About Mthente Research and Consulting Services
The meaning of Mthente
Mthente is a Zulu word for thorn tree. The thorn tree aptly epitomises the nature and character of our company: the thorns symbolise the resilience and robustness of the firm; the delicate leaves, on the other hand, denote the company’s sensitivity and adaptability to the socio-economic, political and business contexts in which it operates.
Mthente draws inspiration from the Zulu proverb Umthente Uhlaba Usamila, which loosely means that building character in children or young people at an early stage of their development will equip them with the tools to cope with dangers and risks later in their lives. This idiom accords with our company’s belief and commitment to help our clients tackle their problems at the root before they ultimately spiral out of control.
Our core ethos is a guarantee of innovative, cost-effective and high quality research and business solutions for our clients.
Our unique team of research specialists includes experienced experts in applied social and policy research, trade and economics, business administration, and monitoring and evaluation. Mthente is an accredited Level 1 B-BBEE enterprise. In addition, Mthente is accredited by the Southern African Marketing Research Association (SAMRA).
Mission
Mthente strives for professionalism and quality through listening, learning and responding for mutual growth. Our core ethos is a guarantee of innovative, cost-effective and high quality research and business solutions for our clients.
Values
At Mthente we value integrity, growth and excellence. We are passionate about our business and are committed to providing value and quality to our clients and partners through hard work, professionalism and open communication. We believe in and embrace the spirit of ubuntu* as an essential component of the way we do business.
Heidi Villa -Vicencio- Managing Director
MBA (Distinction), University of Warwick (UK), 2004
MA History, University of Cape Town, 1995
Heidi is the Founder and Managing Director of Mthente Research and Consulting Services. As Mthente’s Managing Director, she uses her skills and over 25 years’ of professional experience to facilitate and direct strategy, manage stakeholder engagement initiatives, and help researchers to analyse results in a way that is informed by intelligence from the market that tells both the design of products and value propositions.
Heidi is a member of the Southern African Marketing Research Association (SAMRA). She started her career at the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) in 1994. This was followed by five years working as a consultant in the United Kingdom where she consulted for numerous blue-chip organisations.
Over the last 17 years, Heidi has overseen all the evaluations undertaken by Mthente. These have included the evaluation of the National Prosecuting Authority’s Community Prosecutor Programme (CPI), a three-year evaluatory initiative to determine the impact of the pilot programme and the three-year longitudinal evaluation for the Department of Small Business Development on SMMEs and Co-Operatives within South Africa, the Wards Based Door to Door HIV and AIDS Programme for the Gauteng Department of Health, The Health Care Workshop Evaluation for the Office of the Premier, Gauteng and the baseline study evaluation on Sexual Violence Against Girls in Schools in South Africa Programme for the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund. Heidi has also been the Project Director for the World Vision EVOKE: Lears for Literacy Pilot in Limpopo and for the World Vision pilot in partnership with the Pearson Institute of Higher Education in Tembisa, Gauteng.
Heidi has advanced expertise in Board Evaluations, having evaluated and conducted strategy for a number of leading organisations, including Old Mutual, Aspol Insurance, the University of Cape Town, Fairtrade South Africa, the Cape Town Fashion Council, Western Cape Tourism, Trade and Investment (WESGRO) and the Small Enterprise Development Agency (SEDA).
Ishreen Ismail- Research Director
PhD in Psychology, the University of Cape Town (Current)
MA Research Psychology (Cum Laude), University of the Western Cape (2014)
Ishreen Ismail completed her undergraduate degree in Psychology and Sociology at the University of Cape Town as well as an Honours and Master’s degree (Cum Laude) in Research Psychology at the University of the Western Cape. Following her Master’s degree, she registered as a Research Psychologist with the Health practitioner’s council of South Africa (HPCSA) and was employed by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) for almost 5 years, where she worked on psychological research in a military and defence force setting. Following her work at the CSIR she took up a position as a psychologist and behavioural scientist at SQN where she managed a range of quantitative and measurement validation projects. Ishreen is currently enrolled for a PhD in Psychology at the University of Cape Town and expects to complete the degree in 2023. Her key research skills are in the areas of monitoring and evaluation, as well as research measurement design and validation.
