Associate Professor Soko earned his undergraduate degree in Social Sciences from the University of Cape Town (UCT) in 1992. Soon thereafter he worked for a year as a research assistant with UCT’s Equal Opportunities Research Project. From 1994 to 1995 he was employed by the Institute for Democracy in South Africa as a researcher on parliamentary affairs, monitoring and preparing reports on the work of parliamentary committees in South Africa’s first democratic national legislature.

Heidi received her Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of Cape Town (UCT) in 1992, which she followed with a Masters Degree from the same institution in 1995. She then received her MBA with distinction from the University of Warwick in 2004. Heidi’s experience has involved extensive research and consultancy work in the areas of strategic competitiveness (within countries and within organisations), organisational effectiveness and enterprise development.

Andre’s areas of expertise include market analysis, programme evaluation and sector based research. He obtained his Associate in Management at the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business in 2005. In 2006, Andre obtained his Postgraduate Diploma in Business Administration (PDBA) at UCT, which further enhanced his management skills.

Jennie’s areas of specialisation are qualitative research methods, focus group facilitation, critical social theory and cross-cultural communication. She also has experience writing for a range of publications. In 2002, she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology and Journalism at Gordon College in the United States. In 2006, she completed an Honours degree in Sociology at the University of Cape Town. In 2009, she completed an MPhil in Diversity Studies (with distinction) at the same institution.

Neil’s primary area of specialisation is in the field of economics, with a particular interest in trade facilitation and trade policy. He obtained his undergraduate degree (Bachelor of Commerce) in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE) from the University of Cape Town (UCT) in 2005. A year later he graduated with an honours degree (awarded in the first class) in Economics at UCT, and in December 2008 he graduated with the degree of Masters of Commerce in Economics (with distinction) from the same institution.

 

Eleanor is a monitoring and evaluation specialist and brings a wealth of experience in qualitative and participatory research methods to Mthente. She received an Honours degree in Development Studies from the University of East Anglia, UK in 2001 and a Masters in Development Studies (cum laude) from the University of KwaZulu Natal (UKZN) in 2009. She recently received a Post Graduate Diploma in monitoring and evaluation methods from the University of Stellenbosch (summa cum laude) in 2011.

Justin’s primary area of specialisation is sociology, with a special focus on theory and research. He obtained his undergraduate degree (Bachelor of Arts in Humanities) at the University of Stellenbosch in 2006. A year later he obtained his Honours degree in Sociology at the University of Stellenbosch. He recently graduated with a Masters degree in Sociology at the same institution.
 

Noella will graduate with a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Industrial Psychology and Employment Law from the University of the Western Cape in March 2011. She joined Mthente in 2008 to do data capturing for a particular project. She then stayed on to join Mthente’s Work Experience Programme and assisted with research and project support one day a week, as well as offering assistance full-time during school holidays. She was employed as a full-time Research Assistant as of November 2010.

Lynn qualified as a secretary in 1996. She has since used her strong administrative skills in both the NGO and corporate sectors. Before joining the Mthente team, Lynn worked as administrator for Africa Unite.