Waabi, a Toronto-based AI startup that came out of stealth last year, says it’s developed an advanced simulator that can train autonomous vehicles to handle nearly limitless types of driving conditions–in a virtual world–and do so faster and more thoroughly than self-driving rivals that prioritize road tests.



The Waabi World platform is more comprehensive than any used by competitors as it can more accurately mimic real-world scenarios and create the types of rare, challenging “edge cases” that occur on the road only rarely, company founder and CEO Raquel Urtasun tells&nbsp;Forbes. Learning in this elaborate virtual world is happening constantly, preparing the software to eventually drive a range of vehicles from robotaxis to semi-trucks.



It’s the “most scalable, high-fidelity, closed-loop simulator that ever existed and, we believe, the key to unlocking self-driving technology at scale,” says Urtasun, who is also professor of computer science at the University of Toronto and a past chief scientist for Uber’s autonomous vehicle team. “It&#8217;s an immersive and reactive environment that can automatically design tests for our self-driving brain, which we call the Waabi Driver, and also automatically assess the skills of the Waabi Driver. Ultimately, it can also teach the Waabi Driver to learn the skills of driving.”



The company isn’t planning to license the Waabi World platform to other AV developers. Urtasun said the focus is on intense training of its software for now, declining to say when Waabi’s first autonomous vehicles would be on the road. We’re advancing really well, really, really fast,” she said, without elaborating.&nbsp;



The pace of development for the leading autonomous vehicle companies, including Alphabet Inc.’s Waymo, General Motors-backed Cruise, Argo Ai, which is funded by Ford and Volkswagen, Amazon’s Zoox and robotic truck developer TuSimple, has been somewhat slower than anticipated though all the companies are making progress toward broader commercialization. Those companies, which have raised billions of dollars, are doing rigorous on-road testing to verify software and sensors, as well as racking up countless miles in simulation, yet it’s unclear when robotaxis and autonomous trucks will be ubiquitous.



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Waabi–a name inspired by an Ojibwe word meaning “she has vision”–emerged from stealth mode in June 2021, announcing an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/alanohnsman/2021/06/08/uber-veteran-launches-her-ai-mindset-self-driving-startup-with-835-million-round/?sh=7e4babe26edf">initial $83.5 million funding</a>&nbsp;round. Urtasun declined to say whether she’s raised additional funds in subsequent rounds. The initial focus will be applying the Waabi Driver software to self-driving trucks, but Urtasun envisions broad usage across all forms of vehicles.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



“We talk a lot about how you need a different brain for the self-driving vehicle for it to generalize to all the different things that might happen, but there is one more piece that you need which is a different way of testing, as well as training the system to really handle all situations,” she says. “The industry mainly does this by testing and driving millions of miles in the real world. This is very costly and it doesn&#8217;t scale. &#8230; We need a totally different approach and this is what Waabi World is.”



If Waabi does indeed have a more comprehensive, robust simulation system than any that currently exists, it could prove to be a critical asset for the young company. The current limitations of simulation-based training software is one reason that Zoox is increasing its real-world testing, CTO and cofounder Jesse Levinson told reporters this week.&nbsp;



“In many ways the simulator is actually more useful than real driving but of course you can’t just not drive in real life either because simulations are not perfect, yet, We have not built the matrix for self-driving cars such that there are absolutely no differences between the simulated world and the real world,” he said. “It&#8217;s getting better and better so there are fewer and fewer things that you learn in real life that you can&#8217;t learn in simulation. But I do think it&#8217;s going to be a long time before there&#8217;s nothing you can learn in real life that you can&#8217;t learn in simulation.”



By Alan Ohnsman, Forbes Staff

Key Speakers At The Economist Canada Summit

Can Next-Generation Simulation Build A Better Self-Driving Car? This AI Upstart Thinks So

As Twitter’s first ever Chief Marketing Officer, <a href="https://twitter.com/leslieberland?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Leslie Berland</a> began her tenure in 2016 with an unconventional strategy, enlisting employees from across the organization to provide input into the company’s new brand identity. Never mind that many of them didn’t even think the company needed a brand identity at all. But Berland was determined to focus on employee input before launching any public facing marketing strategies. The approach paid off. Six years later, Berland still believes Twitter employees are the company’s north star. 



I spoke to Berland about this as well as Twitter’s efforts to combat harassment on the platform, how they’re elevating marginalized voices and of course, the enormous responsibility the platform takes on during world events. 



Amy Shoenthal:&nbsp;Tell me about your career path, going from a pretty high profile role at American Express to being the first CMO of Twitter.



Leslie Berland:&nbsp;I was at American Express for ten years. During those last few years I was focused on finding ways for American Express to innovate with younger companies.



When Twitter called to recruit me, it felt very much like a once in a lifetime opportunity. There hadn’t been a seated CMO at the company yet. It was 2016 and the world thought Twitter was dying. We were struggling to define who we were and where we were going.&nbsp;



Shoenthal: That sounds like a risky jump, going from a very established company where you had been for ten years to what perhaps seemed like a floundering tech company at the time. Berland: It definitely felt like a fork in the road decision. I don&#8217;t think those types of choices come by very often where you&#8217;re looking at two amazing but extremely different paths.So I made the jump. I loved the people. I deeply respected <a href="https://twitter.com/jack" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jack</a>. I loved the challenge. And I thought the potential impact was extraordinary. 



I was very much drawn to the ability to help shape and turn around a company with a group of employees who were committed to building for the future. The importance of the platform adds a weight to working here still, as you can see with everything going on in the world today. I am and have always been extremely confident in the staying power and the growing power of Twitter, even in the moments where everyone thought we were taking a different turn. I think it’s existential, necessary, critical and magical. Every day I’m grateful to be here. It has been every bit the ride I thought it was going to be with some extra twists and turns.&nbsp;



Shoenthal: Tell me about those extra twists and turns. How did you work through them?



Berland: There was so much happening at the company when I joined. Jack had just come back as CEO and the leadership team had changed quite significantly. There were amazingly talented people working in marketing but without a CMO, the marketing teams were siloed throughout the organization. It needed building and focus and organization early on. But you can’t come into an opportunity like that and boil the ocean. I couldn’t fix everything and build at the same time.&nbsp;&nbsp;



The biggest challenge was the perception. People define Twitter in so many different ways. But it was very clear that the confusion over those different definitions was holding us back. So I pulled a small team together to do some brand identity work. We did most of that work completely in house.



We eventually centered on this simple statement: “Twitter is what’s happening.” It wasn’t a splashy brand campaign. It was a way to center and anchor how we saw and understood ourselves.&nbsp;



The feedback from the industry at that time was, wow, Twitter finally knows what it is. It shows the power of prioritizing what’s important, trusting your people, not over layering with process. Once we set and established that foundation everything else came together naturally.



When you are at companies like ours, the employees are critical. The employees are the biggest supporters but also the biggest critics. We need the feedback from our people. Sometimes I see companies fall into the trap of doing all these external campaigns but they haven’t taken the time to allow the employees to absorb what it means. When we do anything externally, the first filter is the people. They are the litmus test of what we do and how we do it.&nbsp;&nbsp;



Jack and others recognized that I was so focused on our employees in the brand identity work we were doing, they actually suggested I expand my role to be the Head of People. That role is intense and meaningful. It was an enormous learning experience for me as somebody who cares deeply about the culture of this company.&nbsp;&nbsp;



Shoenthal: I want to talk about Jack a little bit since you mentioned how close you were. Jack Dorsey just left Twitter, what does that mean for you and for the company?



Berland: I am extremely grateful for the years Jack and I worked together.&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/paraga?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Parag</a>, our new CEO, worked very closely with Jack. I have been absolutely inspired by his leadership throughout this change. The way he has shown up, his focus, his decisiveness, his authenticity, his openness is exactly what we need in the next chapter. I love working with him and I have full confidence in where he’ll take us.&nbsp;



Shoenthal:&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/twitter" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Twitter’s</a>&nbsp;social media has always been great but you’ve really been on fire lately with&nbsp;<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/10/05/twitter-users-facebook-outage-instagram-whatsapp/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">“Hello, literally everyone”</a>&nbsp;when Facebook and Instagram were down, and “<a href="https://www.wired.com/story/twitter-were-sorry-or-youre-welcome/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">We’re sorry, or you’re welcome</a>” when announcing it was retiring the Fleets product feature. Can you let us in on any of the social marketing team’s secret sauce and how they’re able to quickly post such sharp and witty reactions to real-time events?



Berland: It’s funny because we haven’t always been so amazing at this. Our Twitter presence used to read like a marketing handle. Our purpose was serving public conversation but we weren’t actually being conversational. We spent so much time going back and forth debating what our tone was, and then one day we said we’re just going to start talking.&nbsp;



The first tweet that shifted to this was when we tweeted, “you up?” The amount of texts that came in asking if we were hacked was hilarious, and the amount of responses we got on the platform was astounding. It was such an important moment.&nbsp;&nbsp;



We are fortunate that we are able to see all the conversations on Twitter as they unfold. The team is just so incredible in knowing the pulse of what’s happening every day. They’re incredible with their writing, but also with just having fun.&nbsp;



A lot of companies worry that every tweet has to be well designed and perfect and make it a piece of marketing collateral. As a company we are weird, messy and silly but raw and authentic. Once we moved into that, it became our voice. Unshackle the teams and let them do what they do best. And of course make sure social media teams are diverse so you have lots of different perspectives so we’re not talking to ourselves. That’s critical.&nbsp;



Shoenthal: Speaking of diverse teams, how are you working to advance inclusion in an industry that&#8217;s taken so much heat for its lack of it?



Berland: I give all the credit to my colleagues and every single person at the company that pushes this culture forward. It is not a one person job.&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/DalanaBrand" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dalana Brand</a>&nbsp;is our Chief Human Resources Officer and she’s amazing. This is something that has always been very ingrained at Twitter but over the years we’ve become much more intentional and goal-oriented about it. Now we have put the resources, people and time behind it.&nbsp;



<a href="https://techcrunch.com/2018/11/02/twitter-hires-god-is-rivera-as-global-director-of-culture-and-community/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">God-is Rivera</a>&nbsp;runs culture and community.&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/GodisRivera" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">She</a>&nbsp;is all about elevating diverse voices on Twitter through events, experiences and conversations. We try to be very present and engaged so we can learn and truly serve those customers better – we’re always improving. It’s hard to build that trust, especially at a company like ours where people come onto the platform every day and interact with something different.&nbsp;&nbsp;



During the Black Lives Matter resurgence last June,&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/Twitter/status/1274087688321200128?s=20&amp;t=aNZz7yzmdsWvGq_1kBQZmg" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">we put tweets on billboards</a>. It was a series of simple tweets but the concept speaks to what we’re trying to do, which is elevate voices. Our teams have become so much more diverse over the past few years with our goal setting and our amazing I&amp;D team and the leaders working to keep people engaged. For us it’s not a ‘nice to do,’ it’s a must-do. We must look like all the communities we serve around the world.&nbsp;



Shoenthal: Twitter hasn’t always been a pinnacle of inclusion though. It’s been criticized for allowing harassment and bullying, specifically directed towards women. I know the company has recently taken more steps to combat this, can you comment on the actions that have been taken and what, if any, additional plans are in the works to help deal with this issue?



