Change 1 Woman (C1W) interviewed Rabina Banda, Marketing Executive and Social Media at FESPA, about her journey from community radio volunteering to a global role in print industry communications through Women in Print, FESPA, C1W and the PrintHER Mentorship Programme. Banda reflects on how community, mentorship, and access to opportunity accelerated her career, and how she now uses her platform to highlight access, skills development, and empowerment for women in the sector.
Yapp: I met you last year in August when you interviewed me for Women in Print. We had an amazing interview for the ShePrints Africa Vodcast series, and I was so pleased that I got to meet you. Since then, you were at the Sign Africa, FESPA Africa and Africa Print expo in September, and then there was the opportunity for you at FESPA. I have watched your journey and I have been amazed at how you have taken every opportunity that has come your way and turned it into a success. You bring such incredible energy and enthusiasm. I think you have become someone who is making a real difference in the industry, and I’m claiming you as a Change One Woman success story! Tell me how you got involved in the industry.
Banda: Initially, I was in radio. My whole life I wanted to be a speaker. I wanted to be on radio, talking to people and having conversations. At the time, I was volunteering at an online radio platform called Impulse Radio Africa. Impulse Radio had a campaign with Women in Print, which wanted to expand its audience into Africa. Together, we created a podcast called ‘She Prints Africa,’ where we identified women working in print across the continent. That was basically my journalism era, and that’s how I got to meet you.
One thing about me is that whether I am paid or not, I always give my best. For me, it’s never really been about the money. It’s about passion and pursuing whatever dream I’m working towards. We produced around eight to ten episodes featuring women from different areas of the print industry, from government to various industry sectors.
At the Women in Print event in Johannesburg, Abisha Katerere (Head of Business Development and Marketing at Printing SA) told me how proud he was of the work I had done. I jokingly said, ‘Put me on that stage next year.’ This was in 2025, and I meant for 2026. He said, ‘No.’ I asked, ‘What do you mean no?’ He replied, ‘Let’s do it next week in Durban.’ I thought he was crazy. Then he told me I would be doing Durban and Cape Town. I ended up emceeing at both Women in Print events and sharing my story there.
After that I thought, ‘Okay, those events are done. What’s next?’ Then I got invited to the FESPA Africa and Sign Africa Expo. It was a case of being in the right place at the right time. You introduced me to the FESPA Foundation team, which was being run by Steve Thobela ka Mdlalose (Executive Director of the FESPA Foundation) and Neil Felton (CEO of FESPA). At the same time, without you knowing it, Katerere was introducing me to the same people.
Long story short, Felton and I started having a conversation. I did not even realise it was an interview. I was just speaking naturally about my passion for community, creating spaces where people can learn, be educated, be informed, and have somewhere they belong. Community has always been at the centre of my life. I have been raised by my community. Every person who has played a role in my journey has helped shape who I am today.
Felton was effectively interviewing me while I thought we were simply having a conversation. I assumed I would be working with the FESPA Foundation, and then he explained that I would actually be working for FESPA globally, with the Foundation forming part of that work. I still thought it was a small opportunity. Little did I know I would be handling the social media for a global company. I remember thinking, ‘What? This is crazy.’
What made it even more mind-blowing was that everyone was already working towards FESPA Barcelona, the European expo.
Imagine a little girl who knew nothing about printing volunteering for a radio station, getting introduced to people at FESPA Africa, and then suddenly finding herself working towards a major international event.
At that stage, I didn’t even know printing machines like that existed. Everything just kept getting bigger and bigger. I had never been to Europe. I had never left South Africa. My passport didn’t even have a Lesotho or Botswana stamp in it. I remember thinking, ‘This is insane’.
Over six months, I went from not knowing the industry at all to understanding it and wanting to create an even bigger community around it. I wanted young people to know about the industry because of how much it had changed my life.
I learned that what many people think is an old-school industry is actually incredibly innovative. We often think about AI in isolation, but we don’t think about how technology, automation, sustainability, and print all work together in our everyday lives. Our clothing is printed. Packaging is printed. Products in our homes are printed. I learned so much about an industry I knew nothing about before.
