Bulawayo-based entrepreneur Nkosana George Mazibisa says being forced to dropped out of university made him passionate about education and to become a philanthropist.

Mazibisa (NM), who is ‘chief hustler’, creative practitioner and social entrepreneur, spoke about how he is working to create a legacy for himself when he featured on the platform In Conversation with Trevor, which is hosted by Alpha Media Holdings chairman Trevor Ncube (TN).

Below are excerpts from the interview.

TN: Nkosana George Mazibisa welcome to In Conversation with Trevor.

NM: It's a pleasure to be here Trevor.  What a joy!

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TN: Nkosana I want us to start by heavy lifting and say what have been the key moments in your life?  What have been the key milestones that define who you are becoming?

NM: That's a very deep emotional question Trevor.

TN: Let's go there.

NM: You know for us entrepreneurs, it is when you go through crossroads that then define who you are.

When you reach rock bottom we are able to have this highlight of your passion, purpose and mission.

In 2008 I was at Solusi University doing a Bachelors in History degree. I love history.

 I think that explains why I love reading. I read close to 48 books a year, four books per month.

I was so passionate about history, you know, also looking towards political economy and stuff like that but unfortunately because of the economic situation in Zimbabwe, I was no exception.

My parents could not afford fees and I dropped out. That was the first core or reality that I came into contact with.

Secondly, Trevor I then travel to the USA

TN: So you drop out, what does that do to you?

NM: Actually before I dropped out, Trevor, I skipped the most important part.

In 2007, I received a scholarship to study in the USA.

I was supposed to study what is called behavioural science at Andrews University, one of the top universities there, sharp, brilliant because I scored marks in high school.

So I got a scholarship and what was needed for me was my parents to pay for air flights and application fee.

I wrote an email back to them and they said no for application, we are removing it, just come to the US.

My parents could not afford the flight.

Probably if I had gone to the US I would have impacted Africa. I had to devise plan B to go to Solusi, there again, my parents couldn't afford the fees. So that on its own was a moment of awakening.

TN: So what does it do to you?

NM: I got a scholarship and a teaching assistantship to go to Calgary University. I failed to raise a ticket to go to Calgary and I was not able to pursue that opportunity. But it haunts you, it makes you doubt yourself.

TN: Is that the sense that you experienced?

NM: I have this passion towards education. I don't want to see young people miss out on opportunities, that disparity between those and that don't have has become my mission to then solve that problem so whatever I go through.

 In as much as it affects me as a person, it makes me realise my shortcomings and also, what I'm looking at is that I then use that to find a solution, to solve problems for other people, that is what then informs me as a social entrepreneur now.

TN: So it appears as I'm talking to you that you have already gone through some painful moments. What has life taught you about?

NM: Life has no formula, but it does not stop us from solving the equation.

The fact that it has no formula, you have your own equation whether it becomes a simultaneous equation it's up to you but within that context of framing life, there are people who play a role in it, the mentors and also your own life journey and also there is a spiritual element to it.

Remember, we have this vertical relationship with God, it informs our horizontal relationship with one another, so it becomes a journey, what you call self-discovery, who you are.

Life has taught me all that and life has also taught me that I'm also human.

I make mistakes and when you make mistakes, don't point at others and look deep within you. What is it that I made wrong, how do I correct this.

In entrepreneurship Trevor, entrepreneurship is different from any other career where you are given the book, you are given the way of doing things.

In entrepreneurship you discover things by yourself and discovering is costly for any mistake.

There is a financial burden to it, and also it's a lonely Journey.

It's a question of mindset, few people are able to grasp the things that were looking at re-framing Zimbabwe in reconstruction of Africa because they do not see what we see.

They do not experience the passion that we possess and then we  are labelled as mad men of Africa and when we are labelled as mad men of Africa, you are on your own and you go through the wilderness so life has taught me all that. 

TN: How  do you go through the wilderness on your own, how do you go through life as the other one who is ignored, who is not taken seriously because people don't get the vision of where you want to go?

NM: So to go through life in that phase, you need mentors like you. You have played a role in my life.

I follow the In Conversation. I have been following it, even during Covid remember, during the conversations that we had, mentorship plays a key role in my life.

I have another mentor, Elder Shingai Mutasa. We have conversations and when I reach out to him, he says young man correct  one, two, three, four, five, this is what you need to do. That pushes me through the wilderness. There is Mama Lindiwe Macale.

She gives me tough love, when the world is clapping hands for me, Lindiwe makes sure that I remain sane.

She will says ‘listen young man, correct one, correct two. mentors play a role and lastly also there's Elder Kudakwashe Tagwireyi. You know his brilliance when I look at him, his brilliance, his humility and also it informs his faith.

I pick up all those nuggets from all these people and I'm able to then say, this is my journey; they have gone through one two three steps, how do I then make my journey more memorable, and then also enjoy without quitting.

So I remember the other time when I had a conversation with Elder Tagwireyi, this is what I picked from him. He said his faith informs his personality.

TN: In what way?

 NM: I'm a Philanthropist. I love giving back to the community. I'm a philanthropist. I grew up in the Adventist society.