Berland: This was a huge problem when I started in 2016. To look back at the progress we’ve made is extraordinary and powerful. But this is always-on work that doesn’t end. I do give massive credit to engineering, product, trust &amp; safety and all the teams who do very important, very draining work.&nbsp;



Every employee at Twitter cares about this. People need to come to Twitter and feel safe. Everything from the controls we’ve created to who can engage with your tweets, to the more automated work tracking what’s said on the platform, addressing abuse and harassment, all the way to the time it takes people to respond when you report a tweet. This is something that touches everybody at the company in all of our work and will always be ongoing as the world continues to evolve and change. We learn and we grow and we evolve as well.&nbsp;



Shoenthal: Speaking of how the world is evolving and changing, it’s been a dramatic few days. Quite often, Twitter is the first place people turn to watch world events unfold in real-time. I noticed the&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/TwitterSafety/status/1496698664747687942?s=20&amp;t=1W3KB8t1db0rEUPXMRnXhg" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Twitter safety thread</a>&nbsp;about considerations when tweeting in conflict zones that was posted immediately when the attacks began in Ukraine. Can you share anything in terms of the role Twitter is playing during world events like the one we’re experiencing right now?



Berland: During times like these, we feel the weight of our work. Across the company, we feel that responsibility, that care and that empathy every single day. We have teams working on exactly what you’re referencing in regards to safety. We’re thinking through things like how do we ensure that we educate people and keep them safe while allowing these critical conversations to continue? How do we ensure that only credible information is surfaced, and people get access to the information they need? We need to make sure the foundation of Twitter is running so these critical conversations can happen. We take this seriously because we understand how much is at stake.



By Amy Shoenthal, Forbes Staff

Twitter’s #HereWeAre At Cannes Lions

How Twitter’s CMO Takes A People-First Approach To Leadership

2022 is unravelling a workforce that is re-emerging from social isolation and rejigging a global economy hard-hit by two pandemic years. It’s also often in challenging times that true leadership emerges from the cracks, and with renewed vigour. Some of these ground-breaking women leaders will share their thoughts and hard-earned insights at the 2022 FORBES WOMAN AFRICA Leading Women Summit, presented by Mastercard.



Coinciding with International Women’s Day, the free-to-attend, two-day summit will take place on the Hopin virtual platform on 8 and 9 March. Themed ‘Resetting Everything: The New Face of Leadership’, the fully-virtual seventh edition of the summit will bring together another powerful community of visionary champions. These industry leaders will use this platform to reflect on the times, trends and topics leading pandemic recovery in Africa and the world.



“As Africa looks to recover from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is critical that we build a better future &#8211; one where everyone is included,” says Ebehijie Momoh, Country Manager and Area Business Head for West Africa at Mastercard. “Mastercard has a strong sense of responsibility to take action when it comes to equality, which is why we are proud to present the FORBES WOMAN AFRICA Leading Women Summit. With an unparalleled speaker line-up, this year’s event promises to be a source of inspiration, empowerment and encouragement for leading women across the continent, as they set a new course for a more inclusive, and equitable future.”



“Having started only seven years ago, and pivoting to the virtual space during the pandemic years, the FORBES WOMAN AFRICA Leading Women Summit remains a popular annual event for global leaders,” said Renuka Methil, Managing Editor of FORBES AFRICA and FORBES WOMAN AFRICA. “This is a testament to the calibre of our speakers, the engaging platform, and the value attendees receive out of every discussion. We’re very excited to announce our exciting speaker line-up that brings together some of the continent’s most influential women for hard-hitting engagements and discussions.”



<h2 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading" id="h-2022-forbes-woman-africa-leading-women-summit-speaker-line-up">2022 FORBES WOMAN AFRICA Leading Women Summit speaker line-up</h2>



<h3 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading">Women in Science and Medicine</h3>



Dr Soumya Swaminathan is the WHO Chief Scientist, strengthening the organisation’s core scientific work and ensuring the quality and consistency of its norms and standards. A paediatrician from India and globally recognised researcher on TB and HIV, she brings 30 years of experience in clinical care and research.



Dr Shaheenah Dawood is a consultant medical oncologist and associate professor in clinical oncology in the United Arab Emirates. She’s been awarded multiple scholar-in-training awards and ASCO merit awards. She served as an editorial fellow at the New England Journal of Medicine and has an MPH from the Harvard School of Public Health. She leads the oncology clinical trials programme at Mediclinic City Hospital Dubai, and serves on various leading summits.



Mabusha Petronella Nyelisani is a Natural Scientist with an MBA degree, BSc Honours degree and BSc degree in Geology. She has a decade of experience in mining, currently working as a project geologist at Anglo American’s Kumba Iron Ore where she manages day-to-day operations at an exploration project.



Makobo Penelope Simelane is a Senior Geologist with an MBA and BSc Honours degree in geology and more than a decade of experience in aspects of the mining value chain. She works as a Resource Modelling and Estimation Geologist at Anglo American’s Kumba Iron Ore Sishen Mine and Centurion Corporate Office.



<h3 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading">Women in Finance, Technology and Business</h3>



Phuthi Mahanyele-Dabengwa is the CEO of Naspers in South Africa, having previously cofounded Sigma Capital, an investment holding company and holding various high-profile positions in finance. She’s involved in several youth development initiatives and is part of the Dignity Day programme led by Young Global Leaders of the World Economic Forum. She sits on many boards and has several accolades including CNBC Africa’s All Africa Business Leaders ‘Woman of the Year Award’ in 2019 and the Forbes Woman Africa ‘Businesswoman of the Year’ Award in 2014. In 2020, Phuthi ranked number 42 on Fortune’s Most Powerful Women International list.



Jane Karuku, MGH, is the Group Managing Director and CEO at East African Breweries Limited, one of Kenya’s biggest manufacturers. Her experience in fast-moving consumer goods and NPOs spans more than 25 years. She has served on several boards including Barclays Bank (now ABSA Kenya), and is currently a Trustee of Precious Sisters, an NPO that empowers underprivileged girls though education scholarships. Jane has been recognized and awarded for her contribution to the country’s social and economic development. She’s been awarded the Presidential Order of Service, Uzalendo Award and the Moran of Golden Heart (MGH) Award for her contributions to the country.



Beatrice Cornacchia is Senior Vice President of Marketing and Communications for Mastercard in Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (EEMEA) and is the creative force leading the company’s brand strategy across the region’s markets. After starting her journey with the company in 1991, Cornacchia went on to head strategic sales functions and numerous marketing teams in a succession of key roles including Head of Consumer Marketing, Europe; Head of Issuer and Merchant Marketing, Europe; and Head of Marketing, Italy and Greece. Ebehijie Momoh is the Country Manager and Area Business Head, West Africa, Mastercard. She holds a BSc in Chemistry, and two MBAs. Based in Nigeria, Ebehijie is responsible for advancing the Mastercard brand presence in West Africa, deploying innovative payment solutions and partnering with local governments and market regulators to build a World Beyond Cash.



Neema Iyer is a Tanzanian artist, technologist, and founder of Pollicy, a feminist civic technology collective based in Uganda. She co-hosts the Terms and Conditions podcast, is a Practitioner Fellow at Stanford’s Digital Civil Society Lab and is on Meta’s (formerly Facebook) Global Women’s Safety Advisory Board.



Dayo Ademola is the MD for Branch International, a San Francisco-based fintech operating in Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania and India. She has more than 15 years’ experience in technology, fintech, banking and financial inclusion. She is passionate about leveraging technology and capital to deepen access to financial services and wealth for Africans at all levels. Dayo holds a Degree in International Business and Economics.



<h3 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading">Women in Activism</h3>



Zandile Ndhlovu is the founder of The Black Mermaid Foundation, an organisation which works to enable local community access to ocean spaces for recreation, sport and business, while creating a new generation of ocean guardians. She’s a diversity and inclusion consultant contributing to global topics on ocean conservation, climate change and coastal justice.



Divya Vasant is a purpose-driven entrepreneur, founder and CEO of AMAZI, a social impact brand for enabling the economic inclusion of women. She has a background as a financial analyst, is an alumnus of the Zanele Mbeki Fellowship for Feminist Leadership, and believes mentorship is fundamental in supporting women create their own spaces



<h3 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading">Women in Sports</h3>



Salima Rhadia Mukansanga has been a Rwandan international football referee since 2012. She started out in nursing, having received a Degree in Nursing before pivoting into her role as referee. To date she has officiated a number of top games including games for Afcon, FIFA and the Olympics.



<h3 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading">Women in Arts, Social Entrepreneurship and Media</h3>



Harnaaz Sandhu was crowned Miss Universe 2021 and is also an actress with two Indian films set for release in 2022. She is committed to female empowerment and draws inspiration from her mother who broke generations of patriarchy to become a successful gynaecologist.



Emma Wareus won the Miss Botswana crown in 2010 before taking Miss Africa 2010 and then the first princess crown in the Miss World pageant later that year. Her humanitarian efforts include running a malaria programme with the Clinton Foundation; and becoming a brand ambassador for Cuplings, providing menstrual cups to girls. She has a Masters from the Elliot School of International Affairs and is building pro-community services with AI company, Dobby.



Shalin Sirkar is a graduate in Psychology and Legal Studies with an Honours in Philosophy, PoliBcs and Economics. She has worked in various NGOs as well as production roles in the South African film industry, establishing Chalia Films in 2004. Shalin wrote, directed, edited and produced the film MINESH, which premiered at the 70th Venice International Film Festival. In 2016, she created Kismet Rising where she works as a psychic clairvoyant.



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



The 2022 Leading Women Summit has been made possible by esteemed sponsors, Mastercard and the Multichoice Group, who share our vision to encapsulate Africa&#8217;s success through storytelling, thought-provoking debates, and high-level discussions that would shape the future of Africa, for current and future female leaders.