But it wasn’t just me. It was my community. Everyone had a hand in raising me, supporting me, and helping me grow over those six to eight months. It’s been absolutely incredible.
Yapp: So what does the job you do involve?
Banda: It’s essentially B2B content creation. I create content, identify the right people to speak on specific topics, and connect the right message with the right audience. It’s a lot about networking and bringing everything together.
Yapp: And now that you’ve had this journey and you’ve spoken about wanting to give back, how would you change one woman?
Banda: I would use my superpower. My voice.
Yapp: Love that!
Banda: I want to step out of my shell and use what I’ve learned to educate other people, whether they’re younger or older. Working with the FESPA Foundation, I have seen that we often focus on the learners, but we don’t always think about the teachers or the people who don’t even know these opportunities exist.
There are grants available. There are training opportunities available. Many people have no idea they exist. In fact, there are more opportunities for funding than there are people who know about the funding. I want to share that knowledge so people understand what opportunities are available.
I also want people to understand that technology is not replacing humans. These technologies still need people to operate them. A printer doesn’t run itself. Yes, there’s automation, but skilled people are still needed. I want to challenge the stigma that technology is removing human involvement. In reality, we need more skilled people and human resources than ever before. We just need to change how we think about it.
Yapp: Absolutely. And know what our resource is.
Banda: Exactly. So I think just using that superpower in speaking. In school, I remember in my school report would always say, ‘Rabina talks too much in class.’
Yapp: I love it and it is a superpower. I also had, ‘Charnia is chatty in class’.
Banda: Now it’s your job.
Yapp: Exactly. It sounds like you are going to cause a ripple effect and change more than one woman’s life.
Banda: Oh, amen.
Yapp: And that’s the whole point, right? To start that ripple effect because each woman supports a family. And we will be making a real difference if we just help one woman at a time… But it sounds like you are going to be helping many, many women, which is awesome, and I’m really proud of you.
Banda: I can only hope that my story encourages and empowers other women. When I was volunteering, I never imagined a future like this. I never imagined international travel, opportunities like this, or learning from people all over the world.
Through the FESPA Foundation we have built a library and we are working towards building a kitchen, all through the power of community. This industry is about community.
I’m also grateful for women like you, Charnia. I always call you my work mom.
Yapp: Yes, that’s me.
Banda: You were mentoring me long before we officially entered the mentor-mentee programme. Everything has aligned so beautifully. I really want people to know that bad days are just bad days. They don’t mean a bad life. I’m grateful for my tribe and my community. And Charnia, if I could take you to Spain myself, I would.
Yapp: I’m not missing the next trip.
Banda: Please don’t.
Yapp: I love how you’ve taken every opportunity. Women in Print, Printing SA, the exhibitions, FESPA Africa, Sign Africa, the FESPA Foundation and the PrintHer mentorship programme. Abisha and I both felt you were perfect for the opportunity. Felton had to meet you. So there you were, casually being interviewed without even knowing it.
Banda: That’s true.
Yapp: You owned it. You have always supported Change 1 Woman. You are active in the LinkedIn group, you engage, you bring energy and enthusiasm. The PrintHer mentorship programme has also been a special experience because we are part of the very first group. I hope more women become involved as mentors and mentees because women have so much to offer each other.
When I look at your journey, I see someone who used every opportunity available to her. I hope people don’t lose hope. Timing matters. Networking matters. Attending events matters. That’s where you might meet the mentor or person who changes your life. Don’t stop learning.
Banda: Never stop learning.
Yapp: Don’t stop supporting each other.
Banda: Absolutely. Keep connecting because you never know when things will suddenly make sense and click. I used to think it was enough just to be in the room. Now I know that you have to come out of your bubble, speak to people, and understand what’s happening around you.
For any woman out there, trust yourself and trust the process. You’ve already been given the opportunity to be in the room. Now ask yourself, ‘How many people am I going to speak to today?’ or, ‘How many conversations am I going to have?’ Set that goal for yourself. Those conversations become opportunities, and that’s how people get to know you.
CHANGE 1 WOMAN
www.c1w.co.za