Ishreen has conducted numerous evaluations as either a lead evaluator or senior researcher. She worked as a monitoring evaluation specialist on a community prosecution evaluation for the ISS which had a budget of just under R5 million. In 2020/2021 she was the lead evaluator for an evaluation for the Flemish Association for Development Cooperation and Technical Assistance (VVOB) on the effectiveness of a pilot model to strengthen gender-responsive pedagogy in early childhood education in 72 centers/schools in KwaZulu-Natal province. The budget for this evaluation was just over R1 500 000. She is currently working on a Longitudinal Evaluation of the Columba Youth Leadership Programme, a 4-year project with a budget of over R2 000 000.
Furthermore, Ishreen has managed the evaluation and research teams on several other projects carried out by Mthente which includes a longitudinal study for the Department of Small Business Development (DSBD) which had a budget of R2 000 000, an evaluation for the French Embassy in South Africa, evaluation for HWSETA and an evaluation for the Oceana group, amongst others.
Jill Masters- Research and Fieldwork Manager
PhD in Psychology, the University of the Western Cape (Current)
MA Research Psychology, University of the Western Cape (2015)
Jill Masters is the Research and Fieldwork Manager at Mthente Research and Consulting. She has completed her undergraduate and postgraduate studies at the University of the Western Cape, majoring in Research Psychology. Currently, she is pursuing a PhD at the University of the Western Cape, with an expected completion date by the end of 2024.
With 7 years of experience in academia and 5 years in Market Research, Jill has developed a strong foundation in research methodologies and practical applications. At Mthente, she has led numerous monitoring and evaluation studies, as well as impact studies, showcasing her expertise and commitment to delivering high-quality research outcomes.
Diane Oaker- Operations Manager
Diane joined Mthente in February 2009 and has assisted with fieldwork supervision and managing the fieldwork team for qualitative and quantitative data collection.
Recently, Diane had managed project logistics for the following projects:
- Save The Children South Africa on the skill development and livelihood programs for children on the move in South Africa.
- Evaluation of the 2020/2021 University of Forthare (UFH) FASSET Academic Support programme.
- Impact assessment of the Agricultural Research Council (ARC)’s Professional Development Programme (PDP).
- Evaluation for the Flemish Association for Development Cooperation and Technical Assistance (VVOB)
- Institutional Assessment & Mapping of Return and Reintegration Services in South Africa for IOM South Africa.
- Due Diligence Study, Tshikululu.
- Data collection for the Special Economic Zones, Department of Small Business Development (DSBD)
- Outcomes and impact assessment for The Innovation Hub.
She has since been appointed as a Junior Researcher, she has been assisting with analysis and report writing for projects such as the Zenex Foundation stakeholder review and SANEDI cultural survey.
Sindile Khani- Senior Researcher
Masters in Criminology, University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2017
Postgraduate Diploma in M&E, Stellenbosch University, 2018
Sindile is a Senior M&E Researcher for Mthente. Sindile completed his postgraduate diploma from
Stellenbosch University and has a sound understanding of monitoring and evaluation
methodologies. At Mthente Sindile has worked on numerous Monitoring & Evaluation and Impact
Assessments. A list of projects that Sindile has worked on includes:
Criminology related projects:
● Baseline, midline and endline evaluation of the Community Prosecution Initiative (CPI) for
the Institute of Security Studies in Collaboration with the National Prosecution Authorities.
● Development of a monitoring framework for APCOF to systematically track the
implementation of SAHRC recommendations by SAPS
● Co-lead evaluation in supporting the National Anti-Corruption Advisory Council (NACAC)
Monitoring, Evaluation, Reporting and Learning (MERL) workstream with the revision of
the National Anti-Corruption Strategy (NACS) implementation framework and finalisation
of the NACS implementation plan and its corresponding framework
Impact evaluation projects
● An evaluation of the Gauteng Informal Business Upliftment Strategy for the Gauteng
Department of Economic Development.
