Lesotho business leader joins pan-African Manufacturing Foundation advisory board

‘Mamphuto Jessie’s appointment signals growing recognition of the country’s private sector expertise in continental industrialisation drive

TEBOHO KHATEBE MOLEFI

MASERU – The African Manufacturers Foundation (AMF) has appointed ‘Mamphuto Jessie, a prominent entrepreneur and women in mining advocate, to its Advisory Board – a move that analysts say elevates Lesotho’s business profile within Africa’s emerging industrial renaissance.

The appointment, announced on May 13, brings more than 14 years of practical experience across fleet management, cleaning services, mining, and supply chain management into AMF’s strategic leadership.

For Lesotho, a small landlocked economy heavily reliant on textiles and water exports to South Africa, the decision signals that the country’s private sector leaders are being recognised as continental decision-makers rather than passive participants.

Jessie’s business trajectory is itself a case study in African entrepreneurial resilience. She began her professional career as Branch Manager at Avis Rent a Car Lesotho before acquiring ownership of the company – a rare transition from corporate employee to shareholder.

Today, she serves as Shareholder and Managing Director of Avis Budget Rent-a-Car Lesotho, Exclusive Cleaners, Nola World, M&J Mining, and River Rocks Mining Companies, the latter two preparing for alluvial diamond mining operations.

Beyond Lesotho’s borders, her influence stretches across Southern Africa. She is Treasurer of the SADC Women in Mining Association and a member of the Association of Women in Mining in Africa. Domestically, she chairs the Federation of Lesotho Women Entrepreneurs Maseru District, sits as an Alternate Board Member of the Millennium Challenge Account – Lesotho II, and serves as a Board Director of the Basotho Enterprises Development Corporation – the state agency responsible for nurturing local small and medium enterprises.

She also founded and chairs the Lesotho Women in Mining Association, and holds a director and shareholder position in the Lesotho Mining Indaba Khotla. Her previous board leadership at Maseru Preparatory School, including serving as Chairperson of the Board, adds governance experience to her operational and entrepreneurial credentials.

The African Manufacturers Foundation is a pan-African organisation committed to advancing industrialisation, manufacturing excellence, beneficiation, innovation, and intra-African trade. Unlike trade-focused bodies, AMF concentrates specifically on building a globally competitive manufacturing and industrial ecosystem for Africa – from production lines to policy advocacy.

Its flagship “Made and celebrated in Africa™” movement seeks to shift both consumer and investor perceptions away from Africa as a raw materials exporter toward a destination for finished goods. The Foundation’s official launch and Digital Manufacturing Exhibition is scheduled for August 28 in Sandton, South Africa, where manufacturers, investors, policymakers, and innovators from across the continent will converge.

AMF CEO, Lebo Radebe, described Jessie as representing “the calibre of African leadership that our continent needs – bold, visionary, entrepreneurial, and deeply committed to uplifting communities.”

For a country of 2.3 million people whose economy has traditionally been defined by the textile sector (roughly 40 percent of manufacturing employment) and the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (which supplies water to South Africa), Jessie’s appointment carries both symbolic and practical weight.

Symbolically, it positions a Basotho businesswoman – not a politician or diplomat – as a shaper of continental industrial policy. That distinction matters. Lesotho has often been viewed through the lens of its dependence on South Africa’s economy and as a recipient of development assistance.

Having one of its private sector leaders sit on an advisory board alongside counterparts from Nigeria, Kenya, and Egypt signals a rebalancing – Lesotho as a contributor of business expertise, not just a market.

Practically, the appointment opens pathways. Through AMF’s networks, Lesotho-based manufacturers and entrepreneurs gain potential access to continental supply chains, investment partnerships, and beneficiation opportunities – particularly in mining, where Jessie holds deep expertise.

Her role on the MCA-Lesotho II board (a US Millennium Challenge Corporation programme) already connects her to large-scale infrastructure and enterprise development funding. Merging that with AMF’s pan-African platform could accelerate industrial projects inside Lesotho.

For economic profile, the appointment highlights Lesotho’s underleveraged assets: entrepreneurial talent, mining potential (diamonds, and basalt for construction), and a strategic location within the Southern African Customs Union (SACU).

Analysts note that Lesotho’s manufacturing sector has remained narrowly focused on garments for the US market under AGOA. Jessie’s advocacy for women-led industrialisation and her experience in mining beneficiation could help diversify that base.

Perhaps most significantly, Jessie’s appointment reinforces AMF’s stated commitment to ensuring women leaders and entrepreneurs play a central role in shaping Africa’s industrialisation agenda. She holds a Bachelor of Technology Degree in Public Relations and Communication Science, is a mother of two, and actively mentors young women entering business – a profile that moves beyond symbolic diversity to practical pipeline-building.

Speaking on the appointment, AMF CEO Radebe added: “Her journey from corporate leadership into ownership and continental influence is inspirational. We are honoured to welcome her to the African Manufacturers Foundation family as we continue building a movement that will redefine Africa’s industrial future.”

For Lesotho, the question now is whether government, development finance institutions, and the private sector will leverage this appointment to attract manufacturing investment, upskill local entrepreneurs, and position the country as a serious participant in the “Made and celebrated in Africa™” economy.

The Foundation’s August 2026 launch in Sandton will be the first test of how far that influence can reach.