Kevin Nyango
The last event (LeanIn Breakfast) in 2017 to be hosted by the Lioness of Africa occurred in Johannesburg, and the women inspired one another especially in line with entrepreneurship. 49 countries in Africa are members of this network, and it currently has 500, 000 women entrepreneurs under its umbrella. The network launched their radio show which gives the opportunity to interview various women across Africa on their entrepreneurship journey.
The radio show is powered by Standard bank and women celebrate each other on this network. The most remarkable event in Berlin Germany is where Lionesses of Africa went across the borders and hosted African Startup Nights. Five women entrepreneurs have the privilege of showcasing their startups to potential investors.
The facilitators of LeanIn Breakfast included Ngwana Matloa, co-founder of Abot Technology, Dipuo Phakathi from Standard Bank, Deborah Hartung, founder of People Pivot Tech, Kathryn Main, founder of the Money Savvy Kids, and Raksha Mahabeer, co-founder of summertime.
Ngwana Matloa whose company want to change the perception that tech is hard shared her story on how she began Abot technology with a university friend. She worked for ten years to know the client’s needs and decided to fill the market gap she discovered. She encouraged women to beware that on some occasions they might fail but never give up. Additionally, she urged them to network with people so as to make transitions from small, medium to large markets/ organizations.
Raksha Mahabeer narrated her story on how she manages her businesses and how she began prospering. She told the audience to have confidence in themselves and always be humble. She added that as entrepreneurs, they should do what they want to do with passion and have resilience.
