The grandsons of former South African president and anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela are following in their grandfather’s footsteps with their work in Africa; however, they’re adding a new strategy to their predecessor’s formula: social media. Ndaba Mandela and Kweku Mandela Amuah launched Mandela.is, a social network that allows the kin to honor their iconic grandfather.
Founder of Africa-focused online platform FaraiMedia.com Farai Gundan caught up with Mandela’s grandsons to discuss the inspiration behind Mandela.is, how the social networking site differs from today’s leading platforms and how they secured capital for their latest venture for Forbes.com.
On the social network’s purpose:
Ndaba says, “It is a platform that connects people with similar interests together and to causes they are passionate about. The platform also inspires people to be active in their communities and to effect change locally.†“Our primary goal with Mandela.is is to create a movement and a platform that has value and that people want to engage with. Our business model is centered around bringing together a lot of people who either want to do good or are doing good,†adds Kweku.