Land, Letṧema and Leola: Digital Transformation on a Rural Community’s Own Terms

This article examines digital transformation in Mamaila, South Africa, through the African Mandhwane pedagogy. The community has established its own Community Network (CN) since 2018, providing local internet access and digital services. This CN acts as a collaborative platform, embodying Mama Tshepo Khumbane\’s philosophy of Mandhwane in transformation. The authors apply Mandhwane techniques to empower villagers in collective problem solving (Letṧema). The analysis focuses on the design of an app for Leola, a community initiative that helps bereaved families. This approach demonstrates how it fosters communal and individual agency, integrates a social relational ontology, and addresses common tensions in digital transformation.