the pride of Africa's women entrepreneurs
Juanita Naidoo Rea, founder of eduSOIL
In the face of the glaring lack of mental and emotional health programmes for South Africa’s children and youth, entrepreneur Juanita Naidoo Rea created eduSOIL, a social enterprise on a mission to make a difference. Today, it is helping the most vulnerable young members of society to deal with stress in their daily lives.
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Impumelelo, the Stellenbosch Academy for Social Innovation, in partnership with the Distell Development Trust, is inviting applicants to apply for the 2016/17 Impumelelo Awards. The Impumelelo Social Innovations Centre’s award is an independent awards programme based on rigorous evaluations. It is one of the few mechanisms that uncovers what is good and what works in South Africa. The award’s end goal is to promote initiatives in civil society, the public and private sector, that improve the quality of the life of the poor in exceptional ways.
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Mariam Mpaata, founder of Junior Stars Youth Development Programme (Kenya)
To make real social change happen in Africa, you need people with the vision and passion to make a difference, and to find practical solutions to challenges faced each day. Mariam Mpaata is one such social entrepreneur on a mission to empower youth and women through the power of soccer, and started her Junior Stars Youth Development Programme to make a huge impact on young people’s lives in Kenya.
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Pheliswa Nomdatya, co-founder of Ndima Yam NPC (South Africa)
Recognising that those with low incomes need access to financial education in order to better manage their finances and, as a result, experience greater financial freedom, was the inspiration behind the creation of Ndima Yam NPC. This South African NPO was formed to make a difference in the lives of the country’s communities by creating greater financial literacy amongst its neediest citizens.
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Tracey Chambers (L) and Yasmina Filali (R)
The 2016 Schwab Foundation Social Entrepreneurs of the Year awards have just been announced, and 2 women from Africa are amongst the winners this year - Tracey Chambers of the Clothing Bank in South Africa and Yasmina Filali of Fondation Orient Occident in Morocco. The awards acknowledge the work and contribution made by 12 outstanding social entrepreneurs from 11 organizations operating in more than 70 countries that are pioneering solutions for social and environmental challenges, from child labour to women's empowerment to climate change and more.
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Kristine Pearson, founder of Lifeline Energy
Women entrepreneurs understand the power of the media to reach communities and to provide essential communication and education to both adults and children alike, in particular to women in remote communities. Kristine Pearson, the founder of Lifeline Energy, knows only too well how much of a lifeline radio can be, hence the name of the enterprise. By harnessing the power of solar, she is creating access to radio to millions of listeners who would previously be denied the opportunity - she is a real game-changer on the African continent.
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L-R: Dr Jennifer Riria, Essma Ben Hamida, Dr Victoria Kisyombe
The rise of gender-lens and social impact investing could be a real game changer in Africa where traditionally, access to finance still remains a key challenge for women in business. There’s a great quote by Melinda Gates, Co-Chair, of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in the USA. She says: “If you invest in a girl or a woman, you are investing in everybody else.” That is certainly the case in Africa where women feel a sense of inherent responsibility to give back to and uplift their communities.
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Thokoza Mjo, founder of Beyond the Lemonade Stand (South Africa)
South Africa’s future economic prosperity depends on its young people making active contributions to the socio-economic development of the country. Yet with unemployment being a major challenge, the future lies in creating a new generation of entrepreneurs who can make a difference. Beyond the Lemonade Stand, the brainchild of founder Thokoza Mjo, is a social venture looking to do just that!
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Roxanne Edson, founder of Hidden Halos (South Africa)
The challenge of dealing with the effects of Foetal Alcohol Syndrome and the devastating impact it can have on the lives of innocent children, is a major one in South Africa. Social entrepreneur Roxanne Edson, and her team of supporters at Hidden Halos, are working tirelessly to champion foster care advocacy and support for those children affected by the syndrome.
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Faraja Nyalandu, founder Shule Direct (Tanzania)
Shule Direct, a Tanzanian edtech startup producing world-class digital learning content, has just launched its newest product, MAKINI SMS, to the public. It is an SMS learning and revision platform for Secondary School students in Tanzania accessible via all types of phones, feature phones and smartphones.
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Christelle Kwizera, founder of Water Access Rwanda (WARwanda)
Water scarcity in Africa is a huge challenge today, but one young woman socialpreneur is building an enterprise that is looking to bring an answer that is both affordable and durable. Christelle Kwizera, founder of Water Access Rwanda (WARwanda), a company providing essential water filtration solutions, is already making a difference in her country.
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Nkem Okocha, founder of Mamamoni Limited (Nigeria)
Empowering women who come from low-income rural and urban backgrounds, but who have the potential to become independent micro-entrepreneurs, is the mission of Mamamoni Limited, a social enterprise founded by Nkem Okocha. She is providing a powerful combination of free vocational skills and mobile loans to help them on their way to becoming financially independent.
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Lionesses of Africa Founder and CEO, Melanie Hawken, took part in the Twitter Chat on 17 March coordinated by Ogunte, together with other guest contributors from around the world, to talk about how unleashing the power of women’s social entrepreneurship can help to make our economies and societies stronger.
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Kimmies non toxic enterprises is the entrepreneurial brainchild of three women co-founders - Linda Kimeu, Faith Kimeu and Mel Ngao - who are committed to making a difference to the lives and health of Kenyan people, especially children and youth, by improving their personal hygiene knowledge and awareness.
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Lynda Smith, founder of Refirement Network (South Africa)
As the world’s population ages, and the baby boomer generation (those 50+) are looking to make a difference in the next productive phase of their lives, Lynda Smith's Refirement Network in South Africa is there to help. Instead of retiring, the focus is on refiring - harnessing the energy, passion, skills and commitment of those people with vast amounts of experience and expertise, to make a difference in society.
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Balungile Sokhulu, founder of Goshem City of Refuge Shelter (South Africa)
Take one talented young fashion designer with a great eye for detail and a creative flair, and combine it with a passion for making a difference in society, and you have a wonderful South African social entrepreneur, Balungile Sokhulu, founder of Goshem City of Refuge Shelter. She is transforming recycled paper into accessories that are real works of art, and creating much-needed opportunities for youth with disabilities and women. She is a real game-changer.
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Lizelle Coombs
For many would-be entrepreneurs from disadvantaged backgrounds in South Africa, opportunities can be hard to come by, but one woman entrepreneur, Lizelle Coombs, through her group of companies is trying to change that through her approach to training and support services that give hope to these aspirations.
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Megan MacDonald, founder of SASA Designs by the Deaf
For deaf women in Africa, life can be tough and the opportunities for employment and independence extremely limited. But one social entrepreneur, Megan MacDonald of SASA Designs by the Deaf, is making real and lasting change happen for these women by providing meaningful employment, training and a sense of community, plus the ability to support their children and their education.
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Susan Barnes, founder of Subz Pads (South Africa)
The Subz Pants and Pads - Project Dignity social entrepreneurship venture was born out of one woman’s desire to address a major problem amongst young rural girls in South Africa - the lack of access to sanitary pads, meaning loss of education and dignity. Susan Barnes is addressing this challenge head-on through her company, Subz Pants and Pads, manufacturing and distributing packs of sustainable, reusable panties and pads to girls.
Read moreSouth African entrepreneur Thato Kgatlhanye, founder of Rethaka Repurpose Schoolbags, explains how her innovative company designs and manufactures school bags from recycled plastic bags in South Africa.
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