Mamongae Mahlare is the Managing Director of Illovo Sugar South Africa, having taken on the role in March 2018. An accomplished, dynamic and highly experienced marketing and business executive, with work experience spanning 11 African countries, she has spent the last 11years at SABMiller and its subsidiaries, most recently in the Coca Cola bottling system.

Mamongae has been instrumental in turning around ailing brands and building brand portfolios in dynamic and challenging economic environments, winning acclaim within SABMiller. She believes it is crucial to take an integrated approach across the entire value chain for any turnaround or step change in growth plan to be successful, and that it is essential to leverage talent within the organization across various functional areas. She has lived and worked in Tanzania, Mozambique, and South Africa, which provided depth of regional expertise and demonstrated the adaptability and transportability of her skills across differing market contexts.

Mamongae has an MBA from Harvard Business School and a degree in chemical engineering from Wits University in South Africa. Her career has encompassed various roles in leading global organizations, including project engineer at Unilever and strategy consultant at Bain & Company. At SABMiller, she began as commercial manager for Appletiser and moved on to a marketing director role in Mozambique. More recently, she worked in a category trade marketing role at Coca Cola Beverages South Africa, a Coca Cola bottling company.

She has held board positions at Wits University, serving as chair of Wits Empowerment Trust, and at Guild Cottage, a nonprofit dedicated to the treatment of sexually abused children. Proficient in Swahili, she is working to learn Portuguese. A keen reader, Mamongae is passionate about travelling the world.