Long before people owned private cars and scooters, public transportation was people’s only mode of commuting to places. In those days and currently, children walk to school in pairs, greeting their neighbours with laughter and cheer in a neighbourhood that treats each other like family. In the heart of this scene is Thandiwe Nkosi, sitting on the veranda of the town’s community hall, clipboard and pen in hand. She scans the list of names that includes mothers, youth volunteers, and elders who have gathered here today. For years, Thandiwe has led her township’s health and resilience group through months of effort, kitchen-table conversations, communal problem-solving sessions, and handshake agreements rooted in a philosophy older than any constitution itself. 

In Thandiwe’s world, leadership is not a tag one pins to their lapel; it’s a rhythm of life built on the idea that no one stands alone in anything they do. Her approach comes straight from an African philosophy known across many parts of the continent as Ubuntu. It is roughly translated to “I am because we are,” a creed that places community, shared humanity, and mutual responsibility at the center of all life. 

Ubuntu appears every single day in Thandiwe’s work. It manifests when a group of farmers cooperate to market their harvest collectively rather than individually, when volunteers teach health awareness at a rural clinic, and when neighbours rally to rebuild a collapsed wall. Such attempts show up in a much steadier form of leadership that fosters flexible societies. The kind capable of empowering people, responding timely to crises, and sharing responsibility for the greater common good. 

Ubuntu in Modern Leadership Thinking

The meaning behind Ubuntu is neither an abstract nor a theoretical concept. It actually comes from indigenous African philosophies that emphasize interconnectedness, compassion, and community. Essentially, Ubuntu expresses the idea of “Umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu,” a.k.a. “a person is a person through other people”. According to EdingBurg Peer-Reviewed Journals and Books, while some Western leadership models emphasize individual achievement, Ubuntu highlights collective well-being and shared responsibility. 

Philosophers and leadership scholars recognize Ubuntu as more than a mere ethical sentiment. According to an article written in the South African Journal of Business Management, Ubuntu serves as a framework today for responsible leadership in African settings, where leaders prioritize engagement, ethical duty to others, and shared accountability. And as a result of this, leaders act less as commanders and more as custodians of the community’s future. 

Community Power in Practice

In many African communities, Ubuntu appears outside formal structures time and time again—from neighborhood health partnerships to youth councils and agricultural cooperatives. This resonance between cultural values and leadership practice reflects a deep, native ideology. At the Alliance for Women and Girls organization, Ubuntu influences leadership programs across Africa to build leaders in self-awareness, strong relationships, and to work sensitively in their local context. Such initiatives reinforce empathy, interpersonal understanding, and co-create solutions—qualities that echo Ubuntu’s core values. 

This type of leadership also favors society in education, public health, and community work. An educational administrative program called Teach For All supports educators and NGO partners around the continent, training young leaders to pursue social change. They do this by integrating Ubuntu into the classroom and civic practices, which reinforces a leadership that is collective and not solitary. 

Choosing to Heal Humanity

Let’s visit South Africa’s post-apartheid transition period. During Nelson Mandela’s presidency, he often spoke of Ubuntu to remind people to resolve conflicts and restore shared dignity. And, Archbishop Desmond Tutu followed the same belief while guiding the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Although the process was miserable and very delicate, it opened a path for healing because it asked people to see and understand one another.

Ubuntu’s insistence on a shared humanity fits naturally with how many Africans understand ethical leadership in 2025. It places people’s well-being well above titles and hierarchy, and it pushes leaders to view governance and development as something that is carried together. To put it simply, Ubuntu reminds leaders that progress is a shared responsibility and that a community rises only when everyone is accounted for. 

A Collective Action Giving Real Impact

In 2025, Africa drives against economic, social, and environmental challenges, while its Ubuntu-inspired leadership offers a unique path to persistence. In rural areas of Kenya and Ghana, community-based crisis management committees operate not because of regulatory laws, but because local leaders freely initiate combined efforts to address floods, droughts, and community health needs. These groups use networks of trust and joint obligation that define Ubuntu leadership. And that social intervention acts as a counterforce during the state system lags and when resources grow limited. 

Local entrepreneurs are also infusing Ubuntu into their business ventures today. Many civil-society institutions place impact before profit, operating with a mandate to encourage neighbours, share resources, and expand opportunities together. Even across borders, networks of African social innovators exchange ideas grounded in community values, reshaping development from the grassroots. 

Where Ubuntu Leads, Communities Rise

Leadership in Africa is a combination of boardroom decisions, executive orders, and informal practices based on Ubuntu. It becomes a safe place where leaders listen more than they dictate, where communities contribute to solutions rather than adhere to outside experts, and where collective success matters more than personal reputation. 

Thandiwe Nkosi represents this type of leadership. Her efforts may not make global news, but they surely embody Africa’s traditional leadership of a shared purpose, leading with empathy, and driving strong commitment to others. Ubuntu is a reminder of a healthy community that thrives because of its unique leadership style. In a world already grappling hard with transnational challenges, Ubuntu is a living praxis—a roadmap for stable and inclusive societies rooted in human solidarity. 

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