By KayDee Dineo Mashile

On the 30^th of September 2019, Africa for Africa Women hosted Africa’s first Transformational Leadership Summit for women under the theme “women empowerment in the workplace”. This event saw women political leaders share a critical thinking space with women in corporate and academia in efforts to merge the solutions that have worked in each space so as to maximise the efforts of women empowerment strategies and policies across the spectrum. Countries like Nigeria, Malawi, Angola, Zimbabwe and South Africa, among others, were represented in Cape Town for the two day summit. Top employers Nestle, Ernst and Young, Microsoft and Unilever as well as the National Department of Labour, the MTN foundation and the Graca Machel trust were in attendance.

The echoing voices from each speaker to the next emphasised that women in positions of influence ought to bring up other women to join them on the table. Many of the speakers repeated Africa for Africa Women Founder and President, Bea Hackula’s words, “You must not be comfortable with being the only woman in the room because that puts you at a disadvantage. Rather raise up other women to sit on the table with you so that there is evidence that women as just as good if not better than their counterparts.” While Dr Jessie Kabwila added that we cannot continue to judge women based on competence when the same standard is not held for men. Experience, she elaborated, is the best teacher. Robbing women of experience and then expecting them to be twice as good to get half the recognition is something every woman has to challenge at any and every position of influence she holds.

This shows how necessary change is, right now! In response to this need for change, Africa for Africa Women is partnering with Leading Women of Africa on the ‘Leading Women, Agents of Change in Africa’ conference to be held in Conakry, Republic of Guinea, on 21-22 November 2019. The event aims to bring together over 300 influential women leaders, corporate and decision makers from across West and South Africa, as well as the rest of the continent, to engage in the dialogue on establishing inter-country business exchange between women in business.

The aim of the conference is to:

• Facilitate trade and investment partnerships
• Provide a platform to showcase women’s innovations
• Facilitate networking and exchange of knowledge and best practices

Moreover, this conference is a response to the African Union’s Agenda 2063 which acknowledges that Africa in 2063 will be a continent where the critical role of women in Africa‘s transformation is recognised and proactively harnessed. The Agenda is a call to action to all segments of African society to share efforts in building a common future and destiny based on the AU Vision.

Africa for Africa Women and Leading Women of Africa have heed the call and invite you to join them. Registration is open now at https://vr2.verticalresponse.com/s/womenleadersguineanov2019 for only R1 500.00, exhibition space is available upon request.

For more information, contact:

West Africa: +224 622 10 7589 (Adama Cisse)

SA: + 27 768863183 (Nadine Ognianov)

SA: + 27 62389 1983 (Heather Erasmus)

SA: + 27 827801344 (Bea Hackula)

East Africa: + 254 722 721042 (Pauline Amara)

Email: info@leadingwomenofafrica.com

Website: www.leadingwomenofafrica.com