SPECIAL FEATURE
empire Dubbed as the year of opportunity, 2010 brought great excitement to our country. It left us believing we can accomplish anything we put our minds to, despite the odds. It left us feeling we can all make a difference through our individual efforts, giving birth to initiatives like the one being championed by Primedia, Lead SA. Even though it came with all these opportunities, the year came and went and South Africa still has a high unemployment statistic. The yearon-year comparisons show that the number of unemployed increased by 155 000, with an annual increase of 2.7 percent among men and 4.7 percent among women, according to Statistics South Africa. Of the 25 percent of unemployed people, 51 percent are young people looking for any opportunity to prove themselves.
Statistical insight Statistics reveal that about 33 percent of South Africa’s entrepreneurial activity is born out of necessity. Statistics also show that women are most affected by unemployment. This being the case, it surely presents the opportunity for women to rule in the entrepreneurship sector – but the truth is contrary. According to a special report by the South African Women Entrepreneurs Network in 2005, women business owners cite a number of reasons for becoming entrepreneurs. An analysis of the main reasons suggests the following trends: • Challenges and attractions of entrepreneurship • Self-determination and autonomy • Family concerns – balancing career and family • Lack of career advancement and discrimination
The architecture of an entrepreneur “Entrepreneurs are neither born, nor made. To start your own business takes 10 percent capital
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and 90 percent guts!” says Raymond Ackerman. The best advice to future entrepreneurs in similar circumstances when embarking on the same path is to pack a toolbox which you can use on your journey. In it, keep a good spanner of burning passion to make the business work, a screwdriver of intelligence and business acumen, pliers of heavenly wisdom and a big hammer of energy! When you make a decision to be an entrepreneur, a vision and a mission statement are critical. This becomes your compass which guides you. While inspiring his congregation, one pastor showed them a pot plant and asked them what they were looking at. The congregation replied that it was a plant, and then they all laughed at this seemingly silly question. The pastor then responded by saying that what they were actually looking at was a forest. In that one small pot plant which he had in his hands, sat the potential for a huge forest. This is the same for every business and every vision.
When you make a decision to be an entrepreneur, a vision and a mission statement are critical. This becomes your compass which guides you.
Launching women empowerment initiatives The New Faces, New Voices initiative championed by Graca Machel, was launched in 2010 and focuses on bringing together professional women in the financial and banking industry throughout the African continent. As an association, they are “committed to seeing women in Africa assuming key roles in the financial sector and contributing to the decisions that shape the African continent,” says the African Development Bank. This is a great opportunity to connect women across the continent. According to the Department of Trade and Industry (dti), “no economy can grow by excluding any part of its people and an economy
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