Board Of Trustees

Rebotile Bopape

Rebotile is an admitted Attorney of the High Court and leads activities of a multi-jurisdictional in-house legal team that has been recognized by the Legal 500. She holds an LLB degree, a Postgraduate Diploma in Cyber Law, and a certificate in Advanced Broadcasting Law. She completed a Management Advancement Programme at WITS Business School and an MBA with the Gordon Institute of Business Science. 

Rebotile is a speaker and facilitator at numerous workshops organized for the legal fraternity. She was one of five judges of the inaugural Women in Law South Africa (WOZA) Awards which was launched in 2019 and continued as a judge of the WOZA Awards 2022. She has also been appointed a trustee of the UJ Trust, a trust established to support the strategic objectives of the University of Johannesburg. 

She is the Chairperson of Action Breaks Silence, a non-profit organization that has a presence in South Africa, the UK, and India which has a number of interventions that are aimed at creating safer communities for women and children. 

Marijke Coetzee

Marijke has over 18 years’ experience in the areas of brand strategy, marketing, corporate communications, investor relations, public relations and corporate social investment. Marijke spent almost ten years in Absa in the early stages of her career and gained specialist marketing experience in the property sector during an 11-year career of developing and implementing the brand and communications strategy of Redefine properties.

Her role as director of marketing and communications at Vukile includes overseeing the corporate brand strategy as well as retail shopping centre marketing, stakeholder communications, public relations and the social investment strategy. Marijke serves as chairperson of the Buskaid Trust and is involved in several other charitable organisations.

Nomzabalazo Makubalo

Nomzabalazo, known as Nomza to many, has over 15 years’ experience in Human Resources within the broadcasting, media, and financial services industry.

She is currently a senior HR Executive within the financial services industry. Nomza holds a Bachelor of Science Honours degree in Industrial Psychology from Wits University, a Postgraduate Diploma in General Management and an MBA from Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS), a certificate in Organisational Development from the University of South Africa (UNISA), a certificate in the Management Acceleration Programme from Henley Business School, and a Non-Executive Director Diploma obtained from the Financial Times Board Director Programme in the UK. 

As an HR professional, Nomza has encountered the unfortunate occurrence of violence that women have suffered at the hands of men and is driven by the desire to contribute her skills, experience, and knowledge by serving on the board of Action Breaks Silence to make a difference.

Ntombikanina Malinga

Ntombikanina Malinga is a multifaceted figure: a spiritual seeker embracing the human journey, a devoted African championing the progress of her continent, a womanist deeply invested in uplifting women and youth, and a pioneering entrepreneur who established UCU Consulting and the UCU Foundation.

Her professional path has led her through prominent roles in major corporations such as Unilever UK, SABMiller, Eskom, and Alstom, culminating in her leadership as CEO of SASTELA (Southern Africa Solar Thermal and Electricity Association).

With a rich tapestry of experience spanning private and public sectors, non-profit organizations, and academia, Ntombikanina's academic credentials are as diverse as her career. She holds advanced degrees and qualifications in law, political economy, coaching, and business leadership from esteemed local and international institutions. Her scholarly and leadership excellence is recognized through an impressive collection of accolades: the United World Colleges Scholarship in Canada; the Abe Bailey Travelling Scholarship in the UK; participation in the United Nations AMUN program in Brazil; the Nelson Mandela Scholarship and Fellowship, which included time at Harvard University in the USA; the International Leadership Program and Common Purpose South Africa; and her selection for the inaugural cohort of the Atlantic Fellows for Racial Equity Fellowship, a transformative experience spanning the USA and South Africa. Each award stands as a testament to her commitment to personal growth and societal contribution.

Mathapelo More

Mathapelo More is an internal auditor by profession, and was employed at Daybreak Farms as the Head of the Risk and Internal Audit Department.  Mathapelo started her career at Sithole Incorporated and served her auditing articles with the company. She also worked at SAICA as a Project Manager for Legal and Governance and Manager Integrated Reporting Advisory at KPMG.

Mathapelo has a BCOMPT degree with the University of South Africa, Postgraduate Diploma in Integrated Reporting with the University of Pretoria and Postgraduate Diploma in Internal Audit from UNISA.

Yolanda Qumza

Debi Steven

Having herself survived child sexual abuse and driven by her belief that all women and girls should be empowered and live their lives fear of the fear of sexual violence, Debi has served communities in the UK, South Africa and India for nearly thirty years, focusing on creating a world where women and girls can live their lives free from male violence and the threat of such violence by empowering women and girls; educating and engaging young boys to feel empathy and become active bystanders to end VAWAG. Debi is now rated as one of the top Empowerment and Empathy influencers in the world and one of very few people in the VAWG space globally that firmly believes that young boys and men need to be included when looking for solutions to end VAWG.

In July 2013, Debi founded Action Breaks Silence UK, an educational charity, established to create a world where women and girls can live their lives free from male violence and the threat of such violence. In 2016, she founded Action Breaks Silence South Africa where she works with the South African Board and a South African Programme Manager to ensure that thousands of young people in economically challenged communities are offered an opportunity to participate in the programmes free of charge. Debi has also worked extensively in India and in 2022 co-founded Action Breaks Silence India. The three charities have independent Boards but all deliver the Action Breaks Silence Community Intervention to end VAWG with a focus on black and minoritized women and girls and in communities that face a multitude of challenges.

Debi and Action Breaks Silence have been guests on BBC News, ITV, BBC Radio and many other media outlets and Debi is a guest lecturer at UEL.

Outside of the charity, Debi is also the Chief Instructor of Funakoshi Shotokan Karate UK which she founded in 2003. She has a team of instructors teaching karate to nearly 600 students per week. Free places and discounted rates ensure that children from families with economic challenges are part of her karate family. She is the only women in the UK to host three World Karate Championships with an all-women management team.

Awards and nominations

2015    Debi was named as a recipiant of an International Women of Change Award.
2016    Point of Light by PM David Cameron for service to the community.
2018    Debi was named as one of the World’s Top 100 Trail Blazers
2018    Won European Diversity Award - Inspirational Role Model.
2018    Action Breaks Silence won the National Diversity Award for Gender in the UK
2020    Action Breaks Silence was shortlisted for the Emma Humphreys Award in the UK

Paulinah Teffu

Paulinah Teffu is an accomplished business executive with 18 years of experience in technology solutions, primarily within the financial services sector. She currently serves as the CEO of Digital Solution Foundry, a role she has held since November 2020, where she oversees strategic development, execution, and operational management. In addition to her executive role, Paulinah is an active member of several boards.

Since January 2023, she has been a board member of the Pan-African Collective for Evidence (PACE), where she contributes to strategic advisory, financial oversight, partnership development, resource mobilization, compliance, and governance. Paulinah's expertise in risk management and technology further strengthens PACE's mission and objectives.

Paulinah expanded her board service by becoming a member of the board of LINAR Insurance. Her responsibilities at LINAR include providing strategic guidance, ensuring financial oversight, developing partnerships, and maintaining high standards of governance and compliance.

Paulinah’s extensive experience also includes a tenure at Hollard as Head of Operations & Support, where she focused on operational strategy, process optimization, quality assurance, team leadership, and customer experience enhancement. Her career reflects a commitment to enhancing stakeholder value and promoting organizational excellence.