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Richfield academic leads SABSA V20 taskforce under South Africa’s G20 Presidency

5 mins read

Dr Stephen Akandwanaho has been appointed to lead the South African Business Schools Association’s Values20 taskforce during South Africa’s 2025 G20 Presidency. His leadership marks a pivotal opportunity for African business education to shape global conversations on values-based leadership

Richfield is proud to announce that Dr Stephen Akandwanaho, Executive Dean: Faculty of IT, has been appointed to lead the South African Business Schools Association’s (SABSA’s) taskforce for Values20 (V20) during South Africa’s 2025 G20 Presidency.

Dr Akandwanaho, who heads Richfield’s largest faculty and chairs the institution’s postgraduate programmes committee, including the Richfield MBA, is widely recognised for his role in aligning African business education with the urgent need for values-based leadership in a rapidly evolving global context.

SABSA comprises 23 accredited business schools across southern Africa, all committed to advancing excellence, policy influence, and transformation in business education. It plays a central role in building stronger ties between academia, government, and industry, while championing inclusive, future-focused leadership.

V20 is an official engagement group of the G20, designed to ensure that global policy decisions are underpinned by ethical governance, equity, and social justice.
Its 2025 theme, “Living values that enable solidarity, equality, and sustainability,” calls for a shift from declarations to tangible systemic implementation — a challenge that Dr Akandwanaho and his taskforce are poised to take on.

Under his leadership, the SABSA taskforce will:

  • Create a platform for integrating values into business school curricula, leadership, and institutional culture.
  • Undertake research and thought leadership rooted in African values and contexts.
  • Develop policy recommendations aligned to V20’s values.
  • Deliver a formal communiqué to the G20 Presidency.

“This is a critical moment for African business education to step forward as a global shaper of values-infused leadership,” says Dr Akandwanaho.

Stefan Ferreira, Group Chief Executive Officer of Growth-Ten, the proud holding company of Richfield Graduate Institute of Technology, adds:

“Congratulations, Dr Akandwanaho. We look forward to the impact you and the taskforce will make on the future of business education in South Africa and beyond.”

Dr Akandwanaho’s appointment underscores Richfield’s mission to integrate technology, values, and business knowledge into academic programmes that are relevant to both local realities and global challenges. It also reflects the institution’s belief that education must not only prepare graduates for employment, but must also equip them to lead with purpose and ethical conviction.

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