Rural women complete Faranani Training Course

PwC, in collaboration with the City of Tshwane, has provided business and entrepreneurial skills to these women under the Faranani Rural Women Training Initiative. The project aims to nurture women who have the drive and desire to become business-owners by providing them with the necessary know-how to get started.

Shirley Machaba, PwC South Africa board executive chairperson, Faranani Rural Women Training Initiative national director, and partner in charge of the PwC Menlyn office, says PwC is committed to empowering women and investing in their futures. "We want to celebrate the unwavering positives that women entrepreneurs bring to the South African economy as well as inspire and support future generations of young women entrepreneurs."

Shirley Machaba, PwC South Africa board executive chairperson

BSSA foundation

Annually, PwC builds the skills of more than a hundred underprivileged women from rural areas throughout the country through the Business Skills of South Africa (BSSA) foundation to provide business and entrepreneurial skills to previously disadvantaged communities in order to create jobs, promote sustainability and increase wealth.

The project provides the women with the knowledge to start-up and manage their own businesses. Over several days, the women are taught how to develop a business plan, which is supported by cash flow and profit forecasts, financial projections, marketing, financial management, pricing and costing, and business management.

"There is a high failure rate among black-owned start-up businesses, which is largely due to a lack of access to finance and other business support. The project is intended to address these and many other issues that small businesses have to contend with," adds Machaba.

Identifying gaps

"It is the firm's imperative to contribute to this initiative in order to address the gaps already identified in enterprise development while simultaneously contributing to the government's strategy of addressing unemployment, poverty and the skills shortage by creating jobs."

The project identifies women who are interested and literate, live in rural communities and have a disadvantaged background, have business interests and have already started a small business or are from woman-owned businesses.

PwC established the BSSA foundation together with the National Industrial Chamber in 1992 with the aim to provide business and entrepreneurial skills. Annually, PwC contributes over R2m towards this foundation. This, however, excludes an average of over R750,000 that is spent per year on the Faranani Rural Women Training Initiative. To date over 2,000 rural women have been trained through this initiative.