Nozibele Mayaba found out she was HIV positive when she was 22 years old.
Biography
Nozibele Mayaba (born November 20, 1990) is a South African activist, author, TV host, YouTuber, and podcaster. She has told her story, shed the stigma and wrote a book to make it easier for children to grasp what HIV is.
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| Quick Facts | |
| Full Name: | Nozibele Qamngana-Mayaba |
| Born: | November 20, 1990 (age 32 years old) |
| Origin: | Johannesburg |
| Nationality: | South African |
| Education: | Marketing Development Studies |
| Spouse: | Sikhumbuzo Mayaba (m. 2019) |
| Occupation: | Activist, author, TV host, YouTuber, and podcaster |
| Book: | I am Still Zuri |
Early Life
Nozibele Mayaba was born on November 20, 1990, into a staunch Christian family. She is from Johannesburg, South Africa.
Education
Mayaba holds a Bachelor of Technology in Marketing. She also obtained a National Diploma in Marketing and a BA Honours Degree in Development studies.
Book
Her book, I am still Zuri, tells a story of a seven-year-old girl born with HIV. She targets the younger generations in her work as she explains to them that people living with HIV are not different. These people also love to play and have fun like any other person.
In her words, the book tries to eliminate the stigma that follows living with the virus.
Personal Life
Qamngana-Mayaba discovered she had HIV in 2013. Nozibele celebrated their first wedding anniversary with her husband, Sikhumbuzo Mayaba, in 2020.
When she first met Sikhumbuzo, she never thought she was ready to expose herself like that. But his persistence made her reveal her status to him.
But after hearing this, he stayed even though she wanted to hurt him so he would leave her alone. Skhu, as she fondly calls him, is supportive of her and her ideas.
HIV Status
Qamngana-Mayaba discovered she had HIV at 22 during a wellness day event on August 15, 2013. It shocked her since she had only one sexual partner.
At first, she felt disappointed, afraid, and shocked and hid the information from her family for half a decade. Silently, she thought about taking her life and battled depression.
An insurance policy clause stopped her from committing suicide. She had recently bought her mother a house, and the insurance policy stated that it won’t pay in cases of suicide.
Social Profile
Qamngana-Mayaba has reached over 100,000 subscribers on YouTube. She launched the channel based on her lifestyle as a person with HIV. She uses other social media platforms to promote her work and enlightenment about HIV.
In January 2020, Feedspot named her channel, One of the Top 15 HIV YouTube Channels on the web. She is also on:
Recognition
Nozibele Mayaba did not allow her status to limit her from achieving what she wanted. Instead, she pushed forward to add more accolades to her list. Some of her noteworthy achievements include:
- Nelson Mandela Business Chamber Top 40 under 40 achiever recognition
- Businesswoman Association of South Africa Regional Achievers Award
- Fruits of Democracy Award winner (civil society)
- Vision4Women “Beyond the Balance Sheet” award finalist
- South African International Youth Committee Ambassador