IMPACT: She broke new ground by launching a student fund to serve as an alternative mechanism for funding careers in the financial services industry…

By WSAM Reporter

Insurance Seta chief executive Gugu Mkhize yesterday scooped “the Legends of Empowerment” Award at the annual Top Empowerment Awards held at the Indaba Hotel in Johannesburg.

Gugu Mkhize was among a few elite true empowerment ambassadors to be honoured as a “Legends of Empowerment” Award recipient for 2023. The annual Top Empowerment Awards celebrate success and honours individuals and organisations who have made a significant contribution to transformation in South Africa. This award aims to inspire and encourage other organizations. It is given at the discretion of the Top Empowerment Awards Editorial Board and is not necessarily awarded every year. Among the likes of people who were honoured last night included industry giants like PWC, Nedbank, Old Mutual and SAB to name a few.

This year marks the 22nd year since the inauguration of the Top Empowerment Awards, and focused on those individuals and organizations who have generated real impact and change in South Africa’s transformation space.

Mkhize was honoured and recognised for her significant contribution to fostering the spirit of empowerment and leadership in driving transformational change in South Africa.

In December 2021, Higher Education Science and Innovation Minister Dr Blade Nzimande, and the Insurance Sector Education and Training Authority (Inseta) made history by launching the Insurance Sector Student Fund (ISSF), which is an alternative mechanism for funding careers in the financial services industry. This fund became the first of its kind in the Sector Education Training Authority (SETA) landscape.

The ISSF, a brainchild of Mkhize, contributes towards drawing the youth to the insurance sector career opportunities, supports the workers in their professional development as well as supports small businesses. Since its inception, Inseta has managed to raise R50m with industry partners and this has already boosted the sector.

Mkhize’s innovative and out-of-the-box thinking continues to inspire and empower many in the country. Being a legend is much more than being a conformist, it means being a trail-blazer that is prepared to act beyond the confines of the mundane, to foster change.

Some of Mkhize’s past key leadership roles include being Executive: Corporate Services (National Home Builders Regulatory Council), Chief Executive Officer (Excelle International Pty Ltd), Executive Manager: Corporate Services (Mining Qualifications Authority), Senior Manager: Corporate Services (Johannesburg Social Housing Company) and Senior Corporate Manager (KZN Growth Fund Managers).

She holds various qualifications such as a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from Regent Business School, a Bachelor of Arts Honours from the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), a Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), and a various other qualification in different streams, that have enabled her to successfully execute her responsibility at the institution.

JOBLESS YOUTH COAXED INTO ENTREPRENEURSHIP

PROSPECTS: Innovative ideas sourced to tackle unemployment crisis…

By Robert Tlapu

Brand South Africa is creating opportunities for youths to generate innovative entrepreneurial ideas to tackle the current unemployment crisis in the country.

Through a campaign called “the Play Your Part Ignite” campaign, Brand South Africa encourages the youth to use the alternative path of being entrepreneurs to fight joblessness. Since the launch in July 2022, “the Play Your Part Ignite” campaign has fostered entrepreneurial spirit among budding business owners and guided them to bring their enterprises and ideas to life.

It has assisted participants with expertise on how to construct a condensed and incisive elevator pitch, as entrepreneurs are not always given the opportunity to present their businesses to potential investors.

The campaign has made a difference in places such as Polokwane, Johannesburg, and Durban and is scheduled for Cape Town on July 27. Some of the aspiring entrepreneurs who have been empowered by the Play Your Part Ignite masterclass include Portia Mavhungu, the founder of PRDLS and inventor of Para-Tube and Phumelela Mkhize, founder of Eyethu Energy Projects.

Mkhize took first place with his innovative business idea which involved creating a customised wind turbine that can generate electricity with the slightest brush of the wind. He will also be mentored by Play Your Part ambassador Paul Nzimande.

The 22-year-old Durban-born Mkhize says he formed his company Eyethu Energy projects with a former desk mate and a friend from high school. “Currently the company has only two employees, myself and a friend who is also a business partner. We are in a research and development phase of our first project as a company, working with a few companies to make the finished product and test the market.

“We form strategic partnerships with foreign power companies that have new energy solutions that haven’t been implemented in the African continent. We then introduce those energy solutions in our country and Africa as a whole, by means of acquiring a subsidiary/franchise or merger with the foreign power company,” explained Mkhize.

Mkhize revealed that after completing his matric at Umlazi Comprehensive Technical High school, he already had a lot of ideas and his passion for technology and innovation encouraged him to work on business ideas.

The young entrepreneur says he wants to see the company growing to become an independent power supplier in future.

“I see Eyethu Energy Project as an independent power producer in the next five years, and a company that plays an effective role in our country’s clean energy supply. Our long-term vision is to own and operate a significant portfolio of projects by retaining a percentage shareholding of every project we implement. We aim to become South Africa’s number one supplier in new energy solutions that are unique,” predicted Mkhize.

Brand South Africa Acting CEO Sithembile Ntombela said: “South Africa is a country with endless possibilities, a young population that is talented and skilled. Innovation and creativity are at the heart of who we are. Play Your Part Ignite is an enabling platform for the youth of today to create new opportunities for the youth of tomorrow”.