Lindiwe Sangweni-Siddo

Lindiwe Sangweni-Siddo has been in the hospitality industry since 1987 when she studied at the renowned hospitality school, Ecole Les, in Switzerland.  Upon completion of her Diploma in Hotel Management, she furthered her studies at Penn State University and obtained a BSc in Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management (HRIM), and graduated in 1993.

Her career in the hospitality industry began with Hyatt Hotels at the Grand Hyatt Washington DC in 1993 as an intern. She then joined the Park Hyatt Rosebank in 1995 as part of the management team, and quickly rose in the ranks to join the Executive Committee as Rooms Director until 1999.  Lindiwe joined the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEAT) as Chief Director of Tourism Support in 1999 and remained there for a year, before being drawn back into the hospitality industry by Southern Sun Hotels as General Manager of the InterContinental Sandton Towers Hotel.

Five years later, Lindiwe embarked on a new journey, and followed her entrepreneurial spirit to star her own hospitality company, Zuka African Tourism Investment Corporation (ZATIC). This led to her developing and operating the first Holiday Inn in Soweto in 2007, which she later renamed, the Soweto Hotel and Conference Centre.

Lindiwe has been a shareholder and Managing Director of the Birchwood Hotel and OR Tambo Conference Centre from 2011 to 2015.  More recently, she has joined the City Lodge Hotel Group as Operations Director.  She remains a Director and Shareholder of the Soweto Hotel and Conference Centre.  She is also a Board Member of the Advisory Board of the Global Philanthropy Alliance, and the Chairperson of the Schauenberg Educational Trust.

In her spare time, Lindiwe spends time with her husband Salifou and her family.