Rapelang Rabana facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Rapelang Rabana
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| Born | November 5, 1983 |
| Education | University of Cape Town (BS, MS) |
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| Employer | Imagine Worldwide |
Rapelang Rabana (born November 5, 1983) is a computer scientist, business creator, and public speaker from southern Africa. She is a leader in using technology to solve problems, especially in education.
Currently, Rapelang is the Co-CEO of Imagine Worldwide. This is a non-profit group that uses technology to help children in several African countries learn to read and do math. Before this, she started a company called Rekindle Learning, which focused on digital learning. She also co-founded Yeigo Communications, the first company in South Africa to offer free mobile calls over the internet.
Rapelang has received many awards for her work. She has been on the cover of ForbesAfrica magazine and was named a "Young Global Leader" by the World Economic Forum.
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Early Life and Schooling
Rapelang Rabana was born in Gaborone, the capital city of Botswana. She began her education at Thornhill Primary School. Later, her family moved to Johannesburg, South Africa, where she attended the Roedean School.
For college, she went to the University of Cape Town. In 2005, she earned a degree in Business Science, specializing in Computer Science. She later earned a Master of Science degree from the same university. In 2019, she returned to the university to give an inspiring speech to the graduating students.
Career in Technology
Creating Yeigo
Right after finishing her first degree in 2006, Rapelang and some classmates started a company called Yeigo. They created an app that let people make free phone calls using the internet, a technology called VoIP. This was a new idea in South Africa at the time.
In 2009, a larger company called Telfree bought a major part of Yeigo. Rapelang then became the head of Telfree's research and development team. She left the company in 2012 to start new projects.
Focus on Education
In 2013, Rapelang founded a new company called Rekindle Learning. Its goal was to help people learn new skills for the modern workplace using digital tools. She explained her ideas in a popular TEDx talk called Using mobiles to rekindle learning.
In 2017, Rapelang took on a new role as the Chief Digital Officer for BCX, a major South African technology company. She worked there until the end of 2018.
Helping Children Learn
In 2023, Rapelang became the Co-CEO of Imagine Worldwide. This organization uses tablet computers to teach reading and math to children. In 2024, the group won the Klaus J. Jacobs Best Practice Prize for its successful work. Under her leadership, Imagine Worldwide grew to help 700,000 children by early 2025. The program is expanding across the country of Malawi and is being copied in other countries like Sierra Leone and Tanzania.
Achievements and Recognition
Rapelang Rabana is seen as one of Africa's top technology entrepreneurs. In 2019, the President of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa, praised her as someone at the "cutting edge of knowledge."
Over the years, she has received many honors:
- In 2011, she was chosen for the Global Shapers Community, a group of young leaders selected by the World Economic Forum.
- In 2012, she was invited to speak at the World Economic Forum's big meeting in Davos, Switzerland.
- In 2012, Oprah Magazine included her on its "O Power List."
- In 2013, Forbes magazine named her one of the 30 best young entrepreneurs in Africa.
- In 2017, the World Economic Forum named her a Young Global Leader.
Sharing Her Ideas
Rapelang often speaks and writes about technology, business, and education in Africa. She has given talks at major events around the world, including the Gartner Symposium in Cape Town and an IMF meeting in Washington D.C.
In 2016, she interviewed Paul Kagame, the President of Rwanda, at a World Economic Forum event. She has also shared the stage with famous people like author Malcolm Gladwell and musician will.i.am.
She has written articles and contributed to books, sharing her vision for how technology can help Africa grow and how young people can make a difference in the world.