● An impact evaluation of the Small-Scale Fishers (SSFs) training programme for Oceana
● An impact assessment of the Agricultural Research Council (ARC)’s Professional
Development Programme (PDP).
● Co-lead researcher of a longitudinal evaluation of the Columba Values-Based Leadership
Programme for the Federated Employers Mutual Assurance Company (FEM)
● Researcher manager for the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) in assessing the extent
to which the animal improvement scheme, Kaonafatso ya Dikgomo contributed to the
economic transformation and commercialisation of the smallholder livestock sector.
● Researcher manager in the research on the effectiveness of the pilot model to strengthen
gender-responsive pedagogy in early childhood education in 72 centres/schools in
KwaZulu-Natal province for the Flemish Association for Development Cooperation and
Technical Assistance (VVOB)
● Research Manager Monitoring and Evaluation Accountability and Learning Technical
Support for Save the Children South Africa provides a map/track of the interactions of
Save the Children beneficiaries with the programme offerings.
General Research
● Lead researcher of the Stakeholder Review for Zenex
● Lead researcher of the stakeholder survey for the Armaments Corporation of South Africa
SOC Limited (Armscor)
● Lead researcher of the stakeholder survey for the Parliament of the Republic of South
Africa
● Lead researcher of an organisational survey for Akina Mama wa Afrika (AMwA)
● Research Manager in a research on impact of the Incremental Introduction of African
languages in the former Model C schools on behalf of The Pan South Africa Language
Board (PanSALB).
Ariq Chetty- Research Logistics Assistant
Ariq Chetty is the newest member of Mthente. He has previous experience in sales and logistics. At Mthente, he has been involved in numerous projects for clients such as HWSETA, FEM, Cornell University, ISS, and Oceana. He has successfully managed the fieldworkers on various projects and has conducted surveys as well as interviews with key stakeholders and government officials. Ariq’s key strengths are his ability to actively manage large groups of fieldworkers who are out in the field as well as his ability to conduct in-depth interviews.
Our Associates
Dr Nedson Pophiwa- M&E Expert
PhD Economic History, University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2018; MA Forced Migration Studies, 2009
Dr Nedson Pophiwa is a research, monitoring and evaluation expert with over a decade of experience in leading several projects for various clients and sectors. He is currently a Senior Researcher at the National Consumer Commission, where he heads the research, records and knowledge, management division. He is also a Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Witwatersrand’s Centre for Learning on Evaluation and Results in Anglophone Africa (CLEAR-AA). He previously worked for the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) and the Africa Institute of South Africa. Dr Nedson Pophiwa begins his new role as a Senior Lecturer in Public Governance and Monitoring and Evaluation at the Wits School of Governance on 1 July 2021.
For the past decade, Dr Pophiwa has been involved in several research and monitoring and evaluation projects within South Africa and the region. He worked in different capacities as principal investigator, data analyst and report writer on projects commissioned by ministries, provincial government departments, local government and donors. Concerning M&E projects, Nedson has played a significant role from start to end of several projects. Examples include being a co-principal investigator in an evaluation of training programmes offered by the Local Government SETA, and a team member in evaluating the implementation of constitutional court judgements, a project funded by the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development. Nedson also played a crucial role in the facilitation of the theory of change for the Commission for Gender Equality during its twenty-year review process. He has also conducted quality assurance for evaluation reports produced by public organisations and consulting firms.
Not only does Nedson possess vast experience, in managing research and evaluation projects but management experience within the public service. As an EXCO member at the Commission, Nedson has played a significant role in the formulation of policy. An example is that at the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, he was part of a team, which contributed to the formulation of Regulations on price gauging that were then promulgated by the Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition in March 2020. In the past, he has also been involved in evaluating public policies, for example in 2014 he was part of the HSRC team that conducted an evaluation of the Immigration legislation of South Africa and presented findings to the minister. He is well versed with methodologies for evaluating public sector policies, programmes and projects.
