Divine Ndhlukula

Securico, the company that Zimbabwe’s Divine Ndhlukula started in her cottage in the late 1990s with four employees and very little capital, has become one of her country’s largest security firms. According to her, perhaps the biggest barrier she had to face when she set it up was her gender. “Obviously, as a woman, people would not believe that I could run a security company – particularly with no security background,” she told the BBC’s series African Dream.

The Divine Simbi Ndhlukula Foundation, which was formed to formalise her ongoing humanitarian work is premised on ensuring a structured and sustainable implementation of community projects in communities where she grew up, and where she currently resides as well as where she works. Charitable businesswoman and farmer Divine Simbi Ndhlukula has given back to her home area of Gutu after unveiling the Mbuya Mary Simbi Library last week through her foundation. The Divine Simbi Ndhlukula Foundation, which was formed to formalise her ongoing humanitarian work is premised on ensuring a structured and sustainable implementation of community projects in communities where she grew up, and where she currently resides as well as where she works. “I have always been passionate about community development and charity. I am happy that the foundation gives me a better platform to reach out to marginalised and needy communities. We have a whole team dedicated to championing the cause of the foundation and we are happy with our progress to date,” Ndhlukula said. “We have also been supporting disadvantaged girls with tuition fees and the setting up of a community library in Gutu is therefore another way of consolidating our desire to make a lasting difference in our beneficiary communities.” For close to a decade, Ndhlukula has been paying fees for girls to proceed with school but sadly, the percentage pass rate has been too low to have expected impact. Initial findings attributed the low pass rate to lack of access of reading material, moreso lack of curriculum relevant textbooks. Coupled with this, the Covid 19 pandemic presented even devastating results to school enrolment and attendance of the rural folks who were vulnerable even before the lockdowns. Ndhlukula said it was that realisation that made her decide to construct a library for the Gutu community. “It is from this background that I came up with the idea of establishing a community library in Gutu rural area,” she said. “I met with stakeholders from the area who commended the efforts and promised to ensure that they kept this library secure and ensured that students benefited from this initiative. “The vision is to also have a computer lab whose positive effect will lead to advancement of ICT literacy in the area.” Chief Chitsa, who presides over the area, welcomed the initiative and encouraged the community to work together with Ndhlukula to ensure project remains sustainable. The traditional leader’s sentiments were welcomed by Ndhlukula’s team member Masiya who said the library project would go a long way in supporting the girl child. Chief Chitsa thanked the foundation and commended the quality investment “This state of the art library is for the benefity of the community. It is up to us to support our children so that we improve the economic state of our area,” Chief Chitsa said. Ndhlukula thanked benefactors from all walks of life for chipping in to make the vision of a library a reality. “It is our hope that through this intervention, results would have improved from the ones registered in the past two years,” she said. “The library is benefiting five schools, both primary and secondary, namely Firomumwe, Zvinavashe, Chitsa, Mondo and Machingambi. “When you have been blessed return to develop this area. Together let’s be givers of our time, resources and gifts. Voluntarism isn’t only about money, but a little what the community of Makudo Township have displayed through working together to make this a reality Guest of honour, acting deputy Masvingo provincial education director Hove said reading opens the mind. “Reading opens new worlds as the theme says. We want children from this district to be innovative and find solutions to our local problems just as those children in Asia, Europe, America do,” Hove said. “This comes from research and we thank Dr Ndhlukula and her team for working hard and for the community for accepting this gift. Mbuya Mary Simbi Library project manager Sympathy Sibanda said the initiative will bridge the rural and urban gap to education. “The initiative by Dr Ndhlukula is to bridge the rural and urban gap through availing the same tools,” Sibanda said. “The library now has curriculum relevant books and in a few months we are setting up a computer lab. “The idea is to create leaders from even the areas that would not have had access to better dreams. “Through the vision of Dr Ndhlukula, we are building sustainability and have already introduced services like photocopying photocopying stationery sales which most schools would have to travel to a nearby Murambinda town for.” Ntokozo Mpofu, a beneficiary of the Divine Simbi Ndhlukula Foundation bursary, now a first year student at the University of Zimbabwe, encouraged fellow girls to work extra hard and to not forget the community when they have been blessed. “I will work extra hard and come back to develop this community. I want girls to keep going going to school and not get married at early ages.  Education is the door to a better life,” she said. The Standard

