Director and Chief Legal Officer

Mashile is a Lawyer by profession, a land reform activist and a seasoned and experienced former public servant who has held several influential positions in government since the mid-1990s. Until recently (2019-2020), Mashile worked as adviser to the Minister of Women, Youth and Persons with disabilities, in which role he played a critical role in bringing to the centre of government policy and giving voice to these vulnerable groups.  In 2018-2019, Mashile served as Head of the Ministry of Land Reform and Rural Development. Mashile was one of the first generation of activists who developed and implemented South Africa’s land reform policies in the mid-1990s. In 2001, aged only 28, Mashile became the Regional Land Claims Commissioner for Limpopo, the youngest person to assume that position ever.  In this role he worked to address the complex issues of land reform not only in Limpopo but the whole of South Africa and ensured that land was restored and just compensation paid to those who had been dispossessed of land through racially discriminatory laws.  His commitment to social justice and the creation of a fairer society remains marked, and most of the policies he helped formulate on land restitution continue to define the land reform landscape to this day.  Mashile has diverse interests and skills.  He served in a variety of positions, including serving on the Audit Committee of the Department of International Relations and Cooperation, Chairperson of the Limpopo Gambling Board and as Director of his own law firm, Mashile Mokono Attorneys. In addition to matters of land reform, Mashile has extensive experience in spatial planning and land use management and has been a member of the Tzaneen Municipal Planning Tribunal and a participant of spatial development justice as is prescribed by  Spatial Planning and Land Use Management Act. Mashile also served as a member of the South African National Parks Board (SanParks) and various other governance structures in both the public and private space. He is currently serving as the Deputy Chairperson of the Mankweng Academic and Tertiary Hospital Board and a Director of various.