2007 Tutu Fellow Ipeleng Mkhari is the Founder and CEO of Motseng Investment Holdings which partnered with Malani Padayachee and Associates (MPA) to acquire 100% equity of Mott MacDonald Africa, a South African engineering entity, to create South Africa’s largest black and women owned consulting engineering company.  Ipeleng will be the Chairperson of the new entity, MPAMOT, which has the potential to become a beacon for women in an industry that continues to be male dominated.

Another Tutu Fellow, Kunyalala Maphisa,  was the Lead Advisor on the transaction. Kunya is a 2006 Tutu Fellow and the Principal Partner at Brighton Wealth as well as the President of the Black Women's Association of South Africa, BWASA.

Malini Padayachee said “Even the simple act of announcing this transaction has created a strong sense of empowerment among women, not only in our sector, but across other sectors. It has generated a great deal of interest and it seems to be seen as a platform for giving women a voice in the built environment and for creating visibility of role models in the sector.”  In a CNBC Africa interview, Ipeleng explained,  “We are here, we are women and we have contributed extensively over the past two decades – together we are far stronger.”

The full interview was available to watch at CNBC Africa