Thirty one women entrepreneurs from all of the country’s provinces will vie for top honours at the inaugural Ligugu Lami Awards which will be held under the auspices of the South African Women Entrepreneurs Network (SAWEN), an initiative of the Department of Trade and Industry (the dti).
The awards will take place at the Birchwood Hotel in Boksburg on Tuesday, 30 October 2012 starting from 19h00. The Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, Ms Elizabeth Thabethe will deliver a keynote address at the awards, and also crown winners in four categories and the overall winner, who will romp home with R95 000. Members of the media are invited to attend the event.
According to Deputy Minister Thabethe the purpose of the awards, is to encourage women operating their little businesses to take pride of their efforts and to nurture their enterprises to grow so that they will eventually enter the mainstream of the South African economy.
"The awards were initiated with the aim of acknowledging women entrepreneurs for their contribution to the economy of this country, extend a helping hand to deserving women and raise the profile of SAWEN as a key player in the women economic empowerment space," said Thabethe.
She added that research had proved that women represent approximately 56% of the survivalist company category, 38% of micro-enterprises with no employees, and 15% of micro-enterprises with 1-4 employees.
"With this status quo in mind, it is only befitting for SAWEN to introduce the awards and support the unsung heroines of South Africa," emphasised Thabethe.
The awards have been made possible by an advance of R1 million by a businesswoman and SAWEN Acting President and Board member Ms Nana Ditodi co-owner of Nasidima Investment Projects. She says her contribution was inspired by a desire to plough something back into the organisation by recognising and rewarding hard-working women who are striving to lift themselves up from the periphery of the economy to the mainstream.
"I have been one of the judges for the Technology for Women in Business Awards and was touched by women who put so much effort and dedication into their businesses but could not win the awards because they did not apply sufficient technology in their businesses. I decided that those deserving women should also be recognised, encouraged and assisted in one way or the other, hence the conceptualisation of the Ligugu Lami Awards. I’m hoping my humble contribution will go a long way in inspiring other businesswomen to contribute in empowering other women entrepreneurs so we can all take each up the ladder of this country’s economy," said Ditodi.
Enquiries:
Sidwell Medupe
Departmental Spokesperson
Tel: 012 394 1650
Cell: 079 492 1774
E-mail: MSMedupe@thedti.gov.za
