07/09/2026
PROFILING DR. SEGWADI JOSEPH KOKELA
Acting District Director: Sekhukhune South Education District
“A District on the March, with a Focused Marching Order: 90% Now, 100% Soon. Re tshaisha ge re feditse.”
Dr. Segwadi Joseph Kokela’s life story is one of resilience, sacrifice, continuous learning, and purposeful leadership. From a barefoot village boy to an accomplished education leader, scholar and author, his journey demonstrates the transformative power of education.
Roots and Early Lessons
Born and raised in Madibaneng Village, Dr. Kokela was brought up by his maternal grandparents, the Serage family, while his parents worked on farms. Although the family’s roots are in Bronkhorstspruit, they later settled in Machiding Village, Siyabuswa, in Mpumalanga Province.
As a young boy, he was affectionately known as Ben. One of the most influential lessons came from his grandfather:“Ben, you are going to school for 30 km return barefoot, but tomorrow you will go to work and travel for 5 km in your car.”
What seemed like a simple observation became a lifelong prophecy that temporary hardship should never determine one’s future, and that education is a vehicle for social mobility.
He began his schooling at Malegale Primary School in Madibaneng before proceeding to Baphadima Secondary School in Ga-Matlala Lekgwareng. During visits to the Marble Hall farms where his parents worked, he witnessed extraordinary sacrifice. His mother, employed as a cook, would collect discarded food from municipal dumping sites to sustain the family, while his father, a tractor driver, invested his earnings in his children’s education. From his mother he learned humility, resourcefulness and compassion; from his father, discipline, commitment and the value of education.
“There are lessons from my upbringing and I apply them now. I lead with the same spirit of sacrifice that raised me,” he often says.
Double Promotion and The Economics Journey
At Malegale Primary, Dr. Kokela was double-promoted from Grade 4 to Grade 6 an early sign that God breaks protocol for him. Not because of connections, but because of hard work and ability.
Another protocol was broken in his academic journey. He had never done Economics in high school. No Economics at all.
Yet when he furthered his studies through UNISA, he took Economics as a major in his Bachelor’s Degree. The same subject he had never done in high school became his major at university.
God broke protocol again. His Master’s Degree from the University of London in 2009 was in Education Planning, Economics and International Development again carrying Economics, the subject he had never done in high school, all the way to Master’s level.
As he puts it: One penny turned into a million dollars.
Professional Journey
Dr. Kokela’s professional journey began in 1992 at Ngwanakwena Secondary School in the Tsimanyane Circuit. He later served at Mphahlele Secondary School as both teacher and member of the School Management Team, then at Ramatshagalala Secondary in Moutse Central, and at Hosia Aphane Primary School.
His appointment as Principal of Batau Primary School was a turning point. The small school required innovative approaches and exposed him to multi-grade teaching an experience that later became the foundation of his doctoral research.
Beyond the classroom, he served in union leadership as Site Steward, Branch Deputy Secretary and later Branch Secretary, developing skills in negotiation, representation and stakeholder management. His leadership actually began earlier at Sekhukhune College of Education, where he served as Deputy President of the SRC. He also served as a Political Organizer in youth politics.
Whether in student leadership, union structures or district administration, his philosophy remained constant: leaders exist to serve people, communicate a compelling vision, and move organisations forward.
In 2009, he joined the Provincial Head Office as Senior Education Specialist and later Deputy Chief Education Specialist for Monitoring and Evaluation, compiling reports to the Executive Management Committee chaired by the Head of Department. The late Professor Mahlangu, then Deputy Director-General, encouraged him to turn his monitoring findings into doctoral research a mentorship he still cherishes.
The M&E role gave him a system-wide perspective and cemented his belief in evidence-based, data-driven decision-making. In 2017, he was promoted to Circuit Manager, where he applied these principles to school support and accountability.
A Classroom-Centred Philosophy
One of Dr. Kokela’s strongest convictions is that improvement happens inside the classroom. If educators prioritise what happens within the four walls, schools become factories of knowledge production. Instructional time, for him, is sacred.
He advocates against learning stopping during examinations, calling instead for adjusted teaching plans that keep learners engaged with revision, study skills and academic consolidation.
His philosophy is captured in one of his memorable analogies:“We must walk learners to the examination rooms like soccer players walking from the dressing room to the pitch. Focused, prepared, and ready to perform.”
He often explains education through another simple metaphor: “Education is the tap. If we open it correctly, every learner gets water.”
A District on the March
As Acting District Director, Dr. Kokela has anchored Sekhukhune South on three strategic pillars:
1. District Turnaround Strategy guided by the nine focus areas of Whole School Evaluation.
2. District Calendar of Activities aligned to the Annual Operational Plan and District Improvement Plan.
3. District Declaration of Intent committing officials and schools to shared accountability.
Weekly plans and clear communication ensure alignment from junior support staff to senior management. The vision has become culture. During a visit to Mannyetha Primary School in the Masemola Circuit, a Grade R learner excitedly told him: “90% Now, 100% Soon has visited our school today!” When a five-year-old can articulate the target, the vision is no longer a slogan it is culture.
He understands leadership complexities competing interests around posts, finances, and school mergers and responds with a simple principle:“Every leader must be a salesman. Sell the vision.”
He also insists that matric success is born in the Foundation Phase. One of his daughters once told him her matric success was due not only to her Grade 12 teachers but to her Grade 3 teacher. Hence his push for daily written work, curriculum completion, discipline, assessment for learning and purposeful monitoring not measuring kilometres travelled, but quality of support.
Scholar, Author and The Doctor of Analogies
After specialising in English and Geography at Sekhukhune College of Education in 1991, Dr. Kokela courageously pursued Economics at UNISA, culminating in a Master’s from the University of London (2009) and a PhD from Tshwane University of Technology (2021) focused on multi-grade teaching.
His work is published on Amazon, Google Books and in journals. In 2025 he published two books: _Pathfinders: Quotes for Growth and Inspiration and Navigating Horizons: Inspirational Quotes for Life’s Journey. Since 2022 he has served as External Examiner for Master’s students at the Central University of Technology.
He is widely sought after for presentations on Emotional Intelligence based on Daniel Goleman’s framework Self-Awareness, Self-Management, Social Awareness and Relationship Management.
His leadership is guided by Kaizen continuous improvement and by the principles of Nana Korobi Ya Oki (Fall seven times, rise eight) and Shikata ga Nai (accepting with wisdom what is beyond control). He believes a tree does not grow in its comfort zone.
Colleagues call him the “Doctor of Analogies.” He moves schools “from mud to mug, from rock to jewellery”and reminds officials “Don’t chase locusts, catch the buck”— focusing on high-impact priorities.
Outside work, he is an avid long-distance runner, regularly completing 21km, drawing clarity and endurance for leadership.
Those who work with him describe him as decisive, principled and hands-on.
Ultimately, Dr. Kokela’s story is a promise fulfilled a barefoot boy named Ben who walked long distances to school, believed in education, and turned adversity into achievement. Today he leads a district with purpose, inspiring educators, learners and communities to believe that through discipline, sacrifice and education, a brighter future is possible.
Sekhukhune South remains a District on the March, united by a focused marching order: 90% Now, 100% Soon. Re tshaisha ge re feditse.
