About Us
Meet Fezeka Stuurman:
Founder and Owner of the Cultiver Group.
Fezeka is an innovator and business woman with a deep passion for education, sustainability and renewable energy. She believes that economic empowerment is the foundation of lasting, meaningful social change and that empowering youth and women through skills training and inclusion in value chains is vital to true sustainability. This is underpinned by her understanding of the exciting role of technology in accelerating economic, social, and environmental change.
Before establishing Cultiver, Fezeka worked extensively in the enterprise development and renewable energy industries. In enterprise development, she was involved in the implementation and programme management of Old Mutual Foundation’s flagship Legends Programme at Fetola.
In the renewable energy industry, she worked on utility scale photovoltaic projects under the South African Government’s Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme, as well as on related projects in Ethiopia, Nigeria, Namibia, Ghana, and the World Bank’s Scaling Solar Programme in Zambia. Fezeka’s role was on the project, business and economic development teams.
Fezeka was involved in founding a youth development programme called The Milnerton Youth Club from 2012 – 2014. She also served as Vice-Chair of the Businesswomen's Association of South Africa (Cape Town) 2012 -2014, and founded the FastTrack2Success programme, a young professional women’s network that helps graduates make a smoother transition into the world of work.
She is currently a Board Member of The Basic Concepts Foundation which supports learners from disadvantaged communities with basic educational concepts at the Early Childhood Development (pre-school) stage. Fezeka also currently sits on the Economic Transformation committee of the South African Council of Churches. Fezeka also engages in community work in her personal capacity.
Fezeka holds a Masters in Sustainable Development (with distinction) from the University of Stellenbosch. Her research focused on the participation of Black women-owned enterprises in the clean energy value chain.
She was accepted into the Harvard Emerging Leaders Programme in 2016. In 2017 she was invited to present a paper on her research on the developmental impacts of renewable energy conference in Mexico. Fezeka showcased one of Cultiver’s EdTech initiatives at the World Bank in December 2017 and emerged a Top 6 finalist out of 500 tech solutions for social impact.
In 2018, she served as a Lead Research Associate at Stellenbosch University for a newly launched Economic Policy Research Group, which aimed to work with key societal, business and political stakeholders and influencers on re-thinking the building blocks of an inclusive economy. Fezeka is currently considering PhD studies.
Fezeka is a mother of two and devotes most of her time outside of work to her partner and children. She loves travelling, walking, being in nature and indulging in a good read when time allows.
Sanchia Fairweather
Lead Associate Mentor
Sanchia also serves on the University of Stellenbosch Small Business Academy Steering Committee and is the lecturer for the Marketing Module each year, as well as a mentor to the participants. Additionally, Sanchia was involved in setting up an incubation hub for Anglo American (Kumba Iron Ore) in Kuruman in the Northern Cape.
Sanchia is a registered Assessor for New Venture Creation NQF Level 2 and Management Level 4, and is therefore very familiar with accredited, as well as non-accredited training, especially in the entrepreneurial space. She also attended a Flawless Consulting Skills Course on Designed Learning.In 2016, Sanchia founded her own company, Fairweather Consulting. The company focusses on Marketing, Strategy and Business Development for organisations of all sizes, with a specialisation in Enterprise and Supplier Development.Having assisted hundreds of SMME’s to start and grow their businesses, Sanchia knows the recipe for a successful boost to the South African economy, as well as a considerable contribution towards job creation.As part of her public speaking commitments, Sanchia was a panellist at the City of Cape Town SMART Procurement World Conference. The topic was “Unlocking strategic actions for EMEs and QSEs to strengthen their business decisions”. She was also a panellist at the Deloitte Western Cape Funding Fair, where the topic included “The Blind Side of the Market & SME Funding Readiness”.
Sanchia’s personal and business vision is to influence the lives of previously disadvantaged people by empowering them to create better lives for themselves, their families and the community through entrepreneurship, job creation, education and instilling dignity. Sanchia inspires, motivates, educates, cares for and listens to entrepreneurs. Her key strength is imparting knowledge and business skills to create change and sustainable growth.
