Speaker: Sithembiso
Job title: Founder/Executive Director
Company: Azania Reign

About the spreaker
Sithembiso Gongqa is a South African cultural power broker and strategist, creative executive, humanitarian, accredited and licensed Indigenous African Traditional Healer, and LGBTQIA+ leader whose work exists at the intersection of culture, governance, wellness, social impact, and community transformation. Rooted in ancestral knowledge systems while operating within global leadership spaces, Sithembiso has built a reputation for translating vision into action, culture into influence, and purpose into measurable impact. His educational journey began at Greenwood Primary School and Lawson Brown High School in Gqeberha before continuing at the Waterfront Theatre School in Cape Town, where he earned an LTCL (Licentiate Diploma) from Trinity College London, an internationally recognised qualification in drama, musical theatre, and dance. This artistic foundation cultivated a sophisticated understanding of storytelling, leadership, public engagement, and the transformative power of performance, all of which continue to inform his work as a strategist, advocate, and cultural architect. As the Founder, Executive Director of Azania Reign and Creative Director of its Arts and Culture Division, Sithembiso leads the development of innovative programmes that advance social cohesion, youth development, cultural preservation, community wellness, and inclusive economic participation. His leadership is guided by a commitment to ensuring that African cultural knowledge, artistic expression, and community wisdom remain central to shaping sustainable futures. An accredited and licensed Indigenous African Traditional Healer operating under the Traditional Healers Organization (THO), Sithembiso's practice extends beyond individual healing and embraces a holistic understanding of interconnected wellbeing. His work recognises the health of people, animals, ecosystems, and communities as inseparable. Through this lens, he advocates for Indigenous knowledge systems as living technologies of resilience, environmental stewardship, sustainability, and social regeneration. His practice is supported by legal recognition that allows him to work collaboratively within broader healthcare and community development frameworks while preserving and advancing traditional African healing sciences. A passionate humanitarian, Sithembiso actively contributes to global movements for social justice, health equity, environmental responsibility, and civic engagement. Through his extensive involvement with Global Citizen, he has consistently used his voice and actions to advocate for meaningful change, participating in campaigns and initiatives that address poverty, inequality, education, climate action, public health, and sustainable development. His commitment to service reflects a belief that citizenship is not a passive identity but an active responsibility to improve the lives of others. His contributions to LGBTQIA+ visibility and community leadership have earned national and international recognition. Sithembiso serves as both the Nelson Mandela Bay Pride Ambassador and Liaison Officer, helping strengthen relationships between communities, institutions, and stakeholders while advancing inclusion, dignity, and representation. His leadership extends globally through his appointment to the International Sounding Board for WorldPride under InterPride, where he represents the interests, perspectives, and lived realities of Sub-Saharan Africa within international conversations shaping the future of LGBTQIA+ advocacy and celebration. As a creative entrepreneur and cultural innovator, Sithembiso pioneered the Femme Vogue Kiki Ballroom movement in Gqeberha, Eastern Cape. They are a certified yoga practitioner and Sithembiso views healing as both a personal practice and a collective responsibility. Through this work, he created affirming spaces where queer people could gather, express themselves, celebrate identity, preserve culture, and cultivate leadership. The initiative has contributed to the growth of ballroom culture in the Eastern Cape while expanding opportunities for artistic expression, community building, and radical visibility. Across every sphere of his work, whether in traditional healing, cultural leadership, humanitarian advocacy, creative direction, or international representation, Sithembiso remains committed to building futures that are culturally grounded, socially conscious, globally relevant, and deeply transformative. His leadership is characterised by strategic vision, integrity, compassion, and an unwavering belief in the power of communities to shape their own destinies. He continues to champion a world where ancestral wisdom, creativity, human dignity, and collective wellbeing are recognised not as peripheral concerns, but as essential foundations for a just and sustainable future.