The South African Agricultural landscape has been riddled by the challenge of transformation towards an innovative and multi-dimensional industry. Traditionally and even in contemporary times, women have been the cornerstone of South Africa’s agriculture, but even with their significant contribution their stories have remained untold.

It is for this reason that the Female Entrepreneur of the Year Awards was established, to applaud and acknowledge the role of women in Agriculture. This year the theme was adequately titled Women Economic Empowerment, the objective of which is to promote and support the value of empowering women by creating environments of support.

One such woman is  Ms Portia Mngomezulu, of Porta M Skincare, a pioneer in African skincare manufacturing. Mngomezulu was announced at the Department of Agriculture and Rural Developments Entrepreneur Awards, as the recipient of the Top Entrepreneur in agro-processing Award and the Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2018.

It was in 2012 that her mother-in-law told Portia about the healing and regenerative properties of Marula oil now, four years later, Portia Mngomezulu is the owner of a fully-fledged skin care manufacturing company. In 2011 the founder and owner of Portia M, Portia Mngomezulu, registered her business with only one product to offer. What first began as casual sales to close friends and family and Facebook friends who, like herself, had struggled with stretch marks soon snowballed into a product with great demand.

What started as an experiment using her kitchen, and then garage, cooking on two-plate stove mixing ingredients with cake mixing machines, has successfully turned into a national brand available at all major retailers. Marula oil is the secret ingredient to what now can be described as a credible and reckonable skin care range.Mngomezulu is a former incubated start-up at The Innovation Hub’s BioPark@Gauteng Business Incubator, currently she utilizes the facility for manufacturing purposes In the face of multi-national insecurity and instability, the role of entrepreneurs and SMME’s has continuously gained momentum and solidified itself as a contending force in our national economy. Thus, The Innovation Hub’s mandate is to support the development of small business in the knowledge economy so as to create sustainable jobs in knowledge intensive industries, and to subsequently reduce poverty and inequality in the Region. Much like The Innovation Hub, the Gauteng Department of Economic Development (GDED) recognizes the value of entrepreneurship in poverty reduction and economic inclusion. It is for this reason that GDED’s initiative The Township Entrepreneurship Awards (TEA) has been used as an instrument to revitalize the Gauteng City Region townships’ economy by “drawing public attention towards township businesses and their successes”

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TEA which was recently hosted at Carnival City, is an invaluable platform designed for supporting and cultivating entrepreneurship in predominantly excluded people’s. The awards were recently hosted on 18 August, where I Am Emerge was a two time winners, receiving recognition in the categories Retail and Finance as well as the Youth Entrepreneur Award. I Am Emerge, incubated at Maxum smart Business, offers a convenient platform for bulk purchasing through their Vuleka App which targets township based businesses. The company transfers massive savings to the traders, and make delivery of orders, thereby saving traders both money and time. The App is linked to a virtual wallet meaning that purchases are cashless.

Through the Vuleka App which facilitates bulk purchases of goods sold by township based businesses, the company describes itself as a grassroots economic development initiative focused on growing townships based businesses (both formal & Informal).

Visit:

www.theinnovationhub.com

For more information, please contact:

Linah Nematandani

Communication and Marketing Manager

lnematandani@theinnovationhub.com

(+27) 12 844 0030/ (+27) 71 673 9964

Twitter: @InnovHub

Facebook: InnovhubZA

About GGDA                                          

The Gauteng Growth and Development Agency (GGDA), is an agency of the Gauteng Department of Economic Development (GDED).GGDA is the implementation arm of the GDED and assists the department in leading, facilitating and managing sustainable job creation and inclusive economic growth and development in the Gauteng City Region.

About The Innovation Hub

The Innovation Hub, a subsidiary of the Gauteng Growth and Development Agency (GGDA) is the innovation agency of the Gauteng province and is responsible for managing Africa’s first internationally accredited Science and Technology Park of the same name, and is a full member of the International Association of Science Parks (IASP). Strategically located in Tshwane, South Africa's executive capital in the ‘smart’ province of Gauteng, The Innovation Hub implements initiatives identified in the Gauteng Innovation Strategy and Green Economy strategy to advance the economic development and growth of the Province through innovation.  The Innovation Hub has created unique spaces, in Tshwane and the rest of the Gauteng province, for high-tech entrepreneurs, world-class businesses, academics, researchers and venture capitalists to meet, network and prosper.