Each year, over 1000 Global Women’s Summits are being presented by The Women Information Network (WIN) in major cities worldwide. The mission is to strengthen women and families through Education, Empowerment, and Entrepreneurship in order to eradicate illiteracy, poverty and hunger in every nation. This year’s theme is Towards Vision 2020, Women Leading Innovative Transformation. On Friday 5 August, the Global Women’s Summit was hosted by Johannesburg, South Africa. Global thought leaders and successful local women business leaders and entrepreneurs joined together to share key strategies on Personal Development, Leadership, Entrepreneurial Solutions and motivational tools for career and business growth.
The Global Women’s Summit Johannesburg event took place on a chilly winter’s morning, hosted by the Industrial Development Corporation in the auditorium at their Sandton headquarters. First up on stage was the African Global Women’s Summits Director and Program Director, Tumi Frazier, who gave an official welcome to guests. It was a packed agenda for the morning, with guest speakers including Stacey Speller, International Speaker, Author and Elite Coach from the USA who shared her insights on “Transforming Yourself and Changing Your Life; Melanie Hawken, Founder and CEO of Lionesses of Africa, who presented a Celebration of Women Entrepreneurs Building a New Spirit of Enterprise and Innovation in Africa; Dr Miranda Moloto of Health for Africa Unlimited, who shared her very personal Health Professional’s Journey; and finally, a highly visual presentation from Meghna Laxman of the Coca Cola Company’s 5BY20 Initiative, talking about Catalyzing and Sustaining Women’s Economic Empowerment.
Following a great networking lunch, and some wonderful entertainment courtesy of a talented local saxophonist who had everyone on their feet dancing, the second half of the event continued with a speech from Lebogang Ramafoko, the CEO of Soul City, on the topic of “Women, Voice, Agency”. Next up on stage was a local and highly successful young entrepreneur, Babette van der Walt, founder of Babette’s Bakery, who shared her own personal career journey from lawyer to bread baker. A highly interactive session followed, hosted by Pulen Makhoalibe, an innovation and creative thinking expert, whose “Practical Tools to Unleash Your Creative Intelligence” had everyone opening their minds and getting involved in the various activities planned. It was a great way to end the day.
The Global Women’s Summits are powerful and informative events aimed at helping women to address challenges in both their personal and business lives. On the personal front, they get great advice and inspiration on how to lead effectively, how to create the life they want, and how to overcome obstacles in life. In the world of business, they hear from successful women in business as to how how to manage effectively, how to monetize their passion and skills, how to grow their businesses, and how to explore new investment opportunities. For more information on the Global Women’s Summits events in Africa over the coming months, go to