The Madibeng municipality’s Enterprise Risk Manager is once again up for a coveted award. The dynamic Yvonne Mothibi won the prestigious Institute of Risk Management South Africa (IRMSA) Risk Manager of the Year Award in 2021 and now she has been nominated for Forty under 40 Africa awards.

The Forty under 40 Africa Awards is to identify, honour and celebrate a cross-section of the continent’s most influential and accomplished young business leaders under the age forty from a wide range of industries. These awards are awarded to individuals who are committed to business growth, professional excellence and community service and have risen up the ranks of their companies or industries at a relatively young age as result of this.
“We believe that in putting the spotlight on these young achievers it will not only celebrate them but also build a strong platform for them by giving a voice and opportunities to the next generation of industry pacesetters while building a positive attitude in our youth to strive for excellence at a young age. Our Jury is seeking outstanding entrepreneurs, executives, managers and professionals in the public and private and non-profit sectors and will recognise attributes such as achievements in business, experience and innovation, vision, leadership and community involvement,” the Forty under 40 events director, Richard Abbey said.
Mothibi has spent the last six years as the municipality’s Enterprise Risk Manager, focusing on risk management, good governance, organisational integrity and ethics. Yvonne pioneered the establishment of the Governance Risk and Compliance unit within the municipality and also championed the processes of assisting other similar municipalities in the province of North West to also set up governance and risk management units and processes.
Yvonne has a postgraduate Diploma in Risk Management, B Com Degree in Accounting Sciences and currently busy with her final year in Masters Degree in Governance and Public Leadership (Wits University). She serves in a number of leadership structures in South Africa and in the broader African Continent.
Yvonne is a certified Risk Management Practitioner, Certified Ethics Officer and General Tax Practitioner.
She is also the founder and chairperson of the I Believe Foundation, an NGO focusing on sustainable health and nutrition for the disadvantaged.
“It is such an honour to be nominated amongst the Continents sterling young leaders who have demonstrated anti-fragility and resilience to the ongoing patriarchal leadership system in Africa which undermines woman (more so young) and the value they bring to the boardroom table. Africa should realise that it’s time for inclusion of young voices who bring energy and rigour to advance the ideals of a transformational society,” she says.
“Research has revealed that one of the major contributing root causes to a failed government state is lack of accountability, no visible consequence management and no transparency in the decision making and procurement processes which in essence talks to poor governance. And that’s where the gap is. My passion is to be instrumental in closing that gap because good governance is at the heart of any successful business. It is essential for any organisation to achieve its objectives and drive improvement, as well as maintain legal and ethical standing in the eyes of regulators and the wider community,” she says.
“Governance is especially important in the public sector because you’re dealing with public money. Achieving governance in the public space is to solve a different problem altogether. Achieving innovation in the public sector and improving governance systems is a difficult task given the environment, but we manage to do it.”