The National Association of Automotive Component and Allied Manufacturers (NAACAM) will provide one full scholarship to study towards a manufacturing-focused GIBS MBA at the Toyota Wessels Institute for Manufacturing Studies (TWIMS) in 2022. The once-off scholarship, supported by 40 NAACAM members, will be awarded in recognition of the late Dr. Johan van Zyl, former chairperson of both Toyota South Africa Motors (Pty) Ltd and TWIMS.
Dr. Van Zyl’s passion for education and people resulted in the establishment of TWIMS, and it was under his inspirational leadership that TWIMS has been able to grow and prosper. Dr. Van Zyl’s contribution to education and industrialisation in Africa was immense, and NAACAM, in partnership with TWIMS, is proud to support this legacy through this scholarship.
Various global and local studies indicate that gender diversity increases innovation, productivity, and sales. The South African manufacturing sector still lacks diversity as while upwards of 1.6 million people are employed in manufacturing, less than 35 percent are women. The reasons for this are varied, including the limited funding targeted at female education and limited support for women-owned businesses. NAACAM’s MBA scholarship aims to bridge this gap for one African female working in an emerging industrial company. In establishing the scholarship, NAACAM and TWIMS envisioned that the recipient of the scholarship would be a deserving female candidate, of exceptional talent who demonstrates ‘monozukuri’ (a Japanese phrase describing a person’s pride in making things).
NAACAM is delighted to announce that such a candidate has been identified. Mrs. Modiehi Evodia Phahlo will receive the 2022 NAACAM MBA Scholarship, being the sole recipient of the scholarship out of 13 female candidates that applied.
Mrs. Phahlo is the Founder and CEO of Deedee (Pty) Ltd T/A Deedee Hygiene Solutions, which has been operating since 2019. Mrs. Phahlo has expressed her gratitude to NAACAM and TWIMS for the opportunity to be part of the TWIMS MBA program. Mrs. Phahlo stated that “as a founder and CEO of a small business, the MBA will assist me in further developing my technical and operational competencies.”
NAACAM Commercial Director, Ms. Shivani Singh, congratulates Mrs. Phahlo on this outstanding achievement, remarking that “women’s participation and representation in the manufacturing sector, especially in leadership positions, is of great importance. Whilst women may be under-represented in the manufacturing sector, NAACAM and its members are committed to supporting greater diversity and inclusion, and this scholarship is one of many ways NAACAM is driving this ambition”.
The GIBS MBA taught at the TWIMS campus in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, is a challenging but rewarding manufacturing-focused MBA, which requires candidates to have a strong academic background and passion for advancing the sector. Mr. Mbongeni Ndlovu, who sits on the TWIMS Scholarship Committee and is TWIMS’s Research Head of African Trade and Industrialisation, mentioned that “the Scholarship Committee was impressed by Mrs. Phahlo’s passion for manufacturing and her ambitious move to go into entrepreneurship as the founder and CEO of an SME in such a male-dominated sector”. He further added that “Mrs. Phahlo’s contribution to her community in her role as an ambassador promoting entrepreneurship in the manufacturing sector, and actively collaborating with other organisations to create awareness of COVID-19 made Evodia a noteworthy candidate.”
Professor Justin Barnes, TWIMS Executive Director, interviewed Mrs. Phahlo and believes she will be an asset to the MBA program. He believes the strong support network she already has in place would assist her in juggling the management of her small business, motherhood, and the various roles she plays within her community with the arduous responsibilities of the MBA over the next two years.
NAACAM wishes Mrs. Phahlo all the best as she prepares to start her 2-year TWIMS MBA journey.
