Malvern-based star Andile Mnguni (20) is a passionate life coach who is a public speaker, speech writer and poet.
She is the founder of a foundation called ROAR South Africa, which aims to build a generation of leaders who speak proficiently, inspire change with their words and share their stories with the world.
Andile was selected as a 2020 Global Teen Leader and she is going to New Year in March to represent South Africa and her organisation.
“I was in disbelief after being selected as a Global Teen Leader. In life, we do have aspirations and I have always been a big dreamer. Being selected to represent my country is a dream come true,” she said.
After matric, Andile wanted to study law but during her school years her plans changed.
“After finishing matric, my father didn’t understand why I refused to study but my mother eventually understood what I needed to do for me. My mother is an English teacher and she was the one who introduced me to poetry. She encouraged me to attend events where you find speakers.”
She said her mother kept her accountable for her plans.
“After high school, I asked myself how I can impact the world and what I can offer. What boosted my confidence was attending youth empowerment events and searching and finding the gap to bring about change.
“I felt like every young person – I wanted to be the voice of the voiceless which is not a bad thing to do. If we constantly speak for each other, many of us are left without a voice. If I am speaking for someone else, I don’t have my own voice. I decided to empower people to have voices of their own,” said Andile.
She said the ambition was to have people who are willing to learn to speak and create a “roar”.
Roar SA leads public speaking workshops for students in Johannesburg communities where there are no existing developmental programmes.
It has also expanded its programming to children’s homes and boys’ and girls’ clubs, as well as created partnerships with libraries and bookstores to promote literacy in underserved areas.
Andile recently launched a career programme to educate students how to achieve success in a variety of professions.
“The programme and workshops have equipped 2 100 students with the skill to be effective speakers and leaders.
“This year I will be teaching technology literacy workshops, develop a public speaking app, and host a Speakers’ Festival,” she said.
She hopes to offer programming in 11 South African languages, establish educational centres in rural areas throughout the country and establish ROAR SA chapters in marginalised communities throughout the African continent.