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="287" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Screenshot-2022-03-03-at-15.36.40-1024x287.png" alt="" class="wp-image-54480" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Screenshot-2022-03-03-at-15.36.40-1024x287.png 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Screenshot-2022-03-03-at-15.36.40-300x84.png 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Screenshot-2022-03-03-at-15.36.40-768x216.png 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Screenshot-2022-03-03-at-15.36.40.png 1190w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure></div>



How to get involved:



You can become a part of the change by registering to attend the summit; visit the following platforms:



Register on <a href="https://hopin.com/events/forbes-woman-africa-leading-women-summit-2022">Hopin</a> for the two-day summit Our <a href="https://leadingwomensummit.co.za/">Leading Women Summit</a> website



Or you can follow and engage with us on social media @LWSummit or @forbeswomanafrica by using the hashtag #LWS2022. 



You may also come on board as an event sponsor or by exhibiting at the online marketplace.



Contact details: Sponsorship and exhibition opportunities: sales@abn360.com Media-related enquiries: yolande.dutoit@abn360.com Event-related queries: events@abn360.com

Green Circle Social Media Platforms Mind Map

Dynamic speaker line-up announced for the 2022 FORBES WOMAN AFRICA Leading Women Summit

Untitled design (19)

50 Over 50: EMEA 2022

Dentaa Amoateng loved sports, singing and acting, but went on to become a paediatric nurse and a cultural bridge between the diaspora and Ghana recognized by the British royals. 



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-style-large is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">“In London, at the time, you had so many knife crimes and black-on-black crimes and so I wanted people, especially young, black people, to know that you have great role models to look up to. And that’s how it started. I called up some friends and we did it.”  </blockquote>



American author Helen Keller once famously said, &#8220;Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much.&#8221; For&nbsp;Dentaa&nbsp;Amoateng these words provided the context for her vision to create a bridge between Ghana and the diaspora.&nbsp;&nbsp;



Her&nbsp;work using the GUBA Awards, a&nbsp;non-profit&nbsp;organization that focuses on enriching the African community in the diaspora and in Africa with the aim of empowerment and growth, earned her the&nbsp;prestigious recognition of MBE by the British royal family.&nbsp;



Amoateng has promoted&nbsp;the national interest of Ghana and the African community&nbsp;for the past decade and within that time, the GUBA Awards&nbsp;have&nbsp;welcomed luminaries from all over the world such as former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and wife Cherie Blair, British Prime Minister&nbsp;Boris Johnson and Ghanaian president Nana Akufo-Addo.&nbsp;



Through the awards, Amoateng&nbsp;has also championed socio-economic development in Ghana by providing access for Ghanaians in the diaspora to relocate back home and contribute to the development of their country.&nbsp;



Little did Amoateng know that when she relocated from Ghana at age five to the United&nbsp;Kingdom,&nbsp;barely&nbsp;able to speak a word of English,&nbsp;that she would be one of the leading advocates of the country.&nbsp;



“I&nbsp;was&nbsp;bullied because I was the only&nbsp;dark-skinned&nbsp;girl and the only girl with short hair so I looked different and I remember wishing I was white because they were more comfortable.&nbsp;So,&nbsp;growing up was difficult for me. When I was 11 or 12 that’s when I started appreciating where I was from and who I was,” says Amoateng.&nbsp;



With a natural affinity for sports, Amoateng liked athletics and would consistently beat her cousin who was her running mate&nbsp;and&nbsp;who&nbsp;ended up running for the English&nbsp;athletics team. Amoateng was not encouraged by her parents to pursue it. She had a love for singing but was&nbsp;yet again&nbsp;discouraged.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“They also said no to acting which I loved. They wanted me to be a doctor or lawyer. My dad asked me what else I liked instead of the creatives and I said&nbsp;‘I liked children’&nbsp;and he said&nbsp;‘why don’t you be a pediatric nurse’&nbsp;and I said&nbsp;‘ok,&nbsp;I’ll try it’&nbsp;and I loved it. I qualified at 21 as a pediatric nurse,” says Amoateng.&nbsp;&nbsp;



But this time she held on to her dream of acting. She&nbsp;started securing roles on television in the UK&nbsp;in series such as&nbsp;EastEnders&nbsp;and completed her A levels in performing arts, sociology and media&nbsp;before completing a degree in nursing which she still&nbsp;practises&nbsp;today.&nbsp;



She took her love for the media to the next level by creating her own talk show,&nbsp;The&nbsp;Dentaa&nbsp;Show, where she would&nbsp;go to&nbsp;Ghana and interview prominent people and bring it&nbsp;to&nbsp;television networks in&nbsp;the&nbsp;UK.&nbsp;That journey led to the GUBA Awards in 2009 to celebrate the people who were doing amazing work in Africa and the diaspora.&nbsp;



“In London,&nbsp;at the time,&nbsp;you had&nbsp;so many knife crimes and black-on-black crimes and so I wanted people,&nbsp;especially&nbsp;young, black&nbsp;people,&nbsp;to know that you have great role models to look up to. And that’s how it started. I called up some friends and we did it.”&nbsp;&nbsp;



“We had&nbsp;Channel 4, the&nbsp;BBC&nbsp;and so many media outlets and it was crazy how people took to the awards and ever since,&nbsp;it has just grown. I wanted GUBA to be the African Grammys where people hear about GUBA&nbsp;and get excited,” says&nbsp;Amoateng.&nbsp;&nbsp;



From selling her first car due to a lack of sponsorship for the&nbsp;first GUBA Awards to growing&nbsp;the platform into&nbsp;a&nbsp;movement, Amoateng has come far.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“We started&nbsp;doing the GUBA expo promoting ‘made in Ghana’&nbsp;products to the UK market where we have had Tesco,&nbsp;Body&nbsp;Shop,&nbsp;Asos&nbsp;etc.&nbsp;coming to our events. We also grew to GUBA careers looking at Ghanaians in the diaspora who want to come back home and get jobs. We have managed to get so many people back home to Ghana&nbsp;to&nbsp;work,” says Amoateng.&nbsp;&nbsp;



The platform also&nbsp;offers&nbsp;work experiences where&nbsp;they&nbsp;take nurses from Ghana to hospitals and help them develop.&nbsp;Recently, Amoateng also developed the&nbsp;“Guba diaspora card”&nbsp;which is a discount card, a first of its kind in Ghana.&nbsp;&nbsp;



At the time of&nbsp;her&nbsp;MBE, Amoateng&nbsp;had been organizing the GUBA Awards for only five years.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“I got a letter saying I am being&nbsp;honored&nbsp;for my contribution in bridging the gap between the UK and Africa. I had also been able to get a lot of businesses from the UK to&nbsp;Ghana and vice versa and I never expected that. I always thought of MBE for people who were older and to achieve that in my 30s was a bit of a shock&nbsp;and it inspired me to do more and not give up.”&nbsp;

Dentaa Amoateng pic supplied

From The Queen To Ghana

Three years ago, MacKenzie Scott was an author, wife, and mother of four who&#8217;d started an anti-bullying group and, in the 90s, helped her husband launch Amazon. She kept a low profile—but then she divorced Jeff Bezos, got a quarter of his Amazon stake and almost immediately started planning how to give it all away. “I have a disproportionate amount of money to share,” she<a href="https://givingpledge.org/Pledger.aspx?id=393" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">&nbsp;wrote</a>&nbsp;in May 2019 when she signed the Giving Pledge, promising to give away at least half her wealth to charitable causes. “I will keep at it until the safe is empty.”&nbsp;&nbsp;



Scott has not only begun to make good on her word, but she’s doing so at a record pace and with total control over where her money goes: In a little more than two years, Scott, who is worth $57 billion, has given $8.6 billion to 780 organizations promoting issues including gender equity, racial justice, public health and beyond.&nbsp; She has done so without an office or even a mailing address, and with scant evidence of a full-time staff. Instead she works with her husband Dan, researchers and advisers from nonprofit consulting firm Bridgespan. She answers to no one, has no board of directors (that we know of) and, because she’s not making gifts through a charitable foundation, no reporting requirements, either. (In comparison, the Gates Foundation, which has nearly 1,800 employees, made $5.8 billion in grants in 2020. Scott distributed slightly more than $5.8 billion that year.)&nbsp;



And, crucially, she employs a “no-strings attached” giving philosophy, meaning each organization can use the funds however they see fit. “It empowers receivers by making them feel valued and by unlocking their best solutions,”&nbsp;<a href="https://mackenzie-scott.medium.com/seeding-by-ceding-ea6de642bf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Scott wrote on Medium in June</a>.



“A gift like this for a nonprofit is equivalent to a billion dollars,”<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisettevoytko/2021/07/07/inside-mackenzie-scotts-no-strings-attached-philanthropy-i-was-in-tears/?sh=78acb27d5bb6">&nbsp;Accion Opportunity Fund chief executive Luz Urrutia told&nbsp;Forbes</a>&nbsp;in July. (Accion is a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/advisor/business-loans/best-small-business-loans/">small business loan</a>&nbsp;provider in California focusing on women and Black-owned businesses; it&nbsp; received $15 million from Scott this year.)



Whether or not a $15 million gift is truly equivalent to $1 billion is up for debate, but there is no doubt that Scott is single handedly upending the model of how billionaires give away fortunes while supporting causes that look to disrupt the status quo and promote social justice. She is also questioning the system that put her into this position of power. “We are all attempting to give away a fortune that was enabled by systems in need of change,” she said this summer.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-style-large is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">I have a disproportionate amount of money to share. I will keep at it until the safe is empty.<cite>MacKenzie Scott</cite></blockquote>



At a time when billionaires like her ex-husband are blasting off to space, Scott is using her massive fortune to not only support nonprofits doing good work, but also to challenge the way wealth and power is accumulated in this country.



“Putting large donors at the center of stories on social progress is a distortion of their role,” Scott wrote in the June post.&nbsp; “In this effort, we are governed by a humbling belief that it would be better if disproportionate wealth were not concentrated in a small number of hands, and that the solutions are best designed and implemented by others.”



Many of the world’s most powerful women still have to answer to someone else. In the case of U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, it’s her boss, President Joe Biden. The president of the European Central Bank, Christine Lagarde, who is elected by leaders of the European Union, has an executive board (and governing council) tempering her decision-making process. Even Melinda French Gates, now a billionaire in her own right following her divorce from Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates, leads the Gates Foundation alongside her ex—but has stated that if they can’t get along over the next two years, she will be the one who steps down from the foundation. Meanwhile, Scott has no such restraints.&nbsp;



For these reasons, Forbes has named Scott the world’s most powerful woman for the first time ever. She takes the place of Germany’s longtime chancellor Angela Merkel, who is retiring from public office. Merkel held the top spot for 15 of the last 17 years Forbes has been publishing this ranking; the only years she wasn’t number one were 2004, a year before she became chancellor and when then-Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was on top, and 2010, when then-First Lady Michelle Obama was recognized.



