretoria, South Africa, his political party the Patriotic Front (PF) said. He was suffering from recurring achalasia, a condition caused by narrowing of the oesophagus.
