Prince Cedza Dlamini of Swaziland (born 1976), grandson of King Sobhuza II of Swaziland and of Nelson Mandela, is a humanitarian, youth activist, spokesman for the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals, and the founder of the Ubuntu Institute for Young Social Entrepreneurs. His vision is to create a unified global order by establishing global networks of young leaders who can work collectively to address current world problems, such as HIV/AIDS, poverty and hunger, and illiteracy. Cedza also works to foster stronger ties between the USA and South Africa and holds a seat as a Director on the Board of the South African Chamber of Commerce in America (SACCA).
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Cedza is the third son of eight children born to HRH Prince Thumbumuzi Dlamini of Swaziland, MBA, born 1950, a son of the late King Sobhuza II and an elder brother of the reigning King of Swaziland, Mswati III. His father married Zenani Mandela, born 1958, the elder daughter of Nelson and his (second) former wife, Winnie Mandela. His father and step mother are joint proprietors of a business, Mandela, Dlamini and Associates (MDA). His father's master's degree was earned at Boston University in Boston, where Cedza spent much of his childhood.
He has acknowledged going through a self-indulgent phase as a youth, before realizing that he was squandering his heritage and his future. He resolved to resume his education, and earned his bachelor's degree in International Relations from Tufts University in Boston in 2005.
Cedza is, by birthright and lineage, a royal prince of the dynasty which rules the kingdom of Swaziland, the House of Dlamini. The Dlaminis are Christian and, in Swaziland, practice traditional polygamy, so that the royal family has hundreds of members, many of whom are actively involved in government, civil service, diplomacy, or industry in Swaziland, but many of whom live outside of their native realm. Because of the size of the family, only the king inherits substantial wealth or receives a civil list; other family members usually work for a living.
Nonetheless, Cedza is legally eligible to inherit the crown of Swaziland, although his accession is a remote likelihood. Moreover, the Dlaminis continue to practice royal intermarriage with other African dynasties, particularly with the houses of Traditional Leadership and Paramount Chieftainships in South Africa: Cedza's maternal family, the Mandelas or Madiba clan, descend in the direct, legitimate male line from the Paramount Chiefs of the Transkei, a dignity still held by the family's patriarch, Buyelekhaya Zwelinbanzi Dalindyebo. Cedza's aunt, Mantfombi, a sister of his father's, is the Great Wife of Goodwill Zwelithini, the reigning king of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa.
In 2005, Cedza founded the Ubuntu Institute for Young Social Entrepreneurs, a youth-led non-profit organization that strives to provide leadership enrichment, practical skills training and access to financial resources to young African social entrepreneurs from all sectors of society. He believes that social entrepreneurship is the key to solving the problems youth face in Africa because it encourages a mindset shift in young people, challenging them to become masters of their own destinies and inspires them to create self-sustaining organizations instead of being dependent on foreign aid.
In June 2004, Cedza was recruited by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to be part of the first-ever Pan African Youth Leadership Summit held in Dakar, Senegal focused on achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in Africa. After achieving great results from this conference, he was appointed as an activist and spokesman for the MDGs and has represented his continent in youth leadership conferences in Japan, Bosnia and Canada.
In October 2003, Cedza was also appointed Co-chair for the World Youth Peace Summit (WYPS [1]) in Africa. Cedza attended World Youth Peace regional conferences in Sarajevo and Tokyo in 2004 where he joined over 500 young leaders from across Europe and Asia to discuss ways to use peaceful means to resolve global conflicts and promote tolerance between cultures, faiths and religions.
Cedza moved to the United States to study international relations in 2000. After September 11, 2001, Cedza began a speaking tour throughout the U.S. that promotes global forgiveness, compassion, and the use of dialogue - instead of violence – as a powerful tool for conflict resolution. To date, Cedza has spoken to more than fifty non-profit organizations and academic institutions with audiences ranging from 200-14,000 people. He especially seeks to inspire young people, speaking on youth empowerment and leadership. Through his 3 Principles of Success, Cedza encourages youths to realize that with the right attitude they can overcome difficult challenges.
Prior to moving to the U.S., Cedza worked with Mitsubishi Corporation in South Africa. At Mitsubishi he served for several years as an assistant to the Official Development Assistance (ODA) Manager, facilitating development programs between Japan and all fourteen countries in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. During his time at Mitsubishi, he aided in providing mobile clinics that brought medicine and healthcare to poor rural areas and he assisted in developing the company's affirmative action policy.
Before Mitsubishi, Cedza worked with MDA, his family's international business consulting firm in Johannesburg. At MDA, he was exposed to the many obstacles emerging black entrepreneurs in the post-apartheid South Africa faced. He was determined to return one day to expand resources and provide economic opportunities for Southern Africans.
In recognition of his work for social causes around the world, Cedza has been honored in the United States with Keys to the City of Cambridge, Massachusetts and Little Rock, Arkansas.
For more information please visit his website at http://www.cedzadlamini.com.