“My hope is that MacKenzie’s style of giving inspires the philanthropic sector, and inspires other donors to give in a way that supports bold, big visions,”&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisettevoytko/2021/07/07/inside-mackenzie-scotts-no-strings-attached-philanthropy-i-was-in-tears/?sh=78acb27d5bb6">says</a>&nbsp;Favianna Rodriguez, who works to aid communities of color in Oakland, California. “We don&#8217;t have a lot of time. We&#8217;re looking at the crisis of the epidemic, the economic crisis, the climate crisis, and this moment of racial reckoning.”



With $57 billion still to give away, Scott has big plans to continue to affect real change and have a lasting impact on the historically underfunded and overlooked. As she puts it: “Generosity is generative. Sharing makes more.”



By Maggie McGrath, Forbes Staff



<a href="http://www.forbes.com/pictures/61a8ee4f94660f9f053925cb/the-worlds-most-powerful/"></a>

Axel Springer award ceremony

Why MacKenzie Scott Is The World’s Most Powerful Woman

Forbes’ 18th annual list of power women includes 40 CEOs, 19 world leaders, an immunologist and, for the first time in more than a decade, a new number one.



LIKE SO MUCH in 2021, the state of female power around the world looks a bit different than it did just one or two years ago. Women have gained ground in the c-suite—among the women on Forbes’ 18th annual list of the World’s 100 Most Powerful Women are 40 CEOs, the most since 2015, who oversee a record $3.3 trillion in revenue. But what they gained in the boardroom, they lost elsewhere. For instance, there are two fewer female heads of states than a year ago.



Nothing illustrates the dynamics of this list better than the change at the very top. For only the third time in the 18 years we’ve compiled this ranking, German chancellor Angela Merkel is not No. 1. With her imminent retirement from public office comes a chance to find a new number one; this year, that honor goes to billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott. She’s the third richest woman in the world, but it’s her unfettered access to that money—and her determination to donate it in a way that is meaningful and revolutionary—that puts her above the competition. 



“We are all attempting to give away a fortune that was enabled by systems in need of change,” Scott said this summer.



Just behind her at No. 2 is U.S. vice president Kamala Harris, who moves up one spot now that she’s been sworn into office, swapping places with Christine Lagarde, the president of the European Central Bank who is now No. 3. All of these women represent the driving thesis behind the compilation of the list: it’s not just enough to have money, or a position of power. 



A person must be doing something with their fortune, voice or public platform. Consider Rosalind Brewer, the former chief operating officer of Starbucks who took the helm of Walgreens in March and is currently the only Black woman running an S&amp;P 500 company. 



A longtime champion of diversity in the workplace, Brewer rose 15 spots to No. 17. Or BioNTech cofounder and immunologist Özlem Türeci, who is one of 20 newcomers this year. She makes her debut on the list at No. 48 not simply because she co-founded a biotech company, but also because of her role in leading the company’s development of the mRNA Covid vaccine, in partnership with global pharmaceuticals giant Pfizer.



 N



othing illustrates the dynamics of this list better than the change at the very top. For only the third time in the 18 years we’ve compiled this ranking, German chancellor Angela Merkel is not No. 1. With her imminent retirement from public office comes a chance to find a new number one; this year, that honor goes to billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott. She’s the third richest woman in the world, but it’s her unfettered access to that money—and her determination to donate it in a way that is meaningful and revolutionary—that puts her above the competition. “We are all attempting to give away a fortune that was enabled by systems in need of change,” Scott said this summer. Just behind her at No. 2 is U.S. vice president Kamala Harris, who moves up one spot now that she’s been sworn into office, swapping places with Christine Lagarde, the president of the European Central Bank who is now No. 3. All of these women represent the driving thesis behind the compilation of the list: it’s not just enough to have money, or a position of power. A person must be doing something with their fortune, voice or public platform. Consider Rosalind Brewer, the former chief operating officer of Starbucks who took the helm of Walgreens in March and is currently the only Black woman running an S&amp;P 500 company. A longtime champion of diversity in the workplace, Brewer rose 15 spots to No. 17. Or BioNTech cofounder and immunologist Özlem Türeci, who is one of 20 newcomers this year. She makes her debut on the list at No. 48 not simply because she cofounded a biotech company, but also because of her role in leading the company’s development of the mRNA Covid vaccine, in partnership with global pharmaceuticals giant Pfizer.



Also making her debut on the list, at no. 94, is the new president of Tanzania, Samia Suluhu Hassan; she has been instrumental in implementing Covid protocols in her country. Then there’s Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, whose outspoken adherence to freedom and democracy in the face of increased pressure from China vaulted her 28 spots to No. 9. 



“We must safeguard our shared values to ensure our free and democratic way of life,” she said in late November. 



Some women on this list saw their power eroded in the past year. That’s particularly true for some of the women in China, where President Xi Jinping’s crackdown of the tech sector and business activities has meant less autonomy—and, in turn, lower ranks for the likes of Gree Electric’s Dong Mingzhu (down 11 spots to No. 58) and Yum China CEO Joey Wat (down 39 slots to No. 73). 



Even Queen Elizabeth isn’t immune from a reevaluation: now ranked No. 70, the monarch dropped 24 spots as a result of her diminished public appearances and the myriad of reputation crises that hit the Crown this year (including, but not limited to, Duchess Meghan Markle’s allegations of racist treatment). 



While the people on the 18th annual list of the World’s 100 Most Powerful Women come from 30 countries and territories and work across finance, technology, politics, philanthropy, entertainment and more, they are united by a sense of duty. Frances Haugen, the former Facebook employee-turned-whistleblower, and No. 100 on this year’s list, didn’t set out to release reams of data on her former employer, but has said she couldn’t stand by and watch as the company put profits over people. 



Taylor Swift (No. 78) didn’t make her first albums intending to re-record them a decade later, but it’s what she’s had to do to retain her ownership rights—and to prove to other artists the value of their work. 



“Our experience can’t be dictated by what we’re allowed to do or given permission to do,” says film director Ava Duvernay (No. 80). If there’s a thesis statement for this list, that’s as close as it comes: These are the women who are rewriting the rules of business, finance and politics. Their work is needed now more than ever.



Edited by Moira Forbes and Maggie McGrath with reporting by Nicolette Jones and Erika Burho



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/power-women/#3af596ce5e25">See full list here</a>

US-WTO-SECRETARY GENERAL-NGOZI

THE WORLD’S MOST POWERFUL WOMEN 2021

TOPLINE In year two of the pandemic, as South Africa celebrates Women’s Month, we can’t but look back at the lives impacted and the businesses that have been throttled by a virulent virus. Yet, in all of this, there are rays of hope, as some have shone through, to ideate and innovate and also lend a helping hand by making sure women and girls are at the center of their pandemic-proof enterprises. These female entrepreneurs have businesses in fashion and food, and run NGOs and social reform. For some, these are side hustles, but no matter the nature of their undertaking, they aim to uplift, upskill and empower. FORBES AFRICA sat down with a few such doers to glean their thoughts on how they are making it:



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-shared-collective">1. Shared Collective</h2>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/1-2-1024x576.png" alt="" class="wp-image-52325" width="586" height="329" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/1-2-1024x576.png 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/1-2-300x169.png 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/1-2-768x432.png 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/1-2-1536x864.png 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/1-2.png 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 586px) 100vw, 586px" /></figure></div>



“I saw this TikTok that said I couldn’t work a nine-to-five but now I am an entrepreneur who works 24/7!” laughs Kishana Naidoo, co-founder of digital clothing platform Shared Collective or Shared Co.



“But at least we have a creative outlet,” says her business partner and fellow co-founder, Simone Veitch.



Although Veitch is in London and Naidoo in Johannesburg, both cities that are big economic hubs, the pandemic presented an opportunity for them to take advantage of the rising trend in digital spaces.



Shared Co. is a platform for women to share their wardrobe and rent from others. It enables them to monetize their clothing items by renting them out and reducing their retail consumption by renting items from others.



Although this business model will raise many questions such as ‘who rents clothes out to people during a pandemic’, the duo make it clear that security and safety is of utmost importance to them.



“We have a strict dry-cleaning policy that people both renting out and those who rent have to follow,” Veitch says. “Furthermore, with the delivery process, we want people to feel safe when going through our process.”



The inspiration for the brand came when both women working in the corporate sector were forced to pause and think when Covid struck.



“I think a lot of people went through that,” Naidoo says. “We wanted to create something that both helps women get a second income as well as feel empowered.”



“The end goal for us has always been empowering women,” Veitch adds.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">2. Hair For Life</h2>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/IMG_0462-1024x992.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-52323" width="347" height="336" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/IMG_0462-1024x992.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/IMG_0462-300x291.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/IMG_0462-768x744.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/IMG_0462.jpg 1170w" sizes="(max-width: 347px) 100vw, 347px" /></figure></div>



Getting a business to run successfully during the pandemic has been a hair-raising task for most. But 29-year-old Khanyi Cele believes the magic tool to any successful business these days is utilizing social media. Hair For Life took root when Cele was searching for good quality hair for herself and was not impressed with what salons had to offer. She tells us more:



Q. What has it been like having a business during a pandemic and what has your business trajectory looked like? 



A. I have been fortunate that my business actually started picking up as Covid restrictions eased… my business has honestly not been affected in a major way by the pandemic. My business trajectory has been rather a smooth one if I should say, but with any business, there are always bumps and curves here and there especially if you working with international suppliers.



Q. You use social media as the main tool to promote your product. Do you think the future of business lies in social media?



A. Social media is certainly a platform to be reckoned with. It’s cost-effective and effective in getting your product out to people. The fact that you can reach out to people all over the world is a major selling point as I have customers from all corners asking me if I ship internationally. It is in my opinion the future of direct marketing. The results are almost instant and noticeable.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">3. Team DIMA Global </h2>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/team-dima_-1024x768.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-52331" width="578" height="434" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/team-dima_-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/team-dima_-300x225.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/team-dima_-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/team-dima_-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/team-dima_.jpg 1890w" sizes="(max-width: 578px) 100vw, 578px" /></figure></div>



The University of Pennsylvania said in a report that the stigma and challenges associated with menstruation destabilize over 800 million girls daily.



“One in every ten schoolgirls in sub-Saharan Africa miss school daily. Girls report being bullied and ridiculed about their period by peers and teachers with serious and sometimes fatal consequences,” the report read.



However, they also found that global advocacy for what the world knows as “period positivity” with people demanding access to menstruation products and facilities exposes social and economic inequities and the need for reform.



One of those advocates is social entrepreneur Dima-Thalia Rizk. All the way from the heart of London, Rizk founded her community organization, Team DIMA Global, with her twin-sister Mary. The company launched a long-term project to handle “menstrual hygiene management” in Kenya. The project looks at ensuring that every girl has access to period pads 365 days a year. Period poverty is one of Rizk’s main concerns and the stigmas centered around menstruation.



