Zimbabwean women empowered

                     

                        By Melody Gwenyambira

Five Zimbabwean women recently participated in the State Department’s TechWomen initiative.

The programme empowers, connects, and supports the next generation of women leaders in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) from Africa and the Middle East by providing them the access and opportunity needed to advance their careers, pursue their dreams, and inspire women and girls in their communities in launch careers in STEM fields.

“During the five week program in Silicon Valley, the entrepreneurial capital of the United States, these five Zimbabwean TechWomen strengthened their professional capacities through mentorships at innovative firms such as Adobe (the digital media giant), and showcased their own initiative by organizing a panel on entrepreneurship in emerging markets at Stanford University,” US Ambassador o Zimbabwe Bruce Wharton said.

 Between 1996 and 2004, averages of 550,000 small businesses were created every month in the United States.  These small businesses create between 60 and 80 percent of new jobs in the United States each year. 

“It’s encouraging to see so many young people creating a positive future in Zimbabwe through. Entrepreneurship fuels innovation, makes industries more competitive, and creates meaningful jobs.  While many of you have heard of the largest and most successful American companies like Google, Coca-Cola, or Microsoft, it is small businesses that drive the U.S. economy today.  Entrepreneurs are critical to this job growth in my country, and can be equally important in Zimbabwe,” Ambassador Wharton added.

The word “entrepreneur” comes from a 13^th century French verb meaning “to do something.” 

“One reason that entrepreneurs are so important for an economy is that they innovate.  Today, an entrepreneur is an agent of change.  Entrepreneurial men and women not only “do something,” but they do new things or old things in new ways.  Successful entrepreneurs expand not just the size of their own businesses or pocket books, but they expand the size of the economic pie for everyone.”