Economic inclusion should tap into women’ potential
More female entrepreneurs in Botswana need to be capacitated and empowered to take on entrepreneurship and tap into sustainable business models, says Creative Cup Botswana director Nicollete Chinomona. Speaking on the backdrop of the selection of the latest winner of the annual Creative Cup Botswana competition, who will travel to Denmark to participate in the global leg of the competition, Chinomona said it is high time the gender gap is closed in the entrepreneurship landscape in Botswana. “Many sectors and industries are dominated by men, because women have been told that those industries are not open to them. “Training, supporting and empowering women in areas dominated and led by men, such as farming and manufacturing, could lead to economic inclusion, and the resulting competition would not only benefit the economy and the customers, but also generate decent opportunities for women employers, employees, suppliers and consumers,” she said. She added that this could only happen if there is active engagement with families and communities around reassessing gender barriers that may prevent women’s equal participation in business programmes or incomegenerating activities. This year’s winner of the annual Creative Business Cup is Sebusamathe Mokgwe of Sweet Sensations, a business that makes and sells chocolates, made from indigenous Botswana fruits such as morula, lerotse and mmilo. Mokgwe, said they had plans to consider the export market which were halted by Covid- 19 but winning Creative Cup Botswana had ignited the desire to tackle the global market. “We have always wanted to grow beyond Botswana’s borders and winning this competition will help us lean towards being export ready.” Mokgwe, who left the corporate sector ( financial accounting) after working for 10 years, to pursue her dream of being a business owner, said entrepreneurship has its ups and downs, but it is fulfilling to create a legacy and build wealth steadily. Karabo Sekgekge of the Creative Business Cup Development Associate said over the years the competition has added value to the entrepreneurship landscape in Botswana, by providing visibility for entrepreneurs and their ideas, providing a platform for them to test their ideas to potential investors, and giving them the much- needed experience in competing against other entrepreneurs. Chinomona said it is important to lure women into entrepreneurship, and make them realise that women entrepreneurs can thrive from running small- scale to globally competitive ventures.