“Without a doubt, menstruation is one of the most challenging topics in Africa and the world today,” Rizk says to FORBES AFRICA. “It&#8217;s a shame that we&#8217;re in 2021 and still trying to make progress in normalizing menstruation and working to help women and girls access sanitary products. It is a natural process most females have to go through and there is hardly any consideration of their wellbeing; affordable access is a human right.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">4. Khanyalanga Catering </h2>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/phumi-682x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-52327" width="284" height="426" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/phumi-682x1024.jpg 682w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/phumi-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/phumi-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/phumi.jpg 853w" sizes="(max-width: 284px) 100vw, 284px" /></figure></div>



Motto You Live By: “I have two – &#8216;Carpe Diem&#8217; and ‘When the going gets tough, breathe, focus and move on&#8217;.”



Deloitte stated in a report in March 2020 that the majority of catering companies (particularly SMEs) “have faced sharp declines in customer numbers, ruptured asset chains, or other momentous challenges”. This was no different during the pandemic for KwaZulu-Natal-born Phumelele Masinga who saw a downward trajectory for her business which she founded in 2018.



“It&#8217;s been extremely challenging for Khanyalanga Catering,” Masinga says. “Seeing that the majority of our clients were in corporates, we took a knock as the work-from-home concept took shape. So the on and off between [lockdown alert] levels has really affected how we do business.”



Most of the challenges that Masinga has experienced has revolved around cancellations and postponements and having to adapt to making more food deliveries, as opposed to simply setting up and serving.



However, this has not demotivated Masinga in any way as she has seen through word-of-mouth that her business has grown, which she says is by “word of taste”.



“Yes, I learned some tough lessons in the beginning and I have had to adapt and be flexible (especially during this period), and I believe that we are agile enough for Khanyalanga to be a sustainable and successful business,” Masinga adds.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">5. La Shadie</h2>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/lashade-1024x768.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-52328" width="516" height="387" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/lashade-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/lashade-300x225.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/lashade-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/lashade-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/lashade.jpg 1890w" sizes="(max-width: 516px) 100vw, 516px" /></figure></div>



Nobody loves a side hustle and a passion for fashion more than sisters Boitumelo Moshugi and Neo Moshugi who founded sunglass brand, La Shadie. Both are practising Candidate Attorneys in Johannesburg aspiring to become successful attorneys and entrepreneurs.



La Shadie was birthed in June last year when Neo was unemployed.



“Boitumelo came to me with the opportunity to start a sunglass business,” Neo says. “I considered it for some time but after she showed me the research she had done, I was convinced. I had a love for sunglasses and as we delved deeper into our research, my love for the business opportunity grew.”



“What inspired La Shadie is our passion for fashion. I was always questioned about my unique sense of style and the choice of sunglasses when pairing my outfits, which led me to want to bring a vision to people in the market place that’s so unique that they cannot be found in retail stores,” Boitumelo adds.



The main marketing tool the Moshugi sisters use is social media which has allowed them to see great demand for their products. More than that, starting a business during Covid has surprisingly helped them in their growth trajectory.



“Having a business during the pandemic has been an incredible experience because of the creativity it has brought to growing our business. Although it was daunting at first, we dove in head first and kept the momentum going.”



(The List is in No particular Order)

Business owner hanging an open sign at a cafe

Survivors and Thrivers: Female Entrepreneurs Redefining Hustle In Africa

If you are pregnant, the greater your chances of being vulnerable to serious Covid-19 illness.



A September 2020 report by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stated: “Pregnant women with Covid-19 were found to be more likely to be hospitalized and require ICU admission than non-pregnant women.”



According to South Africa’s Department of Health, pregnancy is a time when the immune system changes so pregnant women “should continue with standard precautionary measures such as avoiding crowded places, limiting the use of public transport where possible, washing their hands regularly with soap and water, and avoiding touching their face”.



Already in Africa, the World Health Organization (WHO) has stated that maternal health – or the health of women during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period, and their reproductive health – is a human rights issue.



Sandra Orta, General Manager for South Africa &amp; Sub-Saharan Africa at Roche, a global partner in pharmaceuticals and diagnostics, agrees.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-style-default is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">“Antenatal is not taken seriously enough, and it is a serious problem. However, it is a millennial goal to ensure that there is better access to antenatal care.”<cite><meta charset="utf-8">Sandra Orta</cite></blockquote>



Orta says that there are considerable gaps in maternal health interventions like antenatal care. Or the fact that WHO also reported that every day, approximately 830 women die from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth; and 99% of all maternal deaths occur in developing countries.



Maternal mortality is higher in women living in rural areas and among poorer communities.



“The poorer the area, the more the area is affected,” Orta says to FORBES AFRICA. “And now with Covid-19, we don’t have exact numbers because it is still too early but what we have seen is that patients have been going less to see their doctors or having to postpone their appointments because maybe there are restrictions or no public transport.”



And what is also not looked into, Orta adds, is how antenatal care brings emotional support to the mother.



“What we need to remember is knowing that the baby is ok and healthy; that brings you less anxiety and moms need to be supported. Everything that we feel, the baby feels as well.”



The biggest challenge in South Africa, according to Professor Koleka Mlisana, Executive Manager: Academic Affairs, Research and Quality Assurance at the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) and also co-chair of the Ministerial Advisory Committee (MAC), is that there is no data that specifically looks at pregnant women.



“So the burden of Covid-19 among pregnant women would just come from admission surveillance work that is done by the NICD (The National Institute for Communicable Diseases),” Mlisana said, in an interview with FORBES AFRICA in June.



“There is a serious lack of data because we don’t know how many pregnant women we have in [the] country at any point of time.”



“That is a sign that there is no good or not enough antenatal care,” Orta adds, “Antenatal is not taken seriously enough, and it is a serious problem. However, it is a millennial goal to ensure that there is better access to antenatal care.”



But the data that is available point to the fact that 10% of Covid cases are made up of pregnant women.



“What surveillance work is showing is that pregnant women have a higher risk of hospitalization compared to [other] women, even though they are in hospital.”



In South Africa’s initial vaccine rollout phase, only pregnant women with comorbidities or at higher risk of infection could receive Covid-19 vaccinations, but now, with vaccines encompassing the younger generation, women of childbearing age are all included.



“Women are key pillars for our communities, for families and it is very important that we look after them,” Orta says.

SRI LANKA-HEALTH-VIRUS-VACCINE

Pregnant Women And Covid-19: Risks And Reports

Through their retail tech platform, Natasha Buchler and Annie Rudnick are also shining a light on Africa’s unsung, talented artists.



IF YOU WANT TO change the world, start with Africa. While that seems to be the prevailing mantra for the new world, it was what Natasha Buchler wanted too – to impact lives on the continent whilst also promoting homegrown talent.



In 2016, she was working as a senior director at K2 Intelligence, when she planned the launch of her new charity, Bella Teaching Foundation, an initiative to provide free skills training to unemployed youth in Ghana.



At the time, the dream to start a movement that would empower 43 designers and impact the lives of over 8,000 people across the African continent was unfathomable. Fast forward a few years and that is exactly what she has achieved with her co-founder Annie Rudnick, with the launch of Akojo Market, a platform in the United Kingdom selling handmade accessories, homeware, gifts, and fashion.



“Akojo means ‘collective’ or ‘a collection’ in Yoruba. For us, it really encompasses what we want to create, which is a community and a collection of beautiful handmade and artisanal products across Africa. Ninety percent of our designers are in sub-Saharan Africa,” says Buchler to FORBES AFRICA.



When they launched in April 2019, they only had 10 designers and since then, the platform has garnered interest, growing to 43 designers, with between five and 15 products per brand. Buchler met Rudnick, originally from Zimbabwe, when they were both in school, and years later, their complementary experiences are what has made Akojo Market what it is today.



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft size-full is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Screenshot-2021-08-19-at-14.48.54.png" alt="" class="wp-image-52214" width="432" height="254" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Screenshot-2021-08-19-at-14.48.54.png 486w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Screenshot-2021-08-19-at-14.48.54-300x177.png 300w" sizes="(max-width: 432px) 100vw, 432px" /></figure></div>



Rudnick, with a background in the history of art and communications for major international art galleries, brings the curation and representation-of-artists element to the brand with an overview of product selection as well as the website’s aesthetics, while Buchler, having had a brief stint in business intelligence where she was responsible for working on behalf of financial institutions, international partners and high networth individuals, handles the due diligence, ethics and compliance components of the business. At the core of the company is its vision to be a leading platform for talented artisans and designers to sell their products internationally.



“We really wanted to work with brands that were doing amazing things in terms of people and planet and working with the supply chain to make sure that the artists and artisans are more than paid and they don’t have to leave villages to take up degrading work in urban areas,” says Buchler.



Over the years, traditional craft, which is the lifeline for most rural communities across Africa, has been gradually dying out and is not as lucrative as it once was. So Buchler and Rudnick came up with a plan to become a third-party tech enabler to help indigenous artisans 



continue supporting their families and communities through the Akojo platform.



“We have identified that there are some serious problems in the retail supply chain not only across the world but in sub-Saharan Africa and there is exploitation, cultural appropriation and mistreatment of workers and that is from both a people and environmental perspective.”



When these vices are left unchecked, Buchler believes talented designers find it difficult to generate income. What subsequently happens is that these artists are forced into a system of exploitation.



To combat this, the duo has made sustainability and compliance an imperative component of the platform.



“We do not dilute this because our customers really trust the brands we are selling and believe in our ethics and sustainability credentials and also shine a light on talented artists in Africa. We are super passionate about that because there is so much work to be done and brilliant creativity to bring to the fore,” says Buchler.



Part of this ethical and sustainability focus means that Akojo ensures artisans are paid a minimum wage or above and there is a focus on long- term work for the brands they represent. The platform also operates a dropshipping model so provides a continuous flow of orders for the brands they represent.



“We look at things like human rights being upheld in the supply chain and a lot of communication about safety in their workshops and freedom of speech and general respect for people and what they need or may not need; the sustainability aspect like ‘are they using recycled materials or packaging, are they minimizing the use of chemical dyes, are they considerate about transporting products from A to B, and how can we help them do that?’ We as a company offset our carbon footprint and do that by working with a company called Nula Carbon, which has Kenyan origins, and we calculate our carbon footprint and carbon dioxide emissions.”



Akojo’s revenue model is also transparent, they add. The company charges a commission of 25% as well as a minimal joining fee to cover getting their brands’ products on the platform. They provide brand consultancy work as well as marketing and PR in addition to what the platform offers as a basic service. The major challenge is finding a cost- effective way of delivering products globally.



