In order to ensure independent oversight of the organisation’s response to material issues via financial controls and risk management, the membership of the ARC is weighted towards independent, external members.

AYANDA MJEKULA: CHAIRPERSON
Appointed: 2002 (ARC Member); 2010 (ARC Chairperson)

Ayanda Mjekula, is a member of the Institute of Directors of S.A. He currently holds positions on various boards, including Safika Holdings. He has held board positions at CEF SOC, UBank Limited and the World Petroleum Congress. He is also currently the chairperson of the National Arts Festival - Grahamstown and Deputy Chairperson of the council of the University of Fort Hare.

Mjekula has extensive banking experience, having held executive management positions at Nedbank and Standard Bank, over a period of twenty-four years. He was the first black person to be appointed in an executive management position in any bank in South Africa. In 1989, he was honoured with the Black Management Forum/ Kellogs’s manager of the year award, in recognition of his managerial achievements.

As Chief Executive of the South Africa Supplier Development Agency, Mjekula gained extensive experience in enterprise and supplier development. He has played a major role in the energy sector, particularly in the liquid fuels industry. He holds a BA Degree in English from the University of Fort Hare and an MBA in Financial Accounting from Western Michigan University.





BATANDWA DAMOYI
Appointed: 2019

Batandwa, a chartered accountant, has more than 17 years’ experience, worked in senior accounting, auditing, and risk management roles at South African state-owned enterprises as well as in the private sector at leading accounting and professional services firm’s operations in South Africa and the Netherlands. She is currently a director at Libana Consulting (Pty) Ltd.

Before that, she has held various key positions such as the Chief Financial Officer of BAIC Automobile Pty Ltd "BAIC SA", a Chinese car maker that has recently built a plant in Coega for 2 years; Chief Financial Officer of African Exploration Mining and Finance Corporation - a state owned mining company established to secure South Africa’s energy supply primarily through the mining and supply of coal for 5 years; and various other roles - including Special Services Group Manager and doing articles at Deloitte’s Cape Town, Johannesburg and Amsterdam offices.

She is a non-executive director at the following companies, Innowind Power Projects - Chaba Pty Ltd, Waainek Wind Power Pty Ltd and Grassridge (Pty) Ltd; Coega Development Corporation; and Steve Biko Academic Hospital.

As part of the oversight role in the boards, she advises in the area of expertise in financial management and corporate finance, auditing, risk management, good corporate governance and business strategy development.

She has previously been an external marker at UNISA for Honours Accounting for 6 years until 2017.

NOLUNTU BAM
Appointed: 2019

Noluntu Bam has 15 years’ experience in financial services regulation and was part of a leadership cohort at the FAIS Ombud that resolved disputes between members of the public and final services providers. She was the head of the FAIS Ombud institution during the last eight years of her employment.

Her role demanded an in-depth understanding of the way government works, deep understanding of government policy, policy formulation, government programmes and enhanced appreciation of the interconnectedness of the various limbs of government and how these should co-operate with one another.

Bam has a MBA from Wits Business School and a Post Graduate Diploma in Financial Planning Law from the University of the Free State. She also holds a LLM (with specialisation in Income Tax Law) from UNISA, LLB from the University of KwaZulu Natal and B.Proc from Walter Sisulu University.

Bam is a professionally registered member of the Financial Planning Institute South Africa and an Admitted Attorney of the High Court of South Africa since 1998.

LINDA NENE
Appointed: 2021

Linda Nene is currently employed by PetroSA SOC Ltd from 2007 to date. He has held multiple executive roles at PetroSA and is currently the Chief Risk & Compliance Officer (Acting) from 2019 to date. He is responsible for developing the strategic risk and governance for PetroSA, amongst his other duties such as maintaining a healthy risk management culture, ethics and integrity management, compliance assurance, combined assurance implementation, business continuity management, fraud prevention and forensic investigations and ensuring continuous improvement in risk management across the Group. Other previous roles at PetroSA during the period include Corporate HSEQ Manager (Acting) and Group Compliance Manager. Prior to joining PetroSA, Linda was employed by the Provincial Treasury in the Western Cape as Senior Manager for Enterprise Risk Management and Governance Systems. He also worked for Chevron Oil SA (Pty) Ltd as Supervising Auditor for Africa / Pakistan / Middle East Operations of Chevron Oil SA (Pty) Ltd and Engen Petroleum Ltd as Senior Auditor for Corporate & IT, and Sales and Marketing (Logistics and Manufacturing). Before this role, he was with BoE Group Audit Services as Senior Auditor/ Acting Audit Manager from 1999.

