Mr Itiseng Kenneth Morolong was appointed as Deputy Minister of The Presidency from 3 July 2024. He previously also served in this position from 6 March 2023 to 19 June 2024.

Prior to his appointment to the National Executive, he served as a member of the Parliament Standing Committee on Finance and as an alternate member of the Standing Committee on Appropriations.

Due to various political roles he has played, he has developed a keen interest in prudential public administration of state affairs. His leadership roles in both the ANC, Parliament, and now the Executive arm of the State cumulatively made him an advocate for a transformative public administration.

He is currently registered for a BA Public Administration with the Management College of Southern Africa (MANCOSA). He was born on the 17 February 1982, in Ipelegeng Township, Schweitzer-Reneke, North West Province. He attended Itshupeng Secondary School where he matriculated.

His political awareness was sparked at the very early age of 9, which saw him take an active role in the political activities and campaigns in his local community, mobilising children behind the banner of the ANC. This participation was organised through the ANC Young Pioneers (Masupatsela) of which he became its President from 1991-1994.

Kenny also participated in the Congress of South African Students (COSAS) through which he mobilised the school-going youth towards the concept of people’s education for people’s power. He became Provincial Chairperson of Cosas in North West, from 1998 – 2000, where he and his generation of Cosas youth led a campaign to integrate the public schooling system. This saw the integration of black learners into former Model C and whites-only public schools.

Throughout his life, he participated in ANC structures invariably occupying different positions of responsibility and leadership from the Young Pioneers, Cosas, ANCYL, and the ANC itself.

He was elected as a member of the ANC Provincial Executive Committee in 2011 and was appointed as the ANC Provincial Spokesperson.

In 2013, he was appointed by the President of the Republic of South Africa as the Executive Deputy Chairperson of the National Youth Development Agency from 2013-2016. He was reappointed to the NYDA Board in 2017, a position he held until his election as a Member of the Sixth Parliament of the Republic of South Africa in 2019.

Trevor Rammitlwa has been the CEO of BANKSETA and Executive Manager: Strategic Support at CATHSSETA. He is also formerly the Managing Director at Case Global Partners. He also served as a Senior Manager: Learning and Development at Nedbank. Trevor has 23 years of experience working in the Talent Development and previously occupied other various managerial roles. He has served as a Board Member for Micro Finance South Africa, Bataung Development Agency and Investors In People South Africa. He now serves in the advisory board of National Peace Accord Trust and participates in ABSIP’s workgroup/Sub-committee on economic policy. Trevor has an MBL degree and is currently studying towards a PhD in Management at the Centre for Economic and Management Sciences, UNISA. Trevor has local and international exposure in executing skills development programmes, extensive experience in developing executives in the banking sector as well as working in collaboration with local and international Business Schools. His ambition is to contribute to the development of skills including digital skills at all levels as a contribution towards the wellbeing of South Africa’s businesses and government.

Thabang Phala, also known as Abuti Rams, is a standout in the tech world, combining his skills as an IT consultant, brand innovator, and advocate for human development. He shines as the host of the Abuti Rams Show on Athari TV, where he dives into the ins and outs of business in Africa, sharing valuable insights with his audience.

Thabang’s journey in the professional world is marked by his leadership in founding BizM8 and LuminaLeap, where he serves as the guiding force and managing director. His education in Business Informatics, Cybersecurity, and Web and Application Development lays a solid foundation for his vast experience, spanning over 12 years.

Dr Suraya Adam is passionate about strategy formulation and implementation. Her education in Information Technology enables her to look at opportunities for leveraging technology in all areas of life, especially where technology, people and innovation intersect. From her first qualification in Computer Systems Engineering, she sought to build on her knowledge in this fascinating discipline. She has culminated her qualifications with a doctorate in the Management of Technology & Innovation (MOTI). Dr Adam is an experienced Senior Manager with a demonstrated history of working in Standards Development and Implementation. She currently holds the portfolio of Commission Manager on a GIZ South Africa Project, entitled Digital Skills for Jobs and Income II (DS4JI II), whose objective is to transition young South Africans, especially young women, into digital jobs along five in-demand career pathways. This important objective is accomplished through providing career guidance support, top-up skilling and employment-relevant support measures. Dr Adam is an action-oriented, collaborative, practical leader who leads by example and who has a high passion for the work that she does.

