She had to sell empty bottles to buy food for her baby, now Zandile Gumede is the first woman mayor of KwaZulu-Natal's only metro.The eThekwini mayor said her rags-to-riches life story prepared her for her tough new role, which will include delivering basic services in poor areas such as Maoti, the sprawling Durban informal settlement where she grew up.In an interview in her office this week, Gumede spoke of her tough times as a teen after she fell pregnant and dropped out of high school.Now she leads a municipality with a budget of R43.6-billion.With a Zulu Bible on her office table, Gumede said every challenge she faced in the past had seemed insurmountable until she conquered them.story_article_left1"I had to drop out of school and I made mistakes as a young girl. I only finished my community development certificate later in life."So [for] every girl anything is possible. If a girl from Maoti can do it, so can anyone," she said.In December last year, Gumede beat James Nxumalo in the election for ANC chairperson of the eThekwini region.This paved the way for her to take over from him as mayor."I draw from life experiences, like being abandoned by a boyfriend, selling empty bottles to buy formula for the baby, working as a domestic worker and a tea lady at Shepstone & Wylie."I bring all these humbling experiences to my job and I urge [people to give me] a chance to turn this city around."Gumede said she would prioritise the creation of jobs, especially for young people.She would also continue with the "sound financial management policies that have seen the city regularly obtaining clean audits", she said."While it is an honour to lead and quite a humbling one as a woman, it is the work that lies ahead that will determine my success."I'm not only representing the women of eThekwini, but of the world. People want to see meaningful change in their lives."Gumede said she would continue consulting Nxumalo."We still get along very well, and we have been councillors in this council for a long time."..