As regards current Board and Committees, Linda is a Non – Executive Director at the PetroSA Equatorial Guinea SOC Ltd from 2016 to-date. He also serves as Non – Executive Director at the PetroSA Ghana SOC Ltd from 2018 to-date. He also serves as an Independent Audit Committee Member at the ETDP SETA, from 2021 to 2025; an Independent Audit & Performance Audit Committee Member at the City of Cape Town Municipality, from 2018 to 2021 and Independent Audit Committee Member at the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board, from 2021 to 2024.

His previous roles includes; Independent Audit Committee Member of the Provincial Government of Western Cape – Economic Cluster, from 2018 to 2021; Chairman of Board Audit & Risk Committee: Work Dynamics (Pty) Ltd from 2016 to 2019; Non – Executive Director at the USAASA, from 2016 to 2018 as well as the Chairman of Board Audit & Risk Committee from 2012 to 2018; Chairman of Audit & Risk Committee and that of Fraud Response Committee at the Stellenbosch Municipality, from 2013 to 2015 as well as Independent Audit Committee Member from 2009 to 2013; Vice Chairman of the Board and Non – Exec Director at the Cape Town Association for the Physically Disabled (CAPD), from 2013 to 2016; Chairman of Board Audit & Risk Committee at the USAF (Universal Service and Access Fund) from 2012 to 2018; Independent Audit Committee Member of the Provincial Government of Western Cape – Department of Education, from 2011 to 2017; Independent Board Audit Committee Member at the ProSano Medical Aid Fund, from 2011 to 2012.

Linda holds a BCom in Accounting from the University of Cape Town; a Post Graduate Diploma in Management, Specialising in Corporate Governance; and a Master of International Business from the Monash University, among various other qualifications including Certificate in Risk Management Strategies in the Public Sector - Southern Business School, FIIASA (Fellow of the Institute of Internal Auditors SA);CCSA (Certification in Control Self-Assessment); CRMA (Certification in Risk Management Assurance); and CPrac (SA) Compliance Practitioner (South Africa).

PHELISA NKOMO
Appointed: 2021

Ms Nkomo is part of catalytic Gender Empowerment initiatives in South Africa as a lead development economist for the Women’s Economic Assembly (WECONA) a multi-sectorial initiative which facilitate public sector procurement and economic opportunities through access to supply chain. The assembly advocates for creation of opportunities for women’s equitable participation in the economy and fostering multiplier effects for sustainable development and finance for development.

In 2021 Ms Nkomo was part of establishment of Gender Based Violence and Femicide Response Fund as a technical advisor, this is a multi-sectorial private sector led enterprise which was launched in February 2021. Ms Nkomo has recently been appointed as Chair of OXFAM Board.

Phelisa Nkomo is a focused strategic thinker who relies on her expertise to drive change. She is forward-thinking and subscribes to collaborative, ethical and transformative leadership as well as diversity and inclusion. She is an optimist who is driven by impact and relish at leadership role.

She is a Development Economist, with eight (8) years’ working experience as an Economic Policy Advisor in the Public Sector with combined exposure in Socio-Economic Justice and Human Rights Civil Society Organizations, Legislative Development, Partnership Development, Sustainability (ESG) and Grant-making organizations for nine (9) years.

Some of the recent highlights in her career include:

• Between 2018 and 2019, Ms Nkomo served as the ANC Elections Economic Spokesperson.
• In 2019, she founded a Development Consultancy in 2019
• In 2020, she worked as the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) Turnaround Technical Advisory (PRASA Administrators office).