Dr Makaziwe Makamba is a director for digital transformation at the National School of Government (NSG) in South Africa. She previously worked as a Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) Research Expert /Director, specialising in Computer Science (4IR Research Expert – Computer Science), at the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT) in South Africa, where she was involved on the plethora of programmes looking at governance, policy and use of technology (emerging technologies) in acceleration socio-economic development. She has also worked at the Centre for Fourth industrial revolution (C4IR, SA) South Africa, as a senior researcher. She has a blended plethora of experience, as she worked in private sector, academia and in public sector.

Dr Makamba was also part of the people that provided the inputs on the Draft recommendations on the ethics of AI for UNESCO. Dr Makamba has been invited by UNESCO to provide a talk on various events such as capacity building on AI and Digital Transformation for Civil Servants and ethical use of AI. She has been involved in various AI developmental work for the Southern Africa region. She has been involved on the AI dialogues and AI initiatives across the globe to deliberate on AI benefits to society, economy and risks involved with this cross-cutting sectorial technology. She also contributed to both national and international platforms in technology discussions, specifically on the 4IR technology discussions and the impact of technology in driving socio-economic development.

Dr Makamba was recently invited by U.S. Department of State, together with the Atlantic Council GeoTech Center to attend and discuss at OECD Working Party on AI governance discussions in AI Paris, France and also in Cape Town , South Africa to provide some expertise on AI use cases and to explore opportunities and challenges around implementation of AI for economic development.

Dr Makamba holds a Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science from the University of South Africa (UNISA). Her areas of interest include but not limited to; Artificial Intelligence (AI), Cloud Computing, E-services, System Integration, Internet of Things (IoT), and Information and Communication Technology for Development (ICT4D). She has Master’s in Computer Science from University of Fort Hare. She also holds Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Science Honours from the same University.

Dr Makamba won a Rising Star award of the Year award from Intelligent ICT Awards, Africa 2025. She was previously nominated as an Inspiring Fifty 2020, in South Africa. She was also nominated on the Women in Tech Global excellent awards, in rising star of the year category. She has been recently nominated by wired4women awards and top 6 finalist for trailblazing career in ICT. She has been honoured as a top 50 powerful leaders driving technology forward by digital transformation tech Exito, in South Africa March 2025.

She serves as a programme committee member in various international conference society. She also serves as a board member and committee member in various organisations. She is also a founder and executive director of an NPO called Rise Science, that focuses on educating young people about technology in underserved areas. Her inextinguishable passion comes from her belief in the power of technology to solve socio-economic challenges.

Manqoba Mngomezulu, known as Q, is a cybersecurity expert and director of Inpassion, specialising in cybersecurity consulting, awareness, recruitment, and POPIA compliance. Since 2018, he has worked across various sectors, including telecommunications and non-profits. His skills include IT risk management, PCI DSS compliance, and cybersecurity operations.

Manqoba holds CISM and SCF-SABSA certifications and completed a Business Development Programme at GIBS. He is a member of ISACA and author of several books on cybersecurity, including the best-seller “Bring Back My Identity.”

Hlengiwe Mtetwa is an attorney and digital transformation champion with degrees in Community Development, Law, and Contract Law (LLM), complemented by advanced training in AI and business analysis. She leads contract management and public sector initiatives at Legal Interact. As Executive Director of RITE Academy, she empowers youth in underserved communities by providing ICT skills training to bridge the digital divide. Hlengiwe actively shapes AI and digital inclusion policies as a G20 Youth Summit delegate and is a prominent speaker on AI in legal practice, digital equity, and the future of work. Her work focuses on ethical, inclusive AI
integration to enhance legal operations and social impact, positioning her as a key figure in Artificial Intelligence, legal innovation and youth empowerment in South Africa.