‘I aim to restore girl’s dignity in my hometown’  – Thembi Shilenge, speaks on her philanthropy

By dint of hard work, Thembi Portia Shilenge worked her way from obscurity to popularity as she has become one of the leading figures in the spotlight in the South African cryptocurrency community.

An indefatigable personality, Thembi Portia Shilenge is also a philanthropist who is after the betterment of the girl child.

A few months ago, Thembi Shilenge was in her village, Mmakaunyane to donate over 50000 sanitary pads to 5 schools.

“My Crypto dimensions team (Crypto Dimensions is my company name) decided to give back to the community in celebration of Youths Day. We chose my village, Mmakaunyane where I was born and raised, because of the situation there. At Mmakaunyane, there are no facilities especially for the girls. We have donated about 50000 sanitary pads to 5 schools namely, Khubamelo Primary school this is where I began my education, then we did Mmasempane primary school, Mmakaunyane high school, Makgatlha Nong primary school and Dirisanang secondary school,” she stated.

The alumna of the Tshwane University of Technology also noted that they were able to have a successful charity project with the help of Mbekwa.

“We did this charity sanitary campaign with the help of Mmakaunyane mayor Mr Mbekwa. I always believe charity begins at home hence I chose the village where I was born and raised. And I believed it made a difference in a girl’s life, the aim was to restore a girl’s dignity. No girl deserve to miss school or class due to lack of sanitary pads. And it helped also to restore back the confidence as we didn’t just donate but we were educating these young girls the importance of education,” Thembi Shilenge added.

Asked about what she enjoyed most in being an entrepreneur, the former Binance trader, drawing from her experience, said: “Not having to answer to anyone and working at my own pace in my own time.”

Thembi Shilenge, however, said there are prices to pay as a self-made woman.
“The most striking one is losing friends. We live in a world where most women believe their well-being is determined by the next man. I pay my bills and that is very threatening to most women. Instead of learning from me, they distance themselves,” she said.