Ms Nkomo’s other roles include:

• Strategic Economic Advisor for the Department of Gauteng Economic Development from 2014 to 2019
• Economic Policy Advisor at the Department of Public Enterprises from 2011 to 2014
• National Advocacy at the Black Sash from 2009 to 2011
• Business Tourism Marketing Manager at the Cape Town Routes Unlimited from 2005 to 2006
• Media Project Officer at the Open Society Foundation of South Africa (OSF-SA) from 2003 to 2005
• Administrative Controller of the Parliament of the Republic of South Africa- National Council of Provinces (NCOP), from 2001 to 2003
• Administration Officer at the South African Municipal Workers Union - (SAMWU affiliate of COSATU) from 1999 – 2001

Ms Nkomo has served in several Boards and acquired a depth of knowledge in areas like Pragmatic Leadership principles, Corporate Governance principles, Strategy Development, Risk Management, and lateral thinking. Currently, her Board and Executive roles include, Commonwealth Entrepreneurs Club; Independent Development Trust; OXFAM South Africa, NEDLAC Macro-Economic Working Group - Studies in Inequality and Poverty; BRICS Gender Working Group; Gender Based Violence and Femicide Response Fund Working Group. Her previous Board roles include MDDA from 2011 to 2019 and AGRISETA from 2012 to 2019.

She has an Honors Degree in Economics from the University of Western Cape (2008); Post Graduate Diploma in Economic Policy from the University of Western Cape (2007); Post Graduate Diploma in Economic Policy from the University of the Western Cape (2007); Diploma in Public Relations from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (2004); and Advanced Certificate in Community Development & Project Management from the Beit Bell Collage (Israel) (1996). She has also completed the Executive Leadership Program at the Gordon Institute Business School (GIBS) (2016). Ms Nkomo is currently studying towards her Master’s in development finance at the University of Stellenbosch, Business School.

Her research interest arrays from development economics, gender, empowerment, social policy & economy, public finance, international economics/ trade policy, tax incentives, rural development, food security, aid effectiveness and labor economics. Ms Nkomo is also part of Stellenbosch University Development Economic research team which recently published an Alternative Economic Policy for South Africa called new wine on new skin under the leadership of Chair of Law Trust and Social Justice at University of Stellenbosch, Prof Thuli Madonsela. Ms Nkomo is also involved in South African Women in Dialogue, Chairs ILO 190 on Gender based violence in a workplace committee, COVID-19 Economist Initiative, Collective Action against Gender Based Violence and United Nations Generation Equality Movement.

RAKESH BHIKA
Appointed: 2022

Rakesh Bhika is the founding member and CEO of GrowthStone, a boutique Advisory and Assurance firm. He was previously a senior Partner (as well as being the youngest partner at age 27) and having been part of the Executive Committee of SNG (SizweNtsalubaGobodo), the 5th largest Audit and Advisory firm in South Africa, which currently has become Grant Thornton SNG. He has a wealth of experience in both the Assurance and Advisory space having been instrumental in seeing the firm grow from 50 staff members to a staff complement of over 800. He has thus been with the firm close onto 20 years and has played various leadership and strategic roles, and viewed as one of the founding partners of this organisation.

DR TEBOGO SETHIBE
Appointed: 2022

Dr Tebogo Sethibe, an accomplished executive, has more than 20 years’ experience in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and Management Consulting, inclusive of designing and implementing technology programs, developing product and service requirements, and analysing strategies and processes to facilitate improved operations and efficiency. He is currently a Group Executive: Information Systems at the Agricultural Research Council.

KHWEZI TIYA: ACCOUNTING OFFICER
Appointed: 2021

Mr. Tiya holds a BSc. Civil Eng. (University of Natal, South Africa); an MBA (Nyenrode Business Universiteit, the Netherlands) and a MSc. Financial Management (SOAS, University of London, UK). As part of his senior executive development, he has completed the Advanced Management Programme (The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, USA). Mr. Tiya has attended the Harvard Business School’s 2014 Global Energy Seminar, which has helped shape his thinking and understanding of the energy transitions. He is also a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) since 2005, as a testimony to his understanding of the overall requirements for complex project development and project management.

He began his career as an engineer in 1992, working on multidisciplinary projects. Before joining his former employer, Standard Bank Corporate & Investment Banking in 2010, where he was the Head of the Oil & Gas and Public Sectors (South Africa) in the Client Coverage Division, he worked for the CDC from 1999 in a variety of senior and executive roles in strategy, operations and business development.