Divine Ndhlukula is the founder and Managing Director of DDNS Security Operations (Pvt) Ltd. t/a SECURICO, a business involved in guarding, electronic security systems, renewable energy solutions, and cash management solutions that are expanding in the region. From humble beginnings, Divine founded SECURICO Security Services in 1999. She started off with four employees, and the company has now grown to over 4,000. Through hard work, determination, and focus, Divine has built the company to become the most respected and sought-after players in the security industry. Her company is also the first Zimbabwean security company to be certified to the internationally acclaimed ISO Quality Management Systems.  Divine has worked for ZBC, Old Mutual, and Intermarket Life Assurance Company, which she left to start SECURICO in 1999. “The business idea was after the realization of a gap that I had noted in the market for a service and quality-oriented security services provider,” she said.  Divine has always had the drive to be an entrepreneur and is a strong role model for JA. “Let me say that right from a tender age, I had always told myself and everyone that I was going to start and run my own business, which I always envisioned as a large business. I enrolled in an entrepreneurial development program in 1995 and this sharpened my entrepreneurial competencies. I learned elements like opportunity seeking, goal setting, business planning, networking, and more.”  Divine encourages women and young people to become entrepreneurs and has been recognized by Forbes as one of the most successful women in Africa.  Her leadership excellence has been recognized by the corporate fraternity as evidenced by the numerous business accolades she has won, Empretec Entrepreneur of Decade (Services Sector) in 2002; Manager of the Year in 2005 for Zimbabwe Institute of Management; Institute of Directors Zimbabwe Director of the Year (SMEs) in 2008;  and the Zimbabwe Women Filmmakers/UNIFEM Business Award in 2010;  Empretec – one of the most Influential Businesspeople Post Independence Zimbabwe in 2012; UNCTAD Top Ten Global Women in Business in 2014; EY World Entrepreneur Award in the Exceptional Category, in 2014; Private Sector Leader of Year by Zimbabwe Institute of Management in 2016;  Recognised as one of the Top 100 Women CEOs in Africa in 2019; and Forbes Africa Businesswoman for 2019. Through her leadership, SECURICO has also been recognized in numerous awards and in 2011 beat 3,400 other companies in Africa to win the coveted Grand prize of the  Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship by Legatum and Omidyar. In addition, the company has received the following accolades She founded Zvikomborero Farms, an integrated agricultural company involved in livestock. The business is in the process of scaling to become one of the best centers of livestock production in the country, creating much-needed jobs, working in partnership with development partners in various programs to transform the smallholder farming sector. Looking ahead, the plan is to intensify her efforts in the agricultural space due to its immense business and socio-economic potential, particularly, the opportunity to turn many smallholder peasant farmers into productive commercial farmers through various business models and contractual arrangements, integrating along the whole value chain as a sustainable business model. As a sought out speaker, she has traversed the global breath on international assignments, sharing her amazing entrepreneurial journey, not for her sake anymore, but for what this has and is doing to many young and mature women of Africa. This has made Zimbabweans hold their own in a world that sees more negatives than positives on this nation. Dr. Divine has been appointed to board membership, directorship, chairmanship, and leadership capacities in several key and national strategic institutions and commissions in Zimbabwe. “I thought there was a gap in the industry. Companies that were there were not living up to the needs of the clients. The industry was renowned for wild cat strikes and guards generally were perceived as the lowly-paid in any sector. I wanted to change the perceptions and create a niche in which people could carve out a career and I knew I needed to go in with a different approach and that approach was going to make the difference, the people had to be key or central feature of the vision.”Dr Divine Ndhlukula Global Business Hall of Fame

Divine Simbi Ndhlukula is the founder and MD of SECURICO, a leading diversified security services and systems company she founded on her kitchen table that has grown to become a leading reputable business in Zimbabwe and beyond, employing 3800 people. Her company has trail blazed many innovations in Zimbabwe thus changing the face of the security industry being the first company to attain international ISO 9001 certifications. The company has consistently won many local, continental and international awards among other Super brand, Service Excellence, Top Ten Best Employers for many years running. A Holder of 2 Masters in Business Administration from Midlands state University and a PhD degree from the Women’s University, is also involved in an integrated Agribusiness operation. Divine Ndhlukula has personally won many local regional and international awards for business excellence including the Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship. She was recognised by Forbes as “One of the Most Successful Women in Africa.” However, her most prized award is seeing women economically empowered, a space she has serious passion for having gotten women to be accepted in the security sector and pioneered the ZNCC Women’s Desk initiatives like WECA, Woman Owned Brand, Mentorship in Practice and Look Learn and Share. Divine sits on a number of boards, is the Immediate past President of Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce, sits on the National Competitiveness Commission, and other non-profit organisations that support women and children. AFSIC

The annual Forbes Woman Africa Awards took place on the evening of 8 March in Durban, South Africa. One of the highlights of the event was the official recognition of Dr Divine Ndhlukula, founder of Securico in Zimbabwe, as the winner of the prestigious Businesswoman of the Year Award.  The award was presented at a glittering awards ceremony and Gala Dinner which took place on International Women’s Day, and was part of the Forbes Woman Africa Leading Women Summit 2019. The event was held at the Durban’s Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre. The award recognized the significant impact Divine has made to the business landscape in Zimbabwe and across the African continent, and specifically to the security services industry in Africa. Divine is an entrepreneurial gamechanger in Africa and an inspiration to so many other women business builders.  Other women entrepreneurs to be recognised for their contribution to the world of business included Uche Pedro, founder of BellaNaija in Nigeria who received the New Media Award for her significant contribution to the media industry in Africa.read more