The Foundational Pillars

The Rito Group of Companies Pty Ltd is a holding company that comprises start-up consulting firms in management consulting and the energy sector. The group also houses two non-profit companies supporting Women in Energy and Youth in Energy. The company was created to accommodate companies and ventures that seek to make a difference in South Africa and Africa’s economy.

Rito Consulting Services is an integrated marketing communication company founded in 2006. It provides solutions for private and public sector companies. On the other hand, Rito Energy Solutions is an energy consulting company that supports utility operational performance and is interested in project development in the renewable energy sector.

African Women in Energy and Power (AWEaP) is one of the non-profit companies established by the Rito Group of Companies. It is based on the conviction that commercially viable, multi-stakeholder-driven initiatives are needed to eradicate energy poverty in Africa. AWEaP aims to ensure women’s meaningful economic participation in the energy and power sector The organization has 11 chapters on the African continent and targets to increase this reach to 22 countries by 2024 and 45 countries by 2025. The organization constantly seeks leading women in Africa’s energy and power sector to join their growing number of Country Chairpersons to advance gender equity in their domestic markets.

Gen X theatre is another non-profit company established by the Rito Group of Companies. It creates a platform for students and young professionals to share abstracts of their academic papers at international sector conferences. This offers them a lifetime opportunity to interact with industry leaders.

Adhering to Fundamentals

Bertha believes women are strong and consistent collaborators who operate with empathy and often work from an ecosystem perspective. Bertha acknowledges that this approach fosters inclusion and drives success. She believes collaboration, compassion, and contextual appreciation of market conditions enable women to work with industry players to identify and implement superior solutions to socioeconomic challenges.

Bertha’s business motto is “Moving beyond boundaries.” She emphasizes the importance of collaboration to break boundaries and enable success in all endeavors.

Unique Approach

Bertha highlights her work through African Women in Energy and Power (AWEaP)

She utilizes the group’s technical skills to design interventions that uncover barriers to women’s participation in energy and power value chains.

In the energy and power sector, she believes that unless women know and understand the entrepreneurial opportunities that exist in the industry, they will not be able to:

● opt to participate in the sector,

● choose an area of focus (or areas that resonate with their business interests),

● align themselves with the relevant actors in the ecosystem;

● access credible market information;

● organize themselves to participate effectively and sustainably.

Thus, she has created a unique program that achieves the following:

● Orientation on the construct of industry value chains and their inherent entrepreneurial opportunities

● Fostered relationships with Electricity Utilities who share information on market opportunities.

● Partnered with technology companies that share technologies, solutions, and systems sought after by utilities and large power users.

● Collaborate with finance institutions to teach entrepreneurs how they finance energy projects.

This has profoundly impacted the industry and created more significant interest in participation from women entrepreneurs across the African continent.