Nedson has published several peer-reviewed publications and read papers at international and national conferences. He co-edited a book titled, “The evaluation landscape in Africa” which contributes to debates on monitoring and evaluation in Africa.
Rochelle Jacobs- Economist
Masters (Economics), Stellenbosch University
Economist & Lead Researcher Ms Rochelle Jacobs completed her honours in 2016 where she worked in mathematical modelling and econometric analysis. Her Honours thesis was selected as the Stellenbosch University entry for the Founders Medal – a national competition between all South African universities to establish the best thesis in various categories.
Further, Rochelle also presented her Honours thesis at the Annual Post-Graduate Economics Conference, held at the University of Cape Town in 2016. Rochelle has a Master’s degree in economics. During her post-graduate studies, Rochelle completed courses and research assignments in Advanced Time Series Analysis and Advanced Cross-Section and Panel Data Analysis, enabling her to conduct detailed statistical analysis.
Rochelle was Mthente’s lead researcher on:
- The Annual Review of SMMEs and Cooperatives in South Africa for the Small Enterprise Finance Agency (SEFA)
- Longitudinal study on SMME’s and Co-operatives in South Africa for the Department of small business development
- Electrum value-added services report
Dr Guy Lamb- Justice & Criminal Justice Expert
Ph.D. in Criminology and Masters and Honours degree in International and Comparative Politics from UCT.
Dr Guy Lamb is the BA International Studies Programme Leader within the Political Science Department at the University of Stellenbosch (South Africa). He also serves as a commissioner with the high-level National Planning Commission (Presidency of the Republic of South Africa) where he chairs the Commission’s Justice, Crime Prevention and Security Task Team. Between 2012 and 2020 he was the Director of the Safety and Violence Initiative at the University of Cape Town. Prior to this he was a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Security Studies (2006-2012), and Senior Researcher at the Centre for Conflict Resolution (2000-2005).
He is a National Research Foundation rated researcher and has undertaken research and published on crime and violence reduction, urban safety, policing and peace-building issues in Africa for more than 25 years. He has worked with numerous governments and various United Nations agencies on peace and security issues. Dr Lamb has lead two research projects on xenophobic violence in South Africa, both funded by USAID.
Dr Ariane Neethling
PhD Statistics, University of Witwatersrand, 2004
MSc Statistics (Cum laude), Potchefstroom University, 1988
Ariane gained experience as biometrist at the Medical Research Council of South Africa (MRC); as chief statistician at the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC); as lecturer at the University of Pretoria where she was involved in the university’s statistical consultation service Statomet; and as a senior lecturer at Stellenbosch University. She is also part of a research team in the Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science at Stellenbosch University, examining weighting techniques and statistical analyses of complex sampling data, including poverty and inequality measures and small area estimation.
Ariane is Mthente’s statistical consultant and sampling expert. As a sampling expert for both Mthente and other market research companies, she is responsible for the designing and drawing of samples ranging from countrywide samples and tracker samples to samples from smaller populations with unique characteristics. She is responsible for the calculation of the design weights for the realised samples; and also applies benchmarking techniques, where necessary. For some projects she also conducts statistical analysis and draws statistical inferences based on the survey data.
Ariane is part of a team that constructed an Enumerator Area (EA) sampling frame and is responsible for updating it annually to the newest released mid-year population estimates of Statistics South Africa (StatsSA). At the moment this is the most up-to-date sampling frame available in South Africa. She has served as a member of the South African Statistical Council since 2013. She is a member of the South African Statistical Association (SASA) as well as the International Association of Survey Statisticians (IASS), and is registered as a Professional Natural Scientist with the South African Council for Natural Science Professions (SACNASP). Ariane has used her statistical expertise in various projects that Mthente has undertaken including survey work for the following clients (among others):
• Communicare;
• TBSP Advertising and Marketing;
• Amandla Edu-Football, through its partnership with the Safety and Violence Initiative at the University of Cape Town (SaVI-UCT) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC);
• Gauteng Department of Health.
