“Greatness is determined by service”

Unami Moatswi- “Being a Game changer means having the freedom of thought, being true to yourself and actually doing more than you talk. It means being able to walk into doors that you never thought you can and leaving the door open so that the masses can see how it is done and how they can do even better.”

Unami Moatswi

Today on our Game Changers, we meet our extraordinaire young woman, who is prove that determination and hard work are key to achieving your dreams, all this coupled with a spirit of volunteerism. Growing up having body image issues, Unami has sure blossomed into a confident inspirational young woman that a lot of young people can learn from.

Unami Moatswi is a Chevening scholar and a Mandela Washington fellow, you can just tell from this two prestigious awards that she is a force to recon with, because it is not just anyone that can receive these two awards. Ms Unami describes herself as a feminist, and her mission in life is to be an example to younger women and show them that “you can be whoever you want to be and still have a conscious.” One thing that is fascinating about this young lady is that she believes and is ambitious enough to have dreams beyond the sky.
Let’s look at how it all began for this young mother, Unami says growing up  without her father around was tough and she struggled with body image issues and sometimes her peers made her feel uncomfortable in her own skin. Looking back, Unami says “now I see how ridiculous that was” and she encourages parents to get to know their kids, and tell them they are good enough.
This young lady didn’t let her circumstances define her and has made a mark for herself by helping others by volunteering. She is a co-founder of young 1ove, a grassroots organisation scaling randomised control trial programs, and she has worked there as a partnership manager. She reveals that at young 1ove they have worked in public schools to scale an anti-intergenerational relationship project. Her role at this organisation required her to establish, and manage partnerships with relevant ministries.
She states that she draws inspiration from a lot of people, her son being at the top of the list. “My son is a source of everything I do because of the legacy I want to leave behind. I am inspired by the thousands of women that have worked hard to get us to where we are and they are never acknowledged.  I am inspired by women cleaners that show up daily before 6am to tidy office and school buildings and never complain and yet we complain about everything. ”Dr King said, ‘Not everybody can be famous but everybody can be great, because greatness is determined by service’, so I encourage everyone to continue being themselves and giving their time and everything will fall into place.”
She goes on to state that her outstanding achievement is being able to be a breadwinner for her family and son, whilst pursuing her Master’s Degree in a foreign land. “It is not easy, but hey it’s been 11 months now and here I am, still going.”
 She reveals that one of her most defining moment was when she quit her job to further her studies.
“This meant leaving a salary that supported my family, leaving my 2 year old and hopping on a plane to London, London! A mega city far away from home, far from my comfort zone. It was a risk, but I opened my eyes and took it and it has paid off.”

Unami is currently an intern at Mother2mothers London office, which is an unpaid role that requires her to support the European Communications and Partnership Manager with company research. She also volunteers on numerous organisations, which include Royal Commonwealth Society as an associate, Queen’s young leaders as an advisory mentor, a role she has had for 2 years. Unami describes her experience in London as phenomenal. “I have no regrets, this fall under my best decision in life. I have met so many people, learnt new cuisines and travelled. It has been amazing and a good time to grow personally and professionally”, she says.

She also believes that change is something we all hope to do but it is not easy because it requires willingness to change, change of perception, and change of systems. She believes a person can only do what they can and together we can do much more. “If I were to be president, I would legislate a 50% of parliament, parastatals boards with the available and capable women, raise the minimum wage, legislate profiling of sexual offenders, reduce the retirement age to 55 and sign the SADC gender protocol.”

We haven’t heard the last of Unami, as she has a few things up her sleeve in order to achieve her life’s mission of inspiring young women.“There’s a project on the pipeline that people should look forward to. I am working with an all women team to promote women in political leadership and safe spaces for women to thrive,” she says.

“The book of Proverbs 16:3 says commit to the LORD whatever you do, and he will establish your plans. So I have trusted the lord with my plans, and I want to keep it that way but all I can say is that God is not done with me yet,” she concludes.

 Fun Facts about Unami (What she says) 
*I am not Kalanga
* I am an introvert

Unami’s bucket list (what she says)

* I want to skydive
* I wish to travel Far East (Beijing, Kuwait)
*I want to own a house(s)
* I want to meet Angela Merkel and Thuli Madonsela.

People who inspire Unami (what she says) 

* Thuli Madonsela
* Kgomotso Motlotle
*Joy Phumaphi 
“They represent all things we can aspire; strength, integrity and bold leadership. I admire their continuance to lead from a place of truth.“

Unami’s best childhood memory (what she says) 

“I think it has to be one time when we were living in Dukwi refugee camp and so my aunt cooked dumplings, we had lunch and my cousins did not finish theirs and we decided to throw them away. My aunt went to the trash can, picked the dumplings and washed them, we had those for dinner (lol). A valuable lesson there we learnt that day.”