PAW Rosie Motene is a Pan African media proprietor, speaker, and owner of Waka Talent agency.

I have been in the entertainment industry for over 25 years now, working across Africa, UK, Austria, and the USA. I now focus on producing for TV and production consultancy for the continent, speaking engagements, and my activism. I also run a Pan African talent agency, where we represent TV presenters and actors from across Africa. My agency is called Waka talent agency.

Education

I graduated from the University of The Witwatersrand with a. BADA (bachelor of Arts in Dramatic Art).

I trained through Multi-choice SA in producing.

I am an accredited laughter coach.

          -First Job

I worked at a Pizza joint

          -Necessary Luxury

1 nice glass of Merlot at the end of the week.

          -Your Passion

Africa, women and the arts.

 

WHAT FUELS ME?

Fearless

Perseverance

Determination

 

MY GREATEST INFLUENCE:

My mother.

My Rabbi.

 

MY TOP THREE ROLE MODELS:

My mother: Her tenacity, strength and unconditional love are phenomenal.

Winnie Mandela: her grace, strength, and perseverance. Many people do not realize the strength of this women, what she had to endure and still endure and yet not receive the true recognition that she deserves

Malala Yousofzai: After reading her book, I follow her work and I find her absolutely remarkable,

IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS…..

Sadly my accountability manager passed away a few months ago from breast cancer.

For Rosie:

  • Publish my autobiography and tell my story globally.
  • Produce my documentary series, focusing on women voices in Africa.

-Become a mother

-Work towards my next degree.

For Waka:

– Establish Waka talent agency globally with an office in Kampala, Ghana, UK and New York.

THE AFRICAN WOMAN’S CHALLENGE:

  • Our voices. For centuries we have been taught that we have no voice or right to use our voice. That’s why we are silenced when faced with abuse and the other challenges. From not believing in our voice, as women, we naturally place ourselves as second best and learn to live our lives settling for what we can get. This then leads to many communities not educating girls after a certain age and preparing them for parenthood, thus creating a cycle.
  • When I rose to fame I made the concerted effort that I would use my public status to raise awareness on abuse. I volunteered at a women organization powa.co.za where I did an intensive three-month training course, learning about abuse, myths, and misconceptions. I then used that platform to talk about my past abusive relationship and let women and men know that we are entitled to rights. In 2007, I became a member of the board then sat as deputy chair for seven years.
  • I am now embarking on a documentary series, interviewing women of Africa on what their challenges are, what their rights are and how they are overcoming them.

WHAT I DO TO RELAX:

I love walking. If I’m in the city I love to go dancing with my girls.

If my schedule allows it, beach getaways alone are always the best.

MY   –   I.C.E. [INSPIRE|CELEBRATE|EMPOWER] VISION

Africa is incredibly sexy and has so much potential. Our continent is powerful in many ways. If more African women would be so brave and tap into their power, the two forces will ignite and create something amazing.

African women have had to endure a lot through history yet we always come out as warriors, if we could use that strength from an early age towards empowering ourselves, we will become the world leaders. Check out maideasyaz.

 

MY AFRICAN UNION PLANS:

Education, gender equality, and reproductive rights.

Education, thus creating societies were girls grow into empowered women, societies where they are financially independent. I would focus on editing societies on gender equality, reproductive rights, and basic human rights.

I would also create a free distribution of menstrual cups to all girls and women.

 

FINAL WORDS OF ADVICE:

Be you!!! Create your own journey and own pace. We are always so busy trying to prove to men and be like them, that we lose one of our secret weapons, our femininity. We should also learn to support each other more. We also need to talk more, talk about our fears, successes, take about sex, love, and hatred.