Stefan Redelinghuys
BSc Science, University of South Africa, 2015
Stefan Redelinghuys has expertise in Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and cartography and manages large-scale GIS projects in transportation, asset management and research disciplines. He also has specialist knowledge in the areas of demographics data, census data and cartography for field assessments with a strong focus on spatial analytics and reporting. Stefan has worked with Mthente on a number of survey research projects for clients such as:
• Amandla Edu-Football, through its partnership with the Safety and Violence Initiative at the University of Cape Town (SaVI-UCT) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC);
• TBSP Advertising and Marketing;
• Gauteng Department of Health.
Dr Donald Skinner
PhD Clinical Psychology, Stellenbosch University, 2001
MPH, University of Cape Town, 2008
MA Clinical Psychology, University of Cape Town, 1989
Donald is a registered clinical psychologist. Following the completion of his PhD, he then moved into the field of research and obtained a Masters’ degree in Public Health, focusing on biostats and research design. He is currently the Director of Research on Health and Society (RHS), a research unit at the University of Stellenbosch. In addition to his other roles at the University he teaches qualitative research and community based participatory methods and supervises Masters and PhD students.
He has researched South African health and culture, often in community or primary health clinics, using both qualitative and quantitative approaches. Donald has been the local Principal Investigator on multiple internationally-funded studies related to risks to communities including HIV/Aids, substance abuse, violence, and gender issues and has also worked with families to enhance parenting skills. Previous posts include research officer at an NGO working with victims of violence, director of the AIDS and Society Research Unit at UCT and senior research specialist at the HSRC. He has a long history of involvement in health issues, including the struggle against apartheid in the health sector, and has worked closely with NGOs.
Donald has previously provided training for Mthente’s researchers on qualitative research methodologies. He is currently working with Mthente on projects for the Gauteng Department of Health. This is a large-scale evaluation to determine and assess the outcomes of the ward-based, door-to-door HIV and AIDS Education Programme that is being rolled out by the Gauteng Department of Health.
Solly Moeng
PhD candidate: Crisis Communications Management, University of Cape Town, 2016
Post Graduate Diploma Marketing, IMM Graduate School of Marketing, 2005
MA, Université de Franche-Comté, Besançon, France, 1992
Solly is Mthente’s experienced brand specialist and media professional consultant with specialisation in strategic communications, public relations and media relations. He was South African Tourism’s marketing manager in Canada, based in Toronto, before being appointed to head the organisation’s operations in the United States where, as country manager based in New York, he managed the roll-out of South Africa’s tourism growth strategy in the United States and Canada.
Solly has also worked as business development and marketing manager of Mesure, a South African subsidiary of French multinational construction company, Bouygues Travaux Publics and for Basil Read. He has also occupied marketing and communications manager positions with CapeNature and the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI). A former Cape Times columnist, Solly now also writes weekly columns for Fin24.com, focusing on corporate reputation management. He has provided brand expertise to Mthente for research conducted for Brand South Africa and Interbrand.
Michael Daries
Michael is the owner and creative force behind Kult Creative, a design agency based in Cape Town. He has more than 20 years experience in the design and printing industry, and manages to offer creative and innovative solutions to both his and Mthente’s clients.
He has collaborated with Mthente and has been involved with our brand and publications development since 2005. He has designed report publications for Mthente’s clients, such as our report entitled Atlantis: Building Communities through Sport and Recreation, as well as the research to inform the establishment of community recreation hubs – both for the City of Cape Town Department of Sports, Recreation and Amenities.
Dr Izak Van Zyl
PhD Communication Science, Università della Svizzera italiana (Switzerland), 2013
MA Social Anthropology, Stellenbosch University, 2010
Having completed a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of South Africa, Izak is now permanently based at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) in Cape Town. He has a strong publication record and has presented at numerous international conferences and symposia. Izak’s research expertise covers digital anthropology and media, the philosophy of information systems, and design anthropology. Methodologically, he is interested in digital ethnographic, participatory and meta-analytic approaches.
