On 7 February 2026, Fellows, faculty and families gathered at De Hoek Country Hotel to celebrate the graduation of the ALI Young Leaders Motheo Class, the sixth cohort of the programme. It was an afternoon that reflected the spirit of the fellowship: thoughtful, creative and hopeful about the leadership work ahead.
A highlight of the ceremony was the Motheo Class performance of “Antigony – The King Is Right!”. Guest speaker Tshepo Hlongwane, a Fellow of the inaugural 2013 ALI Young Leaders class, praised the production for its attention to detail and teamwork. “The costumes. The script. The casting. The score. The delivery. That was an outstanding, Oscar-award-winning performance,” he said, congratulating the class.
Hlongwane spoke to the cohort as someone who had once stood in the same place. His class, Mbewu, meaning Seed, was the first group of ALI Young Leaders thirteen years ago. Since then, the programme has grown into a network of Fellows committed to strengthening leadership across South Africa.
In his remarks, Hlongwane reflected on the responsibilities that come with leadership today. He encouraged the graduates to hold strong views lightly, reminding them that the constant stream of information and opinion in modern life can easily shape how leaders see the world. Drawing on Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, a reading from the programme, he urged the class to remain thoughtful about what they consume and believe. “Sometimes what we see are only shadows,” he said.
He also emphasised the importance of doing the inner work of leadership. Knowing oneself, he noted, is not a once-off exercise but an ongoing discipline. Leaders who ignore their own unresolved struggles risk carrying those into positions of influence. “The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago. The next best time is now,” he told the class.
Hlongwane closed with a final idea for the graduates to carry forward: antifragility — the ability to grow stronger under pressure. His hope, he said, is that the Motheo Class will become leaders who deepen in character when tested and who rise to the challenges facing society.
For the Motheo Class, graduation marks the start of the next chapter. They now join a growing community of ALI Fellows working towards a Good Society through values-based leadership.
The celebration ended with a clear message to the new graduates:
Go well — and go lead.
