Jane Mkhonta-Simelane obtained a Bachelor of Adult Education from the University of Botswana, a Bachelor of Social Sciences in Gender Studies from the University of Pretoria, where she also obtained a postgraduate degree in Multidisciplinary Human Rights.[1]
In 1984, she began working on the Women in Development Project as head of handicrafts, rising to head of domestic industry in 1992, a position she held until 2000.[1]
She was appointed gender analyst at the Ministry of Home Affairs in 1984 and became head of gender analysis in 2006, a position she held until 2013.[1] During her tenure, Mkhonta-Simelane contributed to the adoption of the National Gender Policy in 2010 and supported regional protocols on gender and development.[1]
In 2013, she was appointed director of gender and family affairs in the office of the deputy prime minister, and between 2020 and 2023 she worked at the Ministry of Tinkhundla Administration and Development.[1] In 2023, she was undersecretary at the Ministry of Tinkhundla Administration and Development until she retired few months later.[1] Her work also contributed to Eswatini's ratification of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, agricultural reforms benefiting women, and protocols on AIDS.[1]
