In Bushbuckridge, where ancestral knowledge remains a trusted source of care alongside clinics and hospitals, Lesaka La Dingaka is helping to bring two worlds of healing closer together.

Founded in 2007 as a non-profit organisation, Lesaka La Dingaka promotes cooperation between Traditional Health Practitioners (THPs), faith-based healers and Western medical practitioners, working to ensure rural communities are not excluded from safe, coordinated healthcare.

For many families in villages across Bushbuckridge, traditional healers are still the first point of contact during illness, distress or uncertainty. Lesaka La Dingaka was established to organise, educate and help regulate THPs, while building stronger working relationships with clinics, hospitals and key government partners, particularly the Department of Health.

Leadership rooted in calling and community

At local level, the organisation is coordinated by Dr MN Mnisi, the Mpumalanga Coordinator of Lesaka La Dingaka and a respected traditional health practitioner from Xanthia Village. He was initiated in 2010 at Cork Trust under Gobela Mpandezithi Mavis Mhangane, and is known for his commitment to both cultural responsibility and public health realities.

At national level, Lesaka La Dingaka is led by Director Elizabeth Baas, initiated in 1989 by veteran traditional healer Nyoniyezwe Mkhabela. Mkhabela, born 16 April 1918, was initiated in 1974 and is still actively practising and training amathwasa, continuing to shape the generations that carry traditional healing forward.

Building safe referral pathways

A key focus of the organisation is education and patient safety. Lesaka La Dingaka trains THPs to recognise conditions that require urgent medical attention, and to confidently refer patients to clinics and hospitals when needed. This helps reduce delays in treatment and builds trust between communities and formal healthcare services.

The organisation also raises awareness about the dangers of toxic and unregulated medicines, promoting responsible practices that protect lives.

Care that goes beyond medicine

Lesaka La Dingaka’s work extends into psycho-social support, connecting individuals and families to professional services when dealing with trauma, mental health concerns or social distress.

It also supports vulnerable households through practical interventions, including meals for orphaned and vulnerable children and assistance to destitute community members. Through home visits, the organisation reaches the elderly, the ill and those who struggle to access formal services — offering dignity, guidance and human connection.

Prevention, awareness and community education

Lesaka La Dingaka promotes a drug-free environment and speaks out against substance abuse through community dialogues and education. It also addresses HIV and AIDS, TB, STIs, cancer and mental health in culturally sensitive ways that encourage early intervention and reduce stigma.

Strengthening unity among healers

To improve coordination and accountability, the organisation is developing a database of Traditional Health Practitioners and hosting regular engagements where healers can share knowledge, align practices and strengthen cooperation with clinics and hospitals.

A local symbol of unity

In Bushbuckridge and across Mpumalanga, Lesaka La Dingaka continues to show that true wellness is strongest when tradition and modern medicine work side by side — placing the wellbeing of communities at the centre of every decision.