“Our main challenge is logistics. It is very expensive to ship products to and from Africa. We work with DHL and they have been very helpful and have a huge drive to support e-commerce in sub-Saharan Africa but it’s still expensive. The second challenge is to help businesses scale but still retain the ethical and sustainable component of their supply chain; making sure that they produce more products and they can still source the fabrics and they don’t have to import it from China,” says Buchler.



With the current brands, Akojo is working with 800 to 1,000 artisans across their supply chains, bringing long-term incomes to their families. After two years of trading, the company is committed to go against the grain of the wholesale model where fashion retailers pick up products inexpensively in Africa and mark it up significantly for the international market.

Screenshot 2021-08-19 at 17.27.23

Designs On Africa: How to Impact Lives While Promoting Homegrown Talent

One of America’s most successful self-made women, Hollywood actor Jessica Alba’s journey to entrepreneurship began 13 years ago. Her business, The Honest Company, debuted on the Nasdaq in May this year. In this exclusive interview with FORBES AFRICA, the Los Angeles-based star speaks about living consciously, taking ownership and her new YouTube series, Getting Honest.



Q. Being a newcomer to business when you first started, how did you pick up the tricks of trade and enterprise? What were the significant challenges? 



A. One of the biggest challenges I faced early on was doubting myself – doubting that I could do it if I didn’t have a business degree. I navigated through it by listening, learning and trusting myself on what matters most. I think there is also this assumption that starting a business is easy when you are a celebrity, but success in one industry doesn’t necessarily open doors in another. I had the drive and I had the idea, but I still needed the funding and the infrastructure. When I was pitching room after room of (mostly) men to raise initial seed funding, I was also pregnant with my second child. Some thought I should be a spokesmodel for other brands, others thought I should start smaller. That’s the part of business where being an actor helps: rejection. The more I was rejected, the more I honed my pitch. I am also really driven by my curiosity, I’m constantly asking questions and I surround myself with people who have different strengths than I do, so I’m always learning and growing.



Q. The Honest Company has just debuted on the Nasdaq. Where do you see it in the next five years?



A. We are currently in a quiet period&#8230; What I can say is we are excited to be able to continue to shift the clean lifestyle conversations in the industry – driving our mission forward – inspiring everyone to love living consciously. We made the decision to become a public company because it will help enable us to do just that – driving further accessibility and product innovation, so that we can meet consumers however they want to shop – every day, at every age and through every life stage. The possibilities for an ‘Honest’ world are significant.



Q. What were your own learnings, and the things you would do differently if you had to do it all over again?



A. I think that when you are building a business, doing something you truly believe in, you just want everything to be perfect from day one, but that’s impossible to achieve. The process of building a business is complex and comes with a lot of trial and error. You learn to pivot as yougo.SolookingbackonwhatIwoulddodifferently, I would try to be a little kinder to myself in the process. I&#8217;m such a perfectionist and I was learning on the job so I was really hard on myself if something didn’t go exactly as I thought it should.



Also, I know now that I didn’t need to be insecure about being the only woman at the C-level. I think if I did it all over again, I would really own that this business was my idea and be proud of that. It took me a long time to stop being shy and apologetic and take more ownership over the conversation. I started this company, I had the vision and I brought the right people together to make it happen.



Q. What are the top three challenges facing female entrepreneurs?



A. The first is a lack of representation. When you don&#8217;t see people like yourself in the room, it can be hard to feel like you deserve to be there. That creates a feeling of insecurity that can hold women back.



Secondly, women get less funding from investors. Not only do they get funding less often, but when they do, they get fewer dollars. There&#8217;s a comfort level investors have with what they know and they are used to seeing male entrepreneurs.



Unfortunately, when it comes to investment, it’s not just about having a great idea or a great business, it’s about whether or not you can get the people in the room to believe in you and women have historically been at a disadvantage.



Finally, there’s an unfair expectation around ways women should and should not act. There are social norms that people associate with women and a way they expect women to behave. In business, however, to get things done, you need to be assertive and exhibit boss behavior – it&#8217;s what moves the needle but society doesn&#8217;t necessarily appreciate this type of behavior when it comes from a woman. The way people want to see women act doesn&#8217;t always align with the traits you need to push your idea, vision and business forward.



Q. Be it cinema or business, what are the fundamental traits that you need to bring to the table to shine in both? 



A. You have to be prepared and bring your best self to work everyday, but you also have to be able to go with the flow and pivot when necessary.



Q. With Covid-19 lockdowns, how did your business fare?



A. The Honest Company was built around the ethical values of transparency, trust, sustainability, and a deep sense of purpose. As part of these values, we have always been focused on the importance of omnichannel and accessibility; during the Covid-19 lockdowns, this approach helped us to maintain the strength of our business. We manage an agile global supply chain of highly- qualified, third-party manufacturing and logistics partners that allows us to scale quickly and effectively. Because of this, we were able to mitigate disruptions caused by the pandemic.



As an essential business, we were able to get our products to our customers regardless of Covid-19 lockdowns due to our omnichannel strategy. Additionally, as a nimble, modern company with internal labs, we have the ability to pivot quickly to adapt to and meet the consumer&#8217;s needs through modern innovation. Because of this, throughout the pandemic, we were able to pay close attention to trends and respond as they evolved, shifting focus toward sanitization, wellness, and self-care. In fact, in less than six months after the onset of Covid-19, we created and launched a new Stay Safe cleaning collection, a complete set of cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting solutions. We will continue to take a similar approach as everything continues to open back up as well.



We also continued to prioritize our community and give back efforts. During Covid-19, these efforts focused on our ongoing partnership with Baby2Baby as well as our March of Dimes partnership. I am proud to say that since the launch of the company, we have donated over 25 million products to families in need.



Q. Are there any upcoming personal creative projects, besides new films?



A. During Covid, I launched my YouTube channel and a series called, Getting Honest, where I sit down with guests from different industries and we have intimate, funny, raw, real conversations about whatever is on our mind at the moment. We often do something fun, like a skincare or makeup routine, while we are chatting. It’s a really casual but entertaining way of talking about all the things – motherhood, business, health, family, etc. I’ve had some amazing guests like Alex Rodriguez, Kate Hudson and Molly Sims and many more to come. It’s been such a fun, creative way to create this community and use my platform to have really honest conversations around what matters most to people.



Q. What does the word ‘impact’ mean to you?



A. It means making a difference and leaving the world better than you found it.



Q. You were the official spokesperson of the ‘for Tomorrow’ project for sustainable innovators with UNDP and Hyundai. Your advice to the next generation of female leaders on the African continent?



A. As I reflect back on my own journey, I wish someone had told me early on that no one would give me permission to lead or to challenge the status quo. So my advice to the next generation of female leaders is don’t wait for someone to give you permission. Trust your gut and, if you believe in your idea, go for it. Don’t let one rejection stop you from achieving your goals. In fact, let the hurdles motivate you. And always remember what the great Eleanor Roosevelt said: “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”

Jessica Alba Speaks At AT&T 5G Immersive Event

‘Need To Be Assertive And Exhibit Boss Behavior’: Jessica Alba Exclusive

August 9 marks 65 years of the Women’s March in South Africa. The fire and fortitude of the women and girls who walked up the steps of the Union Buildings that day changed the landscape of South Africa. how far have we come – or not – since? We ask these female change-makers about the issues and battles they are championing in the South Africa of today.&nbsp;



SIXTY-FIVE YEARS AGO, ON August 9, 20,000 women and girls of all races, classes, color and creed marched, singing and chanting, some with babies on their backs, and climbed up the steps of the Union Buildings in Pretoria, the seat of the apartheid government in South Africa’s capital city, to deliver petitions to the then Prime Minister J.G Strijdom, against the introduction of apartheid pass laws.



In the throes of apartheid in 1952, the South African government introduced the Native Laws Amendment Act. It was an offence for any African to be in any urban area for more than 72 hours unless they were in possession of a pass that had details of the holder’s identity, employment, place of legal residence, payment of taxes and permission to be in the urban areas. For the first time in South African history, black women were expected to carry passes too.



The march was led by four women; legendary struggle stalwarts Lilian Ngoyi, Helen Joseph, Sophia Williams-De Bruyn and Rahima Moosa.



“Wathint’Abafazi wathint’ imbokodo”, cried the gathering. “Strijdom, you have tampered with the women, you have struck a rock!”



By the clock tower of the Union Buildings, hordes of women wrapped in ANC colors of green, yellow and black began arriving, with women from the cities, the towns and villages, united in their purpose to save each other from the degradation of passes.



With bated breath and in deafening silence, they watched Ngoyi, Moosa, Joseph and Williams-De Bruyn deposit 100,000 petitions addressed to Strijdom. The march signaled a paradigm shift as women were brought to the fore playing a bigger role in the struggle for freedom and democracy.



In the pages that follow, we look at how a small cross-section of women leaders today interpret the changes they are seeing and the causes they are currently fighting for in South Africa.



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-176729601-1024x681.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-52091" width="605" height="402" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-176729601-1024x681.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-176729601-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-176729601-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-176729601-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-176729601-2048x1363.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 605px) 100vw, 605px" /><figcaption>(Photo by Ginko Agency/ www.21Icons.com via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-style-large is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">The glory of how they looked, and their dignity and grace, and that determination in lifting their feet in a place where no other African person had done before… – Sophia Williams-De Bruyn, the only surviving member of the famous quartet – including Lilian Ngoyi, Helen Joseph and Rahima Moosa – that led the 1956 Women’s March, in an interview in the August/September 2014 issue of FORBES WOMAN AFRICA</blockquote>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-893823216-1024x682.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-52089" width="645" height="429" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-893823216-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-893823216-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-893823216-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-893823216-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-893823216-2048x1363.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 645px) 100vw, 645px" /><figcaption> (Photo credit should read MUJAHID SAFODIEN/AFP via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-style-large is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow"><meta charset="utf-8">We hope this generation we leave behind will do the right thing by honoring all those who gave up their lives…particularly the women who are not always remembered. I wouldn’t have been me had I not met the Lilian Ngoyis of the day. – Winnie Mandela, in an interview in the December 2014/January 2015 issue of FORBES WOMAN AFRICA</blockquote>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-kgomotso-mokoenafighting-for-vulnerable-laborers">KGOMOTSO MOKOENA Fighting for vulnerable laborers</h2>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-1-683x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-52084" width="162" height="243" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-1-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-1-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-1-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-1-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-1-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-1-scaled.jpg 1707w" sizes="(max-width: 162px) 100vw, 162px" /></figure></div>



Kgomotso Mokoena is a labor law lecturer and attorney also focused on constitutional, media and intellectual property laws, with a particular interest in the gig economy. Born to parents in exile in Atlanta, United States, she returned to South Africa with her family and graduated from the University of the Witwatersrand before working as a legal clerk at the Constitutional Court and opening her own practice. Now working towards a PhD in labor law at the University of the Western Cape, she says: “Because there are so few jobs, a lot of workers end up getting exploited in relation to the gig economy.”



