Our MAMAS Alliance Profile series features members of the MAMAS Alliance CSI Agency. This week, ImpactSA profiles Mmatsetshweu (Ruby) Motaung, Executive Director of TREE – a non-profit organisation specialising in Early Childhood Development, resource and training.
With a Bachelor of Honours Degree in Education specialising in Whole School Evaluation, Mama Mmatsetshweu (Ruby) Motaung possesses a string of accolades in coaching and mentoring, Research Methods, Project Management and more.
Mama Ruby has a strong educational background and extensive experience in Curriculum, Education and Early Childhood Education and policies, and has worked in Education for most of her career.
She worked and managed ECD curriculum in the Eastern Cape Education and worked on policy development with the Department of Education and with the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) for many years. In her previous work, amongst other key critical roles, she worked very closely with the Department of Social Development – serving in the National Interdepartmental Committee (NIDC ECD), which is a structure that is working towards the implementation of the National Integrated Early Childhood Development Policy (2015) and was also part of developing and advocating through national training. Mama Ruby also serves on the ECD Intersectoral Forum that serves as the mouthpiece of the community to DSD in policy implementation. The forum is a platform upon which the government and the non-government sector engage in ECD service delivery.
She further worked with VVOB in developing a gender-responsive pedagogy (GRP) toolkit that seeks to contribute to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on education and gender equality. VVOB and the Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE), in collaboration with Ministries of Education in South Africa, Rwanda and Zambia, have developed this toolkit to support ECE teachers and school leaders.
Mama Ruby’s accomplishments over her many years of service include being a District, Provincial and National Trainer for which she has received certificates of acknowledgement. She developed a National Reading Strategy for the National Department of Education and developed and gazetted a policy on a professional qualification in Early Childhood Education (ECD) from birth to 4 years of age. This policy marks the first time in history of ECD (Birth to 4 years) in South Africa that a formal set of professional and post-professional qualifications from Birth to 4 years has been formulated as a national policy. Ruby trained this policy to all 9 provinces.
Additionally, she has served on various committees such as SADC ODL Steering Committee, DHET Evaluation Committee, SACE Endorsement Committee, and National Interdepartmental Committee for ECD and the Intersectoral Committee, serving in the latter structure. She has been part of the development of the National Integrated Policy for ECD (2015) and part of National Training of Trainers to train all provinces support Department of Social Development, Training of Trainers for the National Curriculum Framework for Department of Basic Education. She also serves on the ECD Policy & Legislation Sub Committee.
Ruby possesses very strong skills in Governance and Management, Fundraising, Networking and Partnership Management experience at senior and Board level. She brings a wealth of experience in supporting the mission and vision of any organisation.
