Linah Mhamhatana Shabangu
Senior Lecturer: Engineering Related Design, Mopani TVET College
As a woman, I perform the role of an organiser, administrator, director, recreator, disburser, economist, mother,
disciplinarian, teacher, health officer, artist and queen in the community at the same time
Linah Mhamhatana Shabangu says growing up in Bushbuckridge , Mpumalanga, was tough and it was easy to lose one’s life. “There was no electricity. We used firewood to cook, candles and lamps to light at night,” Shabangu says. “Sometimes we’d fetch water from the Sabie River where some got eaten by crocodiles.” Shabangu is a senior lecturer in engineering at the Mopani TVET College in Phalaborwa, Limpopo. She’s the first black woman staffer in the engineering department.
“I joined in 2000 when the institution was still called Phalaborwa College, before we merged with the other two colleges, which were Sir Val Duncan and Mapulaneng colleges.”
“My duties include ensuring curriculum delivery and co-ordination, she says.
Shabangu enjoys lecturing because it allows her to learn and expand her knowledge.
“As a lecturer, I inspire my learners to think beyond their comfort zones and I challenge them to reach their fullest potential. I have the ability to make a difference in my learners’ lives,” she adds.
Outside her profession, Shabangu serves on the board of one of the local church in her community. Shabangu holds a National Diploma, technical education in mechanical engineering, an Advanced Certificate, technology education, VEOP Certificate and Advanced Diploma, TVET education and N4-N5 certificates and three subjects in N6, mechanical engineering, from the Mopani TVET College.