I’m fourth generation so where we come from in the Adventist society, there is an evangelism philosophy that people should focus on going to heaven more than chasing aspirations.

 So when I interact with the likes of Elder Tagwireyi, also  Elder Charles Chitando, the Sakunda CEO, I realised the importance of purpose in life, the importance of overcoming one's obstacles, that generally where you are, despite whatever happens in life.

 I can only speak on what I pick that then informs me, that my journey is not a sprint.

It's a marathon and within that marathon, there are people that come in and they may not be part of the bigger puzzle but for that particular moment they push me. 

TN: One thing I have watched you do is build your social capital and networking being part of the future elect Mandela Washington fellows.

Is this deliberate and what have you gotten out of it? 

NM: One book that informed me is  The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.

Paulo says when you want something, the universe conspires to help you but you must be deliberate the same way when  such a young person in the Bible who was blind Bartimaues heard that Jesus is passing, he went to the highway.

So I'm deliberate, I'm intentional Trevor. Whatever I'm doing, I wake up in the morning. I believe in palatal law; focus on what you're good at.

So I'm deliberate, I'm deliberate in my networks, I'm deliberate in the fellowships. I'm deliberate in social enterprises, I'm literally everything.

I'm deliberate because that must inform me as a person and also I must be accountable to God for the time that I have used.

Remember, any talent and time that is misused becomes irrelevant. I cannot be chasing social media. I need to chase things that build society, and be remembered  as a legacy person.

TN: I remember when I had this conversation with you years back, you spoke of legacy, you are at a point where you are building legacy.

  • I said okay he is at that age, and  he is building legacy. Why don't I start earlier and whatever I'm building become legacy.
  • I want us to go to a place where again in terms of purpose you thought of leaving the country and you decided no you are not going to leave the country.
  •  Why did you decide not to go out of the country and when you look back was that a good decision?
  • You made a decision at some point that you wanted to leave the country, and I'm going there because a lot of young people are in that space.
  • This space is so tough, things are not working out and some leave and they regret it, some don't leave and they regret.
  • Talk to me about your decision making process. You wanted to leave, why did you stay? 

NM: Honestly speaking, we have dreams. Every person has a dream. Every person has a mandate from God  to live their lives to the fullest, and to be frank with you

Trevor,  Zimbabwe right now where it is, even where it was, it is tough, really tough..

The world is calling us and what do we do, do we leave the country and leave it as it is, do we leave the continent and live it as it is or do we become part of the solution that the country and the continent needs.

It’s a very tough decision to make because when you look at your peers, your peers have gone abroad, they are doing exceptionally well.

They have accumulated wealth and here you are pushing things left right and centre, but what then gives us peace of mind is that at the end of the day we have lived our lives.

 We are the solution.

It wasn't easy.  I remember I came back from the USA. I had gone for the Mandela Washington Fellowship for eight weeks.

I went to an Ivy League school which was (Darkmar College).

The exposure I got there, the culture shock, and also I consumed a lot of information. I was exposed to a lot of things, functional systems.

 I was exposed to networks but the answer was I will always reach a ceiling because the American system is a ceiling.

 They have achieved but Africa is a continent full of opportunities. If you do it right, probably 10 to 15 years you can be a billionaire.

TN: What is your aim?

NM: I would love to die a billionaire not because I want to acquire money and wealth, I want it to become a means to solve problems, specifically education because I dropped out of university.

TN: Is that emotional?

NM: That thing still hounds me up to today, so I'm so passionate about schools and so if God grants me that desire and I become a billionaire, most probably I will die without having owned all of it, giving back to charity because the things that I get even up to today, I still give it back to charity.

So I stayed in Zimbabwe.

TN: Do you regret it?

NM: It's mixed emotions to be honest.

There are days when I’m exceptionally good about it, looking at what we have done and then there are days when I look back and say probably if we had left and done things at a global scale and came back, look life is no formula, so like I said it's a simultaneous equation.

TN: Tell me so in 2018, you decided you are going to get into politics. You campaigned and you participated as an independent candidate.

  • Was that wise when you look back? Talk to me about that season. What's your assessment of that decision?

NM: I don't regret that decision. Even if I wake up today, I will still do it. I don't regret that decision

TN: Why?

NM: As a social entrepreneur you cannot separate community development, and the politics of many of our people who occupy public offices, they are there for selfish reasons.

Number two, there is abuse of office that we have seen right from municipality up to whatever level you can think of and social service is one of the most important things that make life easier for communities and also for us entrepreneurs.

So when I took back that decision it was also informed by my history and legacy, Trevor.

I come from a family of leaders.If you go to Joshua Nkomo’s book “Story of my life” chapter six, my grandfather Amos Mazibisa was part of Joshua’s executive in Zapu and assisted Joshua Nkomo.

Many of the Zpra cadres were mentored by my grandfather.

There’s a research which was done by Professor Roberts around the revival of the Ndebele Kingdom Under the Matabeleland Home Society.

 My grandfather was the first person to bring the royal family, he traced them all the way from South Africa to Zimbabwe and said this is royal family.

 “In Conversation With Trevor” is a weekly show broadcast on YouTube.com//InConversationWithTrevor.  
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