When Women with Drive marks its 10th anniversary on 14 August, two familiar faces will be back in the room: the Nabai Foundation and Paralympian swimmer Cornelle Woolf. Both previously joined the event as part of our commitment to using the platform to promote worthy causes.
Along with them, many other familiar faces will be retuning both on screen and off. The CEO of MasterDrive, Eugene Herbert, says: “This is what sits at the heart of what makes this event different and forms a critical part of this milestone year. Women with Drive has built a community of women who see the value in supporting each other and who actively return to celebrate each year.
“This loyalty is what the 10-year-old event will celebrate this year. It has become something people want to be part of every year it returns. When CSI partners and past guests choose to make space in busy schedules, it tells us the room itself has become something worth belonging to, not just attending,” says Herbert.
The Nabai Foundation empowered hundreds of young girls and youth since 2018, and Cornelle Leach, whose achievements in the pool led her to become a Paralympic swimmer, represent two very different corners of the mobility and empowerment space. What connects them is that Women with Drive gave them a platform, and both see the value in returning.
That spirit of return runs through the entire 2026 programme. The day includes a video tribute to Women with Drive alumni who shaped the community over the past decade. It will also feature female leaders from Castrol and Santam and a panel discussion moderated by Kriya Gangiah.
Attendees can anticipate:
- A headline address by Melanie van Straaaten, the head of Castrol Southern Africa, on pivoting from ‘Fuelling the journey’ to a reflection on what a decade of fuelling this movement looks like.’
- A signature address by Natalie Mpele, head of sales at Santam Heavy Haulage, on ‘Insuring the journeys of the women who’ve driven it.’
The panel brings together an extraordinary line-up of women broke into spaces the industry did not expect them to lead. The conversation will be an honest look at what has shifted over ten years, and what still needs to move.
- Andisiwe Nikelo, CEO of Fleet Management and Leasing at WesBank
- Chantal Hartmann, Group Marketing Executive at Reinhardt Transporters
- Ndia Magadagela, CEO & Co-Founder, MAXUS Electric Vehicles
- Paige Lindenberg, Entrepreneur, Marketing Manager, Racing Driver Shelby SA
- Shinny Gobiyeza, interim CEO of naamsa
The milestone will also be marked formally for the first time with the Legacy Awards, honouring women who drive measurable change in the mobility sector across five categories, from Trailblazer to a special Lifetime of Drive recognition. “The Legacy Awards exist because a decade of return visits, familiar faces and repeat impact deserves to be recognised, not just remembered.
“Ten years of thriving, living, striving and arriving all led here. This August, ‘Women with Drive – JIVE’ is not just celebrating a milestone. It is celebrating the people who keep choosing to come back for it,” says Herbert.
Event details:
Date: 14 August 2026
Venue: to be confirmed upon acceptance of application (Johannesburg)
Apply to attend: https://masterdrive.eventpress.co.za/v3/public/e/women-with-drive-jive
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