Dr. Thandi Ndlovu		Mike Ratcliffe

Dr Thandi Ndlovu has been appointed the new chairperson of the South African Wine Industry Trust (SAWIT) where she succeeds Mr Gavin Pieterse. Mike Ratcliffe, managing director of the Warwick Wine Estate, is the new vice-chairperson.

Dr Ndlovu, a qualified medical doctor and an accomplished businesswoman, has been a SAWIT trustee since 2002. Besides her work with SAWIT, Dr Ndlovu is founder of the Motheo Group of Developers, Contractors and Project Managers which as been responsible for developing serviced sites and affordable housing units. Under her leadership as executive chairperson, the Motheo Housing Group was awarded the Prestigious Institute for Housing Developer of the Year Award for 2000..

She is a founder member of the South African Women in Construction (SAWIC) and has served on the National SAWIC Board. She is also a member of Women for Housing (SA).

As a respected negotiator with international standing, Dr Ndlovu was elected Deputy Chairperson of the South African Women in Dialogue (SAWID) in 2002. In that capacity she facilitated the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)/South Africa Women's Peace Dialogue in March 2003. She also co-facilitated the South Africa/Burundi Women's Peace Dialogue in 2004. These activities are Civil Society Initiatives aimed at fostering relationships between women across all political, social, religious and economic groupings in South Africa to foster peace in our region and enhance Pan-African Women's Solidarity.

She sits on various corporate boards, including the board of Truworths International, Medscheme Limited, the Councils of both the Private Security Regulatory Authority (PSIRA) and The Playhouse Company - KwaZulu-Natal. She was recently elected to the Council of the Businesswomen's Association (BWA).

Her activities in the wine industry span several years and she has also acted as a Non-Executive Director at Wines of South Africa (WOSA).

Ratcliffe, who besides being MD of the leading South African wine estate Warwick is also MD and shareholder of Vilafonté Wines, qualified as a business major before attending the University of Adelaide. Here he was in the first graduating class for the Graduate Diploma in Wine Marketing. Seen as one of the leaders of the brains trust behind South African wine marketing, Ratcliffe participated in reigniting the concept for a "Cape Blend" (Pinotage-blend) which has since become an integral part of the Cape high-end wine offerings. Ratcliffe has been a board member of WOSA, (Wines of South Africa) the generic export promotion board for the SA Wine Industry, since 2002 and was made a SAWIT trustee last year.