In conversation with Mokale and Moyo

Getting into the construction industry for many black people has been a struggle in the past. Not so with two bosom friends Filbert Mokale (34) and Shela Moyo (37).

The two are co-directors of Filbert and Shela Business Enterprise - a small construction company focusing on the broader construction industry. They began their journey in a shack office in 2002 in Alexandra, where they both were born.

Both are from Alexandra Township, a stone throw away from the much affluent Sandton suburb. The clients of Filbert and Shela include the bus and truck manufacturing company Marco Polo and their parent company Cyril Ramaphosa’s Shanduka Group. The company does paving and maintenance of all buildings belonging the two companies.

”We are trying to motivate other people to enter into this market because many of them have a bad perception and attitude towards the industry,” said Moyo.

Filbert and Shela has offices in Wynberg, also a stone throw from Alexandra and Sandton. Both Shanduka and Filbert and Shela Business Enterprise recently hosted USA well-known motivational speaker Lisa Nicol in May. She was in the country to speak to learners from different high schools in Alexandra about career options.

To motivate and encourage other small businesses Filbert and Shela has leased out nine offices in their Wynberg head offices to emerging black-owned companies.

”All that we are doing, from inviting speakers from abroad and giving out office space to others is a way of ploughing back to our communities,” Moyo pointed out.

Among some of the projects the company boasts about include the construction of the Dube Community Centre in Soweto, a horse stable in Kayalami, Midrand as well as the construction of a wall around the 3Square sport field in Alexandra.

Filbert Mokale says they have their eyes set on matching big giants in construction industry such as Group Five and Murray & Roberts in the long run.

”For us, what is important is to have a vision in growing our business in a professional manner as we are under the supervision of Shanduka,” Mokale said.

Donney Nicol, executive director for Shanduka Foundation, said the two young men came across as very dedicated when she first met them six years ago. Until now they have remained the same.

”They are exceptional people driven not only by an ambition be businessmen, they also take others from their communities with them. From the very beginning they have not forgotten their people,” said Nicol.

Shanduka helps Filbert and Shela Business Enterprise with finance in oder to be able to run their projects.