Humans of RCL FOODS – Stephinah Fisha

Stephinah is changing the narrative for girls.

Stephinah Fisha started at RCL FOODS in September 2020 as a Packaging Technician Intern for our  Milling site in Pretoria West. In less than a year, she achieved the position of Process Controller – and she’s living proof that young women from disadvantaged backgrounds can succeed. In fact, she’s so passionate about this that she founded a non-profit organisation (NPO) called Ville-girl to empower village girls and help change the narrative for them.

Stephinah grew up in a close-knit community in the Bojanala East region of the North West Province. Academic and financial challenges meant that school and university were not easy for her. This opened her eyes to the struggles faced by others from disadvantaged areas, especially girls who deal with issues like gender-based violence, poor self-confidence, and a lack of basic items like sanitary pads.

It was during her second year at university that she decided to found Ville-girl “to help the voice of my fellow sisters to be heard”.

Ville-girl aims to help these young girls to develop an empowering perspective about life; to encourage career development; to encourage mental and psychological development; and to help provide basic items like sanitary pads and school shoes.

Stephinah has been responsible for Ville-girl’s existence, funding and development since it started 7 ago – and this has enabled much growth, clarity and strategic alignment in her own life.

The NPO has also grown and evolved, reaching many schools through career expos, motivational talks and other initiatives. An annual highlight is Ville-girl’s female empowerment seminar which is held for about 100 ladies every August in honour of Women’s Day.

“We are now looking into making our own Ville-girl sanitary pads brand at a low cost to enable affordability,” she says.

Stephinah believes her purpose is to “share some light” in order to see people grow, achieve and make positive changes in their lives. Through Ville-girl she aims to “elevate girls’ way of seeing life and ultimately [help them] step out of the mind of poverty”. It is this same desire that led her to co-found the Miss Moretele Valentines pageant which takes place in Hammanskraal each year.

We salute you Stephinah for the positive change you are inspiring in the community.