HA-MUDIMELI

HOUSE VISIT IN HA-MUDIMELI IN LIMPOPO. 

The Collen Mashawana Foundation and MEC Dr Phophi Ramathuba paid a visit to Ha-Mudimeli in Limpopo to assess the living conditions of Meida Ramuhala on the 11th of September 2022. 

COLLEN MASHAWANA FOUNDATION

The Collen Mashawana Foundation is an African-based NGO founded by Collen Mashawana, the President and founder of Afribiz Invest.

CELEBRATING 10 YEARS OF GIVING HOPE & DIGNITY

about us

The Collen Mashawana Foundation is an African-based NGO founded by Collen Mashawana, the President and founder of Afribiz Invest. The organisation was specifically established to create a vehicle for reaching out to as many people as possible, with a particular emphasis on the welfare of the elderly, those living with disabilities and child-headed homes.

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HOMES

Housing Development

The  Collen Mashawana Foundation has built over 260+ homes for the elderly, child-headed homes  & those living with disabilities.

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ESTABLISHED

10 YEAR ANNIVERSARY

The Collen  Mashawana Foundation celebrates 10 years of bringing dignity & hope to the disadvantaged

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BENEFICIARIES

SOCIAL Development

Through a range of essential recovery support services, including housing appeal initiatives  the Collen Mashawana Foundation has managed to provide 100s of people with safer shelter, donating essentials, food parcels, and other mainstream benefits.
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homes to build this year

'ONE BRICK AT A TIME'

Through the agency of the ‘One Brick At At Time ‘ flagship campaign, we intend to build a 100 homes for the disadvantaged, with a vested interested in the elderly, child-headed homes, and those living with disabilities.

WHO IS COLLEN MASHAWANA ?

“Many South Africans require proper housing and often find themselves living in unsafe circumstances as a result of housing delivery challenges… The Collen Mashawana Foundation has introduced many programs and initiatives that aim to lessen the burden on both the government and the most vulnerable within our communities.”
Collen Mashawana
Chairman of the collen mashawana foundation

CHAIRMAN OF THE COLLEN MASHAWANA FOUNDATION

Empowering Communities & ending poverty

Collen Mashawana is a passionate philanthropist who lives his passion by donating not only his time and resources to various charitable causes, but also encouraging others to do the same. He firmly believes in the culture of giving back, and advocates for a society that is active in creating a cycle that makes everyone successful.

 



CHAIRMAN OF THE
COLLEN MASHAWANA
FOUNDATION

Esprit du Corp Award 2008

Entrepreneur of The YEAR DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT 2018

Our

We wish to restore hope and dignity to elderly citizens, child headed families, and people living with Disabilities throughout Africa.

“The Beauty of Life does not depend on how happy you are but on how happy others can be because of you.”

– COLLEN MASHAWANA.

Entrepreneur, Investor & Philanthropist. 

Collen Tshifhiwa Mashawana, Founder of the Collen Mashawana Foundation is an eminent African Entrepreneur, Investor and a Philanthropist. As the current Executive Chairman of Afribiz Invest, Collen is responsible for creating continental business opportunities of advancement across the infrastructure space, with a particular reference to sectors critical to Africa’s economic development.
 

Collen’s career began at Microsoft South Africa after obtaining a Diploma in Information Technology (IT). His studies provided him with a broad efficiency in the use of sound communication and soft skills that would later position him to devise feasible solutions to broadly relevant problems in the Tech world. He joined Dimension Data in 2005 as a Senior Account Executive, where during the course of his tenure in 2008, he received the Esprit du Corp Award for “The Best Person Representing the Organization’s Culture and Vision.” In the same year, he was appointed as National Public-Sector Director for South Africa at Internet Solutions.

There he built a strong network of broad relationships within Government. During this time, Collen devoted a lot of time in understanding Government’s service delivery mandate and is currently the leading thinker on the transformative role of IT, and its equitable development on the countries technological infrastructure. 

This has informed his strategic approach for Afribiz Invest, an Investment Company he had founded in 2005 with the aim of making a meaningful contribution to the economy of South Africa. Raised from a business background with humble beginnings, Collen always had a natural inclination for business endeavours, and as such, has left a territory of valuable experiences in his rear. His entrepreneurial path amounts to a full portrait of impressive anecdotes which have led to the establishment of multiple ventures including, but not limited to, car washes, cleaning services, restaurants, pay phones and metre taxis, all at a young age. These vehement gusts of undertakings touch on all the main points that make up Collen Mashawana’s exemplary life.

Collen describes his professional journey as ‘exciting’ but notes that he has also encountered a number of obstacles along the way. Overcoming these challenges is in-keeping with the great crises of life, wherein we are brought face to face with certain challenges and called upon to make decisions of such importance that they often require a complete reversion of ideas and ideals, even of our most cherished principles as hitherto conceived. It takes a certain amount of character to overcome life’s challenging vicissitudes, but very much in-keeping with the general note of his career, Collen has persisted unchanged by virtue of upholding the highest moral ideals with unflinching candour. 

There is certainly a parallel between these values and his IT career, which, as a point of departure, has led to his remarkable transition from the corporate to business sector. During Collen’s notable career, he has served as a transdisciplinary Executive and a Board Member of Multinational companies in the Construction, Engineering and IT Sectors, namely, Dimension Data, Internet Solution and Group Five, successfully contributing to the industry’s roadmap for a world changed by COVID-19.

