About
Popina Khumanda was born in 1995 in the Democratic Republic of Congo. When she was five years old, her village was attacked and she was captured by rebels along with her twenty-one-year-old sister. After five years in captivity they managed to escape and, in search of safety, walked to South Africa. Despite a lack of schooling, language barriers and financial challenges, Popina completed matric in 2013, followed by a degree in IT at Nelson Mandela University and a specialisation in cybersecurity from the University of Cape Town. Now, she works as a cybersecurity lecturer at a tertiary institution, and she uses her journey to inspire and empower others through education.
