DSV Empowerment Trust helping women break barriers in the logistics industry and beyond

Education is for keeps and opens many doors of opportunity.

Those were the sage words of advice Mbali Mpe's grandfather gave her when she was a young girl - and Mbali's career growth at DSV proves him right on both counts.

Mbali was raised by her grandparents in Katlehong in the East Rand because her mom had to go to Durban to work. While money was tight, her grandfather - a teacher and later school principal - instilled in Mbali and her siblings the value of education. "He told us: Nobody could take education away from you and it can open any door of opportunity that you want for yourself".

Mbali registered to study in 2008 after matriculating in 2006 but abandoned her plans because she didn't have the finance, a situation made worse after her grandfather passed away.

"I joined DSV (then UTi) in 2011 at DSV Solutions in Alrode, initially as an Administration Clerk through a labour broker before becoming a permanent employee in 2012". Her hard work paid off when she was promoted to Supervisor, Administration in 2017 in the operational finance space and then in 2022 she was promoted to Manager, Administration at DSV Road. 

She was awarded a bursary through the DSV Empowerment Trust (DSV-ET) in 2018, but only applied after helping her sister Qinisile get a bursary. Although her academic journey has been full of starts and stops, she finally got going in earnest in September 2019 with the support of the DSV-ET.

"The bursary changed our lives because it opened opportunities for both Qinisile and me, and all in the family now know that there are no limits."

Mbali has a Bachelor of Accounting Sciences in Management Accounting from Unisa while Qinisile has graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from the University of Pretoria. She said Qinisile grabbed the opportunity with both hands and studied further and has now completed her Post Graduate Diploma in Formulation Science and has also started a new job at Botanichem as an Assistant Lab Technician in November 2024.

Although her mom didn't have the opportunity to study further, she has realized that dream through Mbali and Qinisile who became the first graduates in their family and broke "generational curses" amplifying the impact of education on career growth.

Mbali had always dreamt of becoming a Chartered Accountant. She had excelled in accounting in high school and loved working with numbers. Now that she has a degree in management accounting, her goal is to study further and take the next step in a journey to being a CA.

Looking back on her education journey, Mbali is grateful she had the chance to study and points out that it's not just funding for tuition fees that's required but for books too.

Mbali recognizes she would not be in a management position without her degree but more importantly she said she has got a "seat - and voice - at the table" where she can add greater value and continue to grow. She already has an eye on moving into a strategic finance role at DSV.

She said the best way she could express her gratitude to the DSV-ET is to pay it forward to others - colleagues, family, community - with the skills and knowledge she has gained.