Collen has now concentrated more on his career as an entrepreneur which has contributed towards building strong relations within all spheres of the Pan African Region. This has resulted in a more strategically focused approach of aligning his experiences and consolidating his businesses into a single holding company, Afribiz Invest, focusing on Consulting Services, Construction, Property Development, Energy, ICT, Mining, Training, Security and Financial Services with over 20 subsidiary companies within the infrastructure space and also the establishment of the Collen Mashawana Foundation.

Through Afribiz Invest’s subsidiary entities, Collen has now started building more than 40,000 houses within South Africa. He has been driven by the impact that these houses have on humanity. It is this drive that ensures he goes out himself and oversees the building of these houses; that food is distributed to the less fortunate and that Health Care is provided for those who cannot afford it.

Collen Mashawana is currently studying his Masters of Business Administration (MBA) with Henley Business School. In 2018, Collen was honoured by the Department of Social Development with an Award of Entrepreneur of the Year through the South African Men of the Year. Collen Mashawana has further been nominated as one of the 100 most influential Africans for 2020 by the Reputation Poll International which features 47 women and 53 men. Collen Mashawana continues to live a selfless life that inspires many South Africans.

OUR
CORE APPROACH

To provide support for those who have limitations and are the most vulnerable within our communities.

To eradicate poverty in South Africa by building safe and sustainable homes for the elderly, child-headedfamilies, and people living with disabilities.

The Collen Mashawana Foundation has over the past years implemented a number of community development programs.

HOUSING APPEAL

"All we ask for is prayers. May God grant us more wisdom and capacity to continue helping more destitute families."
Collen Mashawana
CHAIRMAN

"

ONE BRICK AT A TIME CAMPAIGN

The Collen Mashawana Foundation believes that stable homes provide an important platform for thriving communities. Some of the nation’s largest organisations have joined forces with the Collen Mashawana Foundation to create a collaborative effort at ensuring that the elderly, those living with disabilities and child-headed homes across South Africa, who have no means to afford safe and stable homes, may be provided with the integrity and safety of a home that has running tap water, proper sanitation facilities and electricity. 

What People Say About Us

Beneficiary Testimonials

DISASTER RELIEF

"All we ask for is prayers. May God grant us more wisdom and capacity to continue helping more destitute families."
Austin Mashawana
CHIEF OPERATIONS OFFICER

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COVID 19 RELIEF PROGRAM

DISASTER
RELIEF

In the wake of national disasters the Collen Mashawana Foundation endeavours to meet the short and long term needs of disaster-affected communities. We work alongside community members to build or maintain disaster-affected homes, and provide food relief parcels and other mainstream essentials. Over the years the Collen Mashawana Foundation has provided disaster relief aid to thousands of people around South Africa through a multitude of disaster relief programs,.

ELDERLY CARE

"Happiness is found in helping others. Try it…"
Collen Mashawana
CHAIRMAN

"

ONE BRICK AT A TIME CAMPAIGN

ELDERLY
CARE

The Collen Mashawana Foundation is very passionate about the welfare of the elderly, and support inclusive welfare for the social needs of the elderly. We have identified partners around South Africa, such as the Vakhoma Home for The Frail Older Persons, that work at the grassroots level in some of the most underdeveloped regions towards realising various welfare goals.

DISABILITY CARE

"True wealth is not measured in money or status or power. It is measured in the legacy we leave behind for those we love and those we inspire."
Austin Mashawana
CHIEF OPERATIONS OFFICER

"

ONE BRICK AT A TIME CAMPAIGN

DISABILITY
CARE

Youth with disabilities are amongst the most marginalized and poorest of all the world’s youth. They commonly face more discrimination and sever social, economic and civic disparities as compared with those without disabilities, especially in developing countries such as South Africa.

The Collen Mashawana Foundation ensures that the need of youth with disabilities are addressed in various substantive ways. We have adopted Kasi Hero Foundation in Soweto, an NGO that currently feeds over 500 kids daily and also runs a day care Centre for 20 children whose parents cannot afford ECDC. 

YOUTH DEVELOPMENT

"U shumela Vhathu, Ndi u shumela Yehova. U shumela Yehova, ndi u shumela Vhathu"
Collen Mashawana
CHAIRMAN

"

ONE BRICK AT A TIME CAMPAIGN

youth
development

The Collen Mashawana Foundation also tackles poverty and inequality by  addressing obstacles that stand in the way of education. 

It’s been 5 years since the Collen Mashawana Foundation adopted the Morris Isaacson Secondary School in Soweto. Every year we join hands with the community, students, teachers and colleagues to participate in an initiative of maintaining and renovating the school, ensuring that it is conducive to teaching and learning. We believe through this pragmatic approach, we are able to address most obstacles that stand in the way of providing quality education. 

DONATE

You make our programs possible and your support is saving lives.

SPONSOR

The Collen Mashawana Foundation offers an extensive and varied palette of sponsorship opportunities to suit the needs and involvement-strategy of all funders.  

LEARN

Find out more about the challenges facing communities and why our work is needed

Our
Publications

COLLEN MASHAWANA FOUNDATION

KZN REBUILD INTERVENTION PROJECT LAUNCH IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE OLD MUTUAL FOUNDATION

 On the Friday, 11 November 2022, a sod-turning ceremony for the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Rebuild Intervention Project will be held in KwaMakhutha Township, eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality (KZN ).