Interview With Pearl Maphumulo

Pearl Maphumulo is one of the youngest South
Africans entrepreneur.

In 2016 she was selected by Dutch Foundation Building Bridges as South African youth
ambassador for a project called ‘Road to Nairobi 2016’ [#RTNB2016] powered by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the
Netherlands. The project, running in 8 African countries [South Africa, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Tanzania,
Uganda, Rwanda & Kenya] saw her travel to rural and township communities alike interacting with a myriad of youth
entrepreneurs and trying to understand the challenges faced by them, possible solutions, as well as the SDGs they’re
addressing. Soon after this during the 2nd High Level Meeting in Nairobi this 2016 of the Global Partnership for
Effective Development hosted by the Kenyan government, Pearl moderated a panel with leaders such as, Dutch
Minister of Foreign Trade & Development, Lillianne Ploumen, UN Policy Adviser & Action Campaign Regional Director,
Sering Falu Njie, Kenyan Cabinet Secretary, Sicily Kanini Kariuki & Mowgli Foundation CEO, Kathleen Bury.
Furthermore, she has been on both local and continental media platforms such as SABC 1’s popular youth show,
Mzansi Insider, ANN7’s Vuka Africa morning show with Gerry Rantseli-Elsdon, Africa Magic’s Good Morning Africa and
online United Nations Women platform, but to name a few. In 2015, she was chosen as 1 of 80 young Africans from over
30 countries to represent youth at the Annual World Economic Forum on Africa Summit in Cape Town, South Africa.
In the same year, Pearl represented South Africa in Dalian, China at the Annual Meetingof the new Champions, one of
the biggest technology and innovation summits in the world.
Growing up in a small town called Emalahleni (Witbank), most widely known as one of the leading drug abuse areas in
South Africa, Pearl has not only witnessed her peers & some family members being ravaged by drugs, but she’s
always chosen to hold her belief that one day she’ll do something great regardless of her surroundings.
“Contributing to the youth entrepreneurship ecosystem started as a burning desire, not knowing I’d one day get an opportunity to
be speaker in an assortment of global platforms addressing the very desire and the GEC is one of those platforms I highly
esteem”, she said in excitement.