Khethokuhle Siboniso Sibisi

Category
Politics & Government

Age
29

Organisation / Company
eThekwini municipality
Website

Profile

Khethokuhle Siboniso Sibisi, 29, is a councillor at eThekwini municipality, was born in Pietermaritzburg and matriculated from Maritzburg College.

He has a BSc in applied mathematics and economics from the University of KwaZulu-Natal. At the age of 24, he was elected to serve as a PR councillor in eThekwini municipality. In only his third year as a councillor, Khethokuhle was elected to lead a team of the Democratic Alliance councillors in the economic development committee.

In 2021, he was re-elected as a councillor in the city and now serves in the city’s municipal public accounts committee. In 2022, he was selected for the Mandela Washington Fellowship and spent six weeks at Michigan State University in the United States studying civic engagement.

He was then asked to work for a month at the Capitol in Washington DC in the office of Senator Chris Coons. Here, he worked on a bill that speaks to the digital transformation of the African continent. Khethokuhle was invited by US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to discuss the Biden administration’s US-Africa strategy.

Khethokuhle also had a one-on-one meet and greet with Senator Cory Booker in his office. With his reputation and international relations growing rapidly, Khethokuhle is set to play a key role in the US-Africa relations.

List your educational background - qualifications and institutions?

• BSc, Applied Mathematics and Economics, University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2016
• Postgraduate Diploma in Data Science, University of KwaZulu-Natal (currently enrolled as a student) 
• Six-week civic engagement course, Michigan State University, US, 2022
• Eight-week basic mechanics course, Kwazulu-Natal Automotive Training Services, 2020

Any awards or achievements in your field?

• I spent a month working at the Capitol in Washington DC for Senator Chris Coons. My job was to work on foreign policy, working on a bill that speaks to foreign aid and digital transformation on the African continent. I had staff access and had the opportunity to meet Senator Cory Booker and I was invited for lunch with Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. 
• In 2019, I was recognised as having created one of the best outreach projects by the Democratic Alliance Young Leaders team. 
• Along with a friend, we ran a project that sought to upskill start-up businesses in informal settlements in Durban and invited guest speakers and moderators to teach them how to formalise and grow their businesses.

One childhood memory that has spurred you to such levels of achievement?

My late father had R882 left for the last two weeks of the month. He spent R855 to buy me a bicycle because I had passed the grade. I will always love and appreciate him for that.

Advice to your younger self?

Hard work pays off, it might take a year, or it might take 10 years but eventually, all that you put your heart and soul into will come to flourish.

What would you like South Africa to look like in five years?

I would like to see South Africa with at least half the level of unemployment we currently have. An economy with jobs is so powerful. It has the ability to solve other social issues while making people more patriotic about our beautiful country. I believe our country can overcome the challenges we face if all the good men and women get more involved in the fight for a better future for all.