How it empowers women entrepreneurs in Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa

Women entrepreneurs in Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa are being empowered through a combination of targeted training programs, access to digital platforms, financial inclusion initiatives, and locally driven mentorship schemes. These efforts are helping women overcome longstanding challenges, foster business growth, and reshape the economic landscape of southern Africa. Below, we explore the mechanisms of empowerment, the stories of female entrepreneurs, and the broader societal impact across these three countries.

Historical Barriers and Shifting Realities

Women in southern Africa have historically faced significant barriers to entrepreneurship. These include limited access to finance, insufficient training opportunities, and cultural norms that undervalued female economic participation. For example:

Financial exclusion: Access to credit and banking services has lagged for women, especially in rural areas.
Skill gaps: Many women lacked formal education in business management, operations, or financial literacy.
Social expectations: Women were often expected to prioritize family roles over professional ambitions, restricting their opportunity to run businesses.

Today, however, deliberate interventions from governments, NGOs, and private sector entities are beginning to change these dynamics.

Empowerment Through Training and Mentorship

Empowerment initiatives focus on equipping women with technical, financial, and leadership skills critical for running successful enterprises. Key programs include:

AWOME (Accelerating Women-Owned Micro-Enterprises): Supported by De Beers Group and other partners, AWOME offers business training, financial literacy courses, and ongoing mentorship. The program adapts to local realities by recruiting trainers from the communities they serve, ensuring cultural relevance and strong communal bonds. Workshop sessions and follow-up mentoring help women manage records, optimize inventories, and prepare for expansion.
FemBioBiz Acceleration Program: This regional initiative targets women in sectors like agri-food, health, bio-waste, and natural beauty products. FemBioBiz provides bootcamps, pitching competitions, and access to business development networks, enabling hundreds of women entrepreneurs to secure capital, guidance, and visibility. Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa are among the beneficiaries, with local partners providing additional support.

These programs create networks for women entrepreneurs—reaching thousands—and foster an ethos of peer-to-peer support, learning, and encouragement.

Harnessing Digital Platforms and Market Access

Digital platforms are enabling women-owned businesses to transcend local barriers and access broader markets. Recent initiatives include:

Development of e-commerce and digital platforms that connect women-run micro-enterprises with customers locally and internationally.
Training in online marketing, payments, and logistics, which gives female entrepreneurs tools to scale their ventures and build resilient, future-proof operations.
Digital market access boosts for over 3,442 women-led micro-enterprises in Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa, expanding their reach and profitability.

Programs also introduce digital literacy workshops, ensuring participants can leverage technology to grow sales, keep records, and engage with new buyers.

Financial Inclusion and Entrepreneurial Growth

Expanding women’s access to financial services is a cornerstone of empowerment:

Inclusive banking services have increased in Namibia and South Africa. Botswana is catching up, advancing rapidly owing to both public and private sector innovations.
Enterprise development initiatives facilitate micro-loans, savings groups, and financial literacy courses tailored for women entrepreneurs, making it easier to start and grow businesses.
Financial inclusion helps women formalize their enterprises, attract investment, and achieve scale. According to the Mastercard Index of Women Entrepreneurs, Botswana ranks highly globally for women’s business ownership and labor force participation.

This broadened financial access has led women entrepreneurs to invest in inventory, equipment, and staff, further improving their economic resilience and capacity for growth.

Success Stories: Women Leading Change

Empowerment efforts are having concrete impacts on the ground:

Sunny-Girl Hauwanga (Namibia) transformed her passion for cars into a panel-beating and paint shop, defying gender norms in a male-dominated industry through the business training she received. Her newfound skills in budgeting and customer relations are critical as she works toward expanding her workshop.
Irene Matlonye (South Africa) manages a retail shop with support from AWOME tutoring. By learning inventory and bookkeeping essentials, Irene is able to calculate profits, grow her savings, and plan for expansion. This knowledge translates directly into improved financial security for her family and local community.
Evelina “Eina” Nyaluvhani (Agriculture, South Africa) exemplifies women’s impact on Africa’s agricultural sector. Eina’s vegetable farm benefits from business and financial training, which enhances production capacity and new market engagement.
FemBioBiz alumni: Over 250 companies led by women in southern Africa have accessed technical education, mentorship, and pitch competitions, increasing their sustainability and innovation in fields from natural products to bioscience.

The Role of Local Champions and Networks

Local trainers and mentors play an essential role in creating lasting empowerment:

Trainers drawn from the same communities as entrepreneurs help ensure advice is contextually relevant and credible, building deep trust and rapport.
Networking is encouraged through workshops, peer circles, and community events, allowing women to share challenges, resources, and solutions.

These locally rooted efforts work in tandem with broader government and corporate initiatives to drive sustained, region-wide progress.

Socioeconomic and Cultural Impact

The rising cohort of women entrepreneurs is reshaping societal attitudes:

Economic impact: Thousands of new and growing women-owned businesses are creating jobs, expanding tax bases, and stimulating local economies.
Social and cultural change: As women gain visibility as business leaders, old stereotypes about gender roles erode. Success stories inspire younger women to pursue entrepreneurship, strengthening community bonds.
Poverty reduction: Investing in women’s economic empowerment has a direct effect on reducing poverty and enhancing family welfare.
Policy and mindset shifts: Government support, corporate partnerships, and international organizations now recognize the importance of gender equity in development plans and private investment strategies.

This multiplier effect demonstrates how training one woman can catalyze change for her entire community.

Challenges and What’s Needed Next

Although significant progress is being made, challenges remain:

Financial exclusion persists among rural women and those without formal education.
Access to capital—especially for scaling businesses—can still be limited.
Cultural resistance may be encountered, particularly in industries perceived as “male” domains.

To sustain momentum, further work is needed: