The Department of Trade and Industry (the dti) is undertaking workshops to empower and encourage businesswomen to utilise technology to improve their businesses. The provincial workshops which were kick-started in Kimberly today, are part of the Technology for Women in Business (TWIB) programme of the dti which plays a crucial role in supporting and promoting the use of technology by women entrepreneurs. The workshops will be rolled out across the country to ensure that businesswomen in all provinces are reached.
The Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry Ms Elizabeth Thabethe explained that the workshops are important as they will increase and create awareness among all businesswomen about the importance of applying technology in their businesses in order to increase profitability, capacity to create employment and enhance quality and quantity of their products.
According to Thabethe, the workshops also seek to recruit a good number of women to participate in the TWIB Awards that are held annually.
The TWIB Awards are meant to reward women achievers in recognition of the significant impact they have made in various sectors of the economy through the application of technology to create a competitive edge for their businesses.
Businesswomen in all sectors of the South African economy are eligible to enter for the Awards as long as they are applying some enterprising technological innovations which assist them increase their production and enhance the quality of products.
The TWIB programme was designed to help South Africa’s women entrepreneurs get access to the applied science and technology they need to catapult their business into the big league and assist women to harness technology so that they can move from the sidelines to the mainstream of the economy. The programme focuses on women entrepreneurs at all levels of business, from micro to macro enterprises and seeks to fast track their skills development to enable them to embrace appropriate technologies.
Enquiries:
Sidwell Medupe, Departmental Spokesperson
Tel: 012 394 1650
Cell: 079 492 1774
E-mail: MSMedupe@thedti.gov.za