Currently, the major legislation that regulates their rights falls under the Labour Relations Act and Basic Conditions of Employment Act in South Africa – frameworks that Mokoena says have not been updated to reflect the technological innovations changing the dynamics between workers and employers. Mokoena’s research is focused on bridging this gap – what are the lived conditions of vulnerable workers in the gig economy, what are the levels of unfairness? 



“And how do we fix that from a legislative perspective?” she says. “Personally, my passion is in labor law – specifically with a focus on vulnerable workers. Statistically, women tend to fall into insecure work more than men in South Africa.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">STACEY FRU Fighting for literacy and safety</h2>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-2-683x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-52085" width="273" height="409" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-2-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-2-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-2-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-2-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-2-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-2-scaled.jpg 1707w" sizes="(max-width: 273px) 100vw, 273px" /></figure></div>



“You cannot learn in an environment where you do not feel safe and secure. Literacy and safety need one another to survive and thrive,” says Stacey Fru on the challenges facing schoolchildren in South Africa today. 



The 14-year-old is a multiple award-winning author, philanthropist, activist and motivational speaker. Having been recognized for her literary work, entrepreneurship and shortlisted for the 2020 International Children’s Peace Prize, some of her most personal and valuable work is through her Stacey Fru Foundation, a charity which aims to improve access to education in rural areas with the provision of food, sanitary materials and books.



Fru’s career began with the writing and publishing of her first book when she was eight years old. Since then, she has published four more, while also campaigning strongly for children’s rights through her ambassadorship with Save The Children. 



However, in her daily life, she faces the same challenges as many of her peers during the Covid-19 pandemic.



“Many of us are unable to go to school. Most of us are just trying our best right now, to attend online classes or just focus for a prolonged period of time.”



Fru has continued to write and collaborate during the pandemic and through the recent unrest in South Africa.



“With the rioting, the Covid third-wave, everything around us is disrupting our daily lives as children. Just hold on, speak to your friends and family; you are never alone in the struggle.”



<h2 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading">DORAH MAREMA Fighting for climate change</h2>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-3-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-52086" width="526" height="351" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-3-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-3-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-3-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-3-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-3-2048x1365.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 526px) 100vw, 526px" /></figure></div>



“The fact is that climate change does not affect people the same. This is true for the developed versus the developing world, and also true for gender – with women being the majority in mineral areas and subsistence farming as well.”



Dorah Marema has had an illustrious career in gender and environmental activism. Originally from a rural village outside Mopane in Limpopo, South Africa, she began her working life as part of the Transvaal Rural Action Committee, a Black Sash initiative. Her upbringing brought home first-hand experience of the gender disparities in the environmental protection space, and led her to form GenderCC, an international organization working to ensure that gender is fully integrated in climate policy.



She currently works for the South African Local Government Association as the portfolio head for municipal sustainability, a role ever more demanding due to the pandemic and recent unrest.



“And unfortunately,the environment is the one element that gets badly affected because it doesn&#8217;t generate revenue for municipalities, however, is something that is so critical.” Marema’s tireless role does not get her down. Despite the pandemic and the global climate crisis, an optimistic outlook and everyone doing their part mitigate more harm than people think.



“You may think it&#8217;s a small action, but if I do something in your neighborhood, in your city, in your municipality, you start doing something; all that action will add on to a bigger contribution towards already cutting down carbon emissions, and focusing on mitigation, and making sure that we&#8217;re planting trees, that we are taking care of our biodiversity… We can do it, but it has to be done through a multilateral initiative that involves all of the world together.”



<h2 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading">PEARL PILLAY Fighting for youth empowerment</h2>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-4-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-52087" width="494" height="329" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-4-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-4-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-4-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-4-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Forbes-Women-Feature-4-2048x1365.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 494px) 100vw, 494px" /></figure></div>



“I think when you&#8217;re in student activism, you kind of have your fingers in all of the different pies. I had a really good grounding from there, but also at home,” says Pearl Pillay, director of YouthLab, a policy think tank that aims to create spaces for young South Africans to engage on policy issues affecting them. Having begun as a research intern, Pillay has worked her way to lead the organization, and has been involved in election observation in Liberia and Tunisia, as well as policy work for the African Union – expertise she brings to the South African context.



Closest to her heart are issues closer home. Facing the challenges of the pandemic, YouthLab made a decision to launch programs aimed at supporting democratic development, and building capacity and education in communities for them to exercise democratic rights.



“We go into different communities and take time to teach young people about what it means to be an active citizen, what different democratic tools they have.”



Despite the challenges of the last year and the unique difficulties the pandemic presented, Pillay is optimistic, with YouthLab driving mental health programs to support employed and unemployed youth. “We don&#8217;t often think about wellbeing as development, so prioritizing wellbeing has allowed many to rise to the challenges of Covid. Being able to actually provide something that helps the young, that&#8217;s been a big standout for me.”



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-453831587-707x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-52090" width="357" height="517" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-453831587-707x1024.jpg 707w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-453831587-207x300.jpg 207w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-453831587-768x1112.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-453831587-1061x1536.jpg 1061w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-453831587-1414x2048.jpg 1414w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-453831587-scaled.jpg 1768w" sizes="(max-width: 357px) 100vw, 357px" /><figcaption> (Photo by Danny Martindale/WireImage)</figcaption></figure></div>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-style-large is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">Transformation isn’t an event, it is a process, and these processes have to start with ourselves&#8230; It starts with you, it starts with the way that you actualize yourself, the way that you see yourself, the way you interact with society, how you see yourself within the home, because you very so often find that one has a loud voice when it comes to gender activism, but within the home front, you don’t stand up for yourself. The liberation has to be a mental emancipation first&#8230; It’s not only just the mindset, but we also have to give women the necessary tools to make sure that they progress.– Zindzi Mandela, in an interview for the December 2014/ January 2015 issue of FORBES WOMAN AFRICA</blockquote>

Ramaphosa addresses Womens Day celebrations in South Africa

The 1956 Women’s March In South Africa Still Resonates Today

Elizabeth Isiorho is ramping up her modelling business to provide more young people international opportunities and put African beauty on the map.



COVID-19 MAY HAVE SHAKEN the very foundation of global fashion, but the one thing that has stayed is the focus on Africa as the world’s resource hub for the creative industry, with its surging youth dividend and gifted talent pool. 



Nigerian entrepreneur and former beauty queen Elizabeth Isiorho knows this only too well, as she takes her business to the next stage, now launching Future Face Africa, which she hopes will be a pan-African talent search to discover more African faces to showcase to the rest of the world. 



Her modeling agency, Beth Model Management Africa, has been at the forefront of this quest, since 2004, to provide a platform for African models abroad. 



“Models will be given a chance to win a two-year international modeling contract with a top modeling agency, offering hopefuls not just a launchpad but a career on the world stage,” she says in an interview with FORBES AFRICA over Zoom from London in May. 



Isiorho herself had her breakthrough in the industry with the international agency, Elite Model Management. But first, a look back at how it all began. Growing up, Isiorho was influenced by her mother, a veteran in the Nigerian entertainment industry and die-hard fashion lover who always told her daughter she resembled supermodel Naomi Campbell. 



Who knew then that Isiorho would become friends with Campbell several years later and follow in her role model’s footsteps? While African fashion and beauty is now celebrated abroad, this was not the case when Isiorho first started. Modelling had several negative perceptions in Africa that she needed to break. 



Born in London and relocating to the United Kingdom (UK) Isiorho studied Business and Information Technology at the London Guildhall University. With a passion for the modelling industry instilled in her from an early age, she began her career doing a few shows in London until a serendipitous encounter with a friend put her firmly on her destined path.



“A friend of mine showed me some magazines that had Miss Nigeria UK and she said I should go for it. I was extremely shy but I went for the 10-day boot camp and on the ninth day, I said ‘this is not for me, I’m not walking that stage in a bikini’ and I said to my mum ‘I am not doing it anymore’. My mum said she had bought her ticket to London to come and surprise me on stage so I should stick it out. I did and I won the competition, to my surprise,” recalls Isiorho.



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/image1-736x1024.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-51624" width="436" height="606" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/image1-736x1024.jpeg 736w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/image1-216x300.jpeg 216w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/image1-768x1068.jpeg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/image1-1104x1536.jpeg 1104w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/image1-1472x2048.jpeg 1472w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/image1-scaled.jpeg 1841w" sizes="(max-width: 436px) 100vw, 436px" /><figcaption>Photo by Adebayo Jolaoso</figcaption></figure></div>



After winning the pageant, Isiorho returned to Nigeria in 2003 to continue to build her career in the modeling industry. And that is where she noticed a glaring gap in the market. 



“Because I won Miss Nigeria UK, I was very popular when I came back to Nigeria and I said to myself ‘let me get a proper agency to manage me’. But there was none back then. I did my research and I went to companies and one company told me to just drop my CD. So, there was no modeling agency in Nigeria. I tried going to the big agencies in London that work with me today but I didn’t get far.”



Instead of giving up, she decided to set up her own agency instead and Beth Model Management Africa was born. Over the years, Isiorho has grown the brand from only 10 models to over 200 with 48 of them placed worldwide across various agencies, making Beth one of the largest modelling agencies in Africa.



Not one to give up, she used grit and tenacity to pioneer the model management model in Africa. 



“When I started, I thought it would be easy but the Nigerian market was very difficult. I am talking about 2004 when parents are thinking a certain way and parents don’t want their kids to model. I found a few faces and the issue I had was trying to convince the parents that it was not about prostitution. That was the negative stereotype because they felt they exposed their bodies etc.



“The other issue was trying to sign contracts with models when we find the right faces. People were scared to sign in Nigeria whereas in London, people were excited to sign with an agency,” says Isiorho.



Due to the lack of demand for African models at the time, Isiorho decided to start a model convention. Her thinking was simple. If the international fashion industry would not accept African models, she would bring them to Africa to see the untapped potential for themselves.



“So, I sent them emails and out of 11 agencies, nine of them replied to say they were coming and one of the agencies, which was Elite Models, said ‘we have a model search and would like you to be a part of it’.”



Founded in 1983, Elite Model Look is a prestigious international modeling contest credited with discovering supermodels such as Cindy Crawford, Gisele Bundchen, Lara Stone and Alessandra Ambrosia. This was the big break Isiorho needed for her agency. In 2007, she exclusively secured the rights to organize the Elite Model Look Nigeria/Africa contest.



