Benchmarking the empowerment of SA women in business & govt

Pearl Mashabela, Publisher of Enterprising Women, said South African women have come a long way since the inception of our democracy in 1994. "However, while we boast the highest female representation in all structures of government, much still needs to be done to ensure that women gain a strong and meaningful foothold in all areas of the economy. And this is one of the main reasons for a publication of this nature.

"There is such a buzz at the moment about Black Economic Empowerment (BEE)," she says. "Everybody who is anybody is chasing deals. But the structure of the shareholders of most of these deals is limited. You see the same black male names with very few women involved; women are not even in the running. In fact, I believe that if women do get invited to participate, it's as tokens to legitimise these deals.

"More often than not, when it comes to business and the economy, women are lumped together with the youth and the disabled as major minorities. I think a 51% majority in South Africa would disagree with this."

Enterprising Women in South Africa: 10 years on highlights the strides government and private sector have made in appointing, fast-tracking and empowering deserving women to leadership and ownership positions. The magazine documents history through a survey of the achievements of South Africa's historically disadvantaged women; it discusses the steps taken by the government and business to enable women to find positions that complement their experience; and focuses on how women have achieved success through their own efforts, with the help of the government as well as the public and private sectors.

Mashabela came up with the concept of Enterprising Women in South Africa as a result of many discussions with South African businessmen and various articles in the local media.
"They all seem to come up with the same 'statements' about women in business - 'There aren't any women out there who fit the bill' or 'If I could find the right women, I would employ them in senior positions'. My aim was to prove them all wrong - and with this magazine, I believe I have done exactly that," says Mashabela.

"In spite of the legacy of apartheid, our county has produced a number of educated, intelligent, hard-working, capable and diligent black women. This 472-page magazine features many of them - and we have only just scratched the surface.

"Many women are benefiting from the enabling legislation, policies and charters that have been enacted by government, which particularly specify women as part of the previously disadvantaged South Africans who have to be empowered. But we really do have a long way to go," she says.

President Thabo Mbeki pledged his support to the project by writing the foreword to the publication, and many government departments and major companies participated in the first special issue of the publication.

"A lot of hard work went into putting this mammoth publication together, notwithstanding all the hurdles we've had to overcome in obtaining all the necessary information, especially from the different government departments. Sometimes it was like pulling teeth," says Mashabela.

The publication is available at selected news outlets.