Who we are
We are a passionate, vibrant and diverse team of development workers who think creatively about building a health system that provides patient-centred care for pregnant women, newborns and children.
Our History
Tree of Life Development Centre NPC (CIPC reg. 2022/783381/08 and NPO reg 292-677) is a Limpopo province-based non-profit company established in 2022 after the dissolution of the University of Limpopo Trust (ULT). All of ToLDC’s current projects were initiated under the former ULT and continue to be implemented under ToLDC.
It aims to promote and support the right of citizens in Limpopo, who are in the most disadvantaged communities, to access quality health care through:
- Supporting, training and motivating healthcare workers to provide optimal quality and respectful health care to disadvantaged communities;
- Developing and implementing innovative strategies to support mothers and communities and to instil a sense of agency for the health and well-being of themselves and their children
- Developing and providing simple healthcare checks that families can easily use so they can monitor health needs and
- Partnering with stakeholders and government to ensure the province’s development and maintenance of high healthcare standards.
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
The current team include:
Dr Kenny Hamese
Paediatrician
Dr Thomas Mailula
Paediatrician & Neonatologist in training
Mr Siyabonga Nkosi
Professional Accountant SA (registered with SAIPA)
THE TEAM
The current team include:
Dr Joy Summerton (PhD SocSci)
Programme Manager
She is a health systems researcher and the programme manager. Joy is a self-proclaimed human rights activist, advocating particularly for the rights of women, newborns, children and LGBTIQA+. She is also a certified Doula.
Ms Tsakani Mtileni (MA Demography)
Monitoring Evaluation Reporting and Learning (MERL) manager
She enjoys working with numbers. She is becoming a passionate advocate for pregnant women, newborns and children. She is a self-taught technology enthusiast, jack of all trades and master of none.
Ms Clarah Chauke
Programme Administration Officer
She is passionate about ensuring that our office runs smoothly and we are all efficient in what we do. She comes with a wealth of experience from the private sector and makes sure we think out of the box.
Partners and Funders