“That was my biggest breakthrough because as an agency, for you to partner with one of the biggest modeling agencies in the world is a big deal and we worked together for 13 years. We discovered many stars like Mayowa Nicholas, Davidson Obennebo, Chika Emmanuella, Victor Ndigwe, Tobi Momoh, who are all on global campaigns,” says Isiorho.



Over the years, Isiorho has placed indigenous African beauty in global campaigns such as Victoria’s Secret and New York Fashion Week to name a few.



Her resilience has not gone unnoticed amongst her peers. “I have worked with Beth Models since the company’s inception and I’m filled with pride. The investment Elizabeth has made in the modeling industry across Africa is beyond glamorizing fashion; it’s the wider role the agency plays in changing stereotypes about working with Africans, giving African creatives a voice and ensuring African youth are empowered socio-economically,” says Omoyemi Akerele, the founder of Lagos Fashion Week.



Isiorho’s relationship with Elite continues to flourish even as she charts her own path. 



“Beth Models is a trusted collaborator of Elite Model Management, having organized Elite Model Look contest in Nigeria for over 10 years… In recent years, Beth Models expanded the search to Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya and Rwanda and used their experienced scouting skills to find fresh new talent with the potential for international modeling careers,” says Vick Mihaci, 



President, Elite Management Worldwide. With the cross-over of Africa’s rich talent repository, through incoming interest as well as the efforts of cultural emissaries such as Isiorho, it’s not long before the continent becomes the true face of the future.

The Model Entrepreneur Who Is Getting More African Faces On the Global Stage

TOPLINE: A judge has <a href="https://variety.com/2021/music/news/britney-spears-conservatorship-request-denied-remove-father-1235009486/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">rejected</a> a November request by Britney Spears to have her father removed as the conservator of her estate, court papers show, a week after the pop star delivered a blistering testimony describing his control as “abusive” and akin to “sex trafficking,” although the denial is not a response to Spears’ recent statement.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h3>



Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Brenda Penny rejected Spears’ request to have her father, Jamie Spears, ousted from the conservatorship role he has held for 13 years, according to court documents filed Wednesday.&nbsp;



The singer’s lawyers filed the request last year, with her lawyers&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2020/11/11/britney-spears-loses-bid-to-oust-father-from-conservatorship-says-she-wont-perform-while-hes-in-charge/?sh=7707c98d4dcb">telling</a>&nbsp;the court Spears&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/britney-spears-seeks-freedom-from-father-685c547c55bebd617bd637e3fb55d64c" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">fears her father</a>&nbsp;and will not perform or resume her career while he has control over her&nbsp; life and estate.&nbsp;



While rejecting the bid to remove her father as conservator, the judge did permit the singer’s request to have the Bessemer Trust, a wealth management firm, appointed as co-conservator.



The filing follows an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2021/06/23/i-deserve-to-have-a-life-britney-spears-speaks-out-about-conservatorship/?sh=50f75b457b0c">impassioned</a>&nbsp;testimony Spears delivered to court last week urging it to end the conservatorship and accusing her father and members of the team of exploitation, preventing her removing a contraceptive device and medicating her with lithium against her wishes, a mood stabilizer most commonly used to treat bipolar disorder.&nbsp;



The judge did not take that testimony into account when evaluating this request as Spears has not filed a formal petition to end the conservatorship.&nbsp;



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-to-watch-for">WHAT TO WATCH FOR</h3>



Britney Spears has not yet filed a petition to end her conservatorship completely. With her father still partially in control and the singer now open to taking more aggressive moves to end the conservatorship, it’s possible this could be her next step.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h3>



In her testimony last week, Spears&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/2021/06/23/britney-spears-full-statement-against-her-conservatorship/?sh=6dd8722621bd">pleaded</a>&nbsp;to the judge: “I just want my life back. And it’s been 13 years. And it’s enough. It’s been a long time since I’ve owned my money. And it’s my wish and my dream for all of this to end without being tested.”



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h3>



Britney has been&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2021/06/22/britney-spears-has-reportedly-fought-for-years-to-end-conservatorship/?sh=5a4e78ac234a">trying</a>&nbsp;to end her conservatorship—which gives its managers an incredible amount of control over her personal and business affairs—for years. Initially, a court placed Spears under conservatorship in 2008 following a series of mental health crises and very public breakdowns, including shaving her head and attacking a photographer’s car with an umbrella. The move was initially successful in reviving the singer’s business affairs, which moved from debt to a net worth of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/2020/10/13/inside-britney-spears-fortune-the-freebritney-movement-and-why-shes-not-on-forbes-new-list/?sh=43ce9574e753">over $60 million</a>, resulted in numerous albums, a lengthy Las Vegas residency and a judging gig on the X Factor. Yet Spears, arguably one of the world’s most marketable pop stars, has not released an album since 2016 or performed live since 2018. She has been on a total hiatus since early 2019 and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/britney-spears-seeks-freedom-from-father-685c547c55bebd617bd637e3fb55d64c" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">vowed</a>&nbsp;her career will stall while her father is in control. More&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2021/06/16/britneyspeaks-britney-spears-set-to-testify-in-conservator-case-that-sparked-viral-movement/?sh=52b0aafa27c0">recently</a>, fans and other musicians have spoken out about her treatment, launching the “Free Britney” movement and protesting that the singer should be given more control over her life.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-contra">CONTRA</h3>



Jamie Spears&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/22/arts/music/britney-spears-conservatorship.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">claims</a>&nbsp;he is acting in his daughter’s interest and&nbsp;<a href="https://variety.com/2021/music/news/britney-spears-dad-conservatorship-not-his-fault-1235008720/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">denies</a>&nbsp;that he is responsible for many of the restrictions allegedly placed on his daughter. In particular, he has not been in charge of her personal or medical affairs after he stepped down from the position in 2019 due to ill health. He has called for his co-conservator, Jodi Montgomery, to be investigated over his daughter’s claims. Montgomery is reportedly in charge of medical and personal decisions.&nbsp;



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h3>



$2.4 million. That’s how much Spears has&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/2021/06/24/how-much-did-britney-spearss-dad-earn-controlling-her-life/?sh=6907451d7a6b">paid</a>&nbsp;her father as a “salary” since February 2009, a year after he was named conservator of her estate. This figure does not include other expenses and payouts like a percentage of touring revenue, legal bills and office rental.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h3>



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/2021/06/23/britney-spears-full-statement-against-her-conservatorship/?sh=6dd8722621bd">Britney Spears’ Full Statement Against Her Conservatorship</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/2021/06/24/how-much-did-britney-spearss-dad-earn-controlling-her-life/?sh=6907451d7a6b">How Much Has Britney Spears’ Dad Earned Controlling Her Life?</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/2021/02/17/britney-spears-net-worth-revealed--and-its-shockingly-low-compared-to-her-pop-peers/?sh=522d6cae18ac">Britney Spears’ Net Worth Revealed – And It’s Shockingly Low Compared To Her Pop Peers</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2021/06/23/i-deserve-to-have-a-life-britney-spears-speaks-out-about-conservatorship/?sh=50f75b457b0c">‘I Deserve To Have A Life’: Britney Spears Speaks Out About Conservatorship</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2020/11/11/britney-spears-loses-bid-to-oust-father-from-conservatorship-says-she-wont-perform-while-hes-in-charge/?sh=7707c98d4dcb">Britney Spears Loses Bid To Oust Father From Conservatorship, Says She Won’t Perform While He’s In Charge</a> (Forbes)



By Robert Hart, Forbes Staff

Celebrity Sightings in New York – September 29, 2008

Britney Spears Loses Another Bid To Oust Father From Conservatorship, A Week After Her Impassioned Speech Calling It ‘Abusive’

Ruth Wasserman Lande has made history as the second-ever, and only female, South African to be elected to Israel’s top legislative. &nbsp;



When you sit down for coffee with Ruth Wasserman Lande, her warm brown eyes lock onto yours and before we even start the interview, she’s interested in learning more about me. It’s heart-warming – and unusual. It’s not every day a diplomat asks the questions she does and is so genuinely interested in the answers.



But then again Lande is not your everyday politician. She made history this year after becoming the second-ever, and only female, South African to be elected to Israel’s top legislative. The last time a South African served in the Israeli parliament (Knesset) was in the 1960s.



Lande went on to narrowly lose her seat during elections held at the end of March. But in a coalition government announced on Monday, June 14, she re-entered the Knesset.



Born in Israel, Lande was nine when her family moved halfway across the world to her native Cape Town in South Africa. After growing up in a poor Israeli neighborhood where children from all backgrounds – Morocco, Georgia, Russia, Lithuania – played together, she found the “huge houses with huge fences and swimming pools” of South Africa startling. It was 1985 – five years before Nelson Mandela would be released from prison and apartheid begin to be dismantled.



“I saw people locking their fridges and locking their houses. It was shocking for me because in Israel everything was open. Everything was sort of simple there. So the Moroccans were a little more black and the Russians were a little more light and everybody was all sorts of colors. We just didn&#8217;t care. We didn&#8217;t see it. So it impacted me in a very big way as a child that the color a person was could mean he’d be better off economically than another.”



That impact followed her into adulthood.



“I&#8217;m very involved in working with minority groups in Israel, with the less privileged, not only Arabs, but also Jews of lower socio-economic income, people with disabilities, people who are on the autistic spectrum. I think I have a kind of affinity to those who have a more difficult starting point.”



She believes the eight years she spent in South Africa – “a lifetime at that age” &#8211; increased her sense of calling to be active in society. She attributes her excellent English to her South African schooling and also her ability to feel comfortable in very different situations, again useful qualities for women in leadership.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">“I have a kind of affinity to those who have a more difficult starting point.”</blockquote>



Returning to Israel at the age of 17 to join the Israel Defense Forces as a “lone soldier” – she had no immediate family in Israel – she waitressed on weekends to make ends meet. She served in the intelligence division and rose to captain.



Later, she joined the Foreign Ministry, volunteering to work in Egypt where she became the deputy Israeli ambassador, a post she held for three years. She studied Arabic for eight hours a day and is today fluent.



“I think that Israel is a magnificent nucleus for countries in Africa because there&#8217;s such a pluralism of societies, communities and cultures in Israel that, despite the difficulties and imperfections, everybody can find their place here.&nbsp;Also, the knowledge and expertise that is being exported from Israel in the fields of water, technology and farming to many countries in Africa is something that I am very proud of. It’s important to help, to give, to contribute.”



Lande has two masters’ degrees, one from Harvard University, and also worked as an advisor to former Israeli President Shimon Peres.



“I really believe that what you give, the universe gives back. It doesn’t have to be financial but it has a lot to do with energy. As a member of Knesset, I feel I can be heard more. I care about this country and I want to make the society in it more viable, more equal, better, and maybe that sounds very presumptuous, but I try in my own way.”



– By Paula Slier

Category: Woman

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