GMT graduates 54 women entrepreneurs
The Graca Machel Trust (GMT) has graduated about 54 women entrepreneurs from a 10-month Women Creating Wealth (WCW) programme that seeks to identify and build capacity for women to grow and lead more prosperous businesses.
The women are all business owners in the sectors of agriculture, education and manufacturing and were provided with a coach to inspire them to their vision and master valuable entrepreneurial competencies to take their business to the next level.
Speaking at the graduation on Wednesday, GMT founder Graca Machel observed that the women entrepreneurs had transformed through WCW.
She said the increasing number of women taking part in the mentorship programme was proof that African women were taking the driving seat.
“I encourage you to look ahead and not allow anyone to intimidate you in claiming and exercising the capacity of African women to transform the lives of people on the continent. I will leave Malawi much more inspired that it is good to dream when we have such brilliant women who can fulfil those dreams,” said Machel.
The graduation included a pitch competition by four graduates before a panel of four judges including director of microfinance institution Wealthnet, Nicholson Kumwenda.
The winner was Fannie Gondwe, an entrepreneur who multiplies and distributes vines of orange fleshed sweet potatoes and counts the government and non-governmental organisations among her clients.
WCW was first launched in Malawi in 2016 with an enrolment of 37 women from which 33 graduated after the completion of the programme.
The number of women entrepreneurs grew to 57 in the second class of 2017 from which 54 have graduated.