Izak is a National Research Foundation (NRF)-rated researcher, and is highly skilled in designing and conducting social scientific research with particular expertise in qualitative research, fieldwork and data analysis. Furthermore; he is an experienced consultant in the fields of communication, informatics, anthropology, and development. Izak is a member of several organisations and scientific and technical committees. He is the editor for ICT submissions at the Journal for Transdisciplinary Research in Southern Africa, and is a member of Anthropology Southern Africa. He has garnered a number of “best paper” awards at international conferences.
Izak has collaborated with Mthente on work for the Department of Small Business Development (DBSD), in conjunction with the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), as well as for TBSP Advertising and Marketing.
Alison Goldstuck
MPhil Future Studies, Stellenbosch University, 2011
MEcon, Rand Afrikaans University, 2003
Alison is a qualified economist with over 16 years’ experience that includes work with blue-chip corporates, the public sector, management consulting and international policy think-tanks. Her experience includes providing advisory services (e.g. research, strategy and policy analysis) and implementing solutions (e.g. business process improvement and project management).
She has specialist knowledge in financial services, energy, mining, the electricity supply industry and climate mitigation. At the same time, she has also developed expert skills in sector studies, value-chain analysis, market and product strategies, scenario development and facilitation.
Over the past two years, Alison has focused on gaining specialised knowledge about the financial regulation and industry codes that are driving responsible investment. Projects in this space include work for the United Nations and collaborating with the University of Cape Town, Graduate School of Business (UCT-GSB) on a forthcoming paper.
Allison is currently working with Mthente on a project that is being conducted for the Department of Small Business Development (DBSD), in conjunction with the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC).
Gerald Claasen – GNC Research Services
National Senior Certificate (NSC)
Gerald is the director of GNC Research Services – a company with 15 years of fieldwork experience. Gerald and his team work with Mthente to undertake large-scale fieldwork and respondent recruitment in the Western Cape, Northern Cape, Free State, North West and KwaZulu Natal. He specialises in social research fieldwork including household demographic and census data collection, and has experience working both for Statistics South Africa and the Medical Research Council. For Mthente, he has managed fieldwork for the following clients:
• City of Cape Town;
• Amandla Edu-Football, through its partnership with the Safety and Violence Initiative at the University of Cape Town (SaVI-UCT) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC);
• TBSP Advertising and Marketing;
• Gauteng Department of Health;
• Communicare.
Phila Nkonyane
National Senior Certificate (NSC)
Phila is the director of Brand i+D – a fieldwork company working in collaboration with Mthente in conducting large-scale fieldwork including conducting surveys and focus group discussions particularly in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, North West, Free State and the Eastern Cape. Phila and his team have a depth of experience in conducting fieldwork for market research (mystery shopping, consumer perception & satisfaction surveys including brand & product testing surveys). They specialise in respondent recruitment across LSM groups 4-10 and conduct fieldwork using bespoke survey technology platforms such as Survey-to-Go developed by Dooblo® which ensures quick turn-around times for data collection
Gill Naeser
BA (Hons) Psychology and Education, University of South Africa, 1995
Higher Diploma in Education (Pre-primary), Barkly House Teacher’s College, 1984
Gill has been working in the field of Early Childhood Development (ECD) for more than 30 years and has an in-depth understanding of the context of the ECD field. She has been involved in all aspects of ECD from development; scoping and implementation to the end phase and has wide experience in the monitoring and evaluation of ECD projects. She has conducted research in ECD both nationally and regionally, has developed accredited ECD training and skills programmes, and conducted verification of those programmes. She has assisted ECD non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to develop their capacity and has offered them specialist training. Gill works closely with government departments, universities, NGOs and donors and has presented a number of papers at conferences.
Gill will be working on the research project for The Networking HIV/Aids Community of South Africa (NACOSA), where she will provide expert advice on the design of the evaluation tools as well as during the analysis and reporting of the data.