Take a moment to think about all your achievements – the personal accomplishments that fill you with pride, regardless of their size.
Now think about all the things that got you here. The lessons you had to learn to get to this point, and the people who helped you take on your goals with an open mind and ready heart.
Chances are, many of your triumphs on this journey have been powered and encouraged by the women in your life. A mother, aunt, sister, teacher, or friend. These are the women who came before you – full of strength, intelligence, and most importantly, hope.
ABSA are proud to release their latest Prosper film, celebrating women and encouraging every viewer to celebrate the women in their lives too.
South Africa has a heritage of inspirational women. Freedom fighters, doctors, nurses, scientists, teachers, political leaders, mothers, sisters, daughters. Women who knew what they wanted, fought for it and changed the future because of it. These women who went before blazed a trail for their successors to follow, and in doing so, inspired generations of women to continue their legacy.
Owethu Makhathini, who teaches digital literacy and includes Absa’s ReadyToWork entrepreneurship module in her course, is one such woman. At just 24 years old, this Chesterville, Durban-born dynamo is a respected business owner, lecturer and political studies student. But it is not what she herself is doing that is so incredible, but rather how she has been inspired by the women who went before her to use these skills and lift up other young women around her, at the same time.
One could say Owethu has this desire to guide, to help and to effect change, in her blood. An intangible inheritance from the women who have gone before her. Both her grandmother, who was a teacher and dedicated her time to teaching Owethu to read, and her mother, a strong-willed career woman with a resolute belief in the importance of believing in your dreams and pursuing your goals, are dominant influences.
But so is her great grandmother, the late, great, Mary Thipe – an extraordinary woman who marched for women’s rights in the 50s, offered a halfway house to freedom fighters during apartheid, and later became vice-chairperson of the ANC Women’s League. And an influential high school Zulu teacher, who Owethu describes as “smart, poised and unapologetic about her blackness and womanhood”.
In the same way it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a community of women to inspire and empower each other; women past and present, family and friend.
It is these influences that motivated Owethu to forge the path she did, which – aside from her studies and managing her own business – includes facilitating digital literacy learning programmes for young people across the country and being a contracted trainer for Absa’s ReadyToWork programme.
“This programme is an incredibly important and insightful one. We are able to give people practical skills training and knowledge that they can use to better their lives. The modules provide comprehensive skills development, from work and entrepreneurship skills to people skills – all of which are necessary in aiding young people to become employable or at least, start their journey into entrepreneurial pursuits,” Owethu explains.
She recognises that this position, of being a guiding light for young women, mirrors the role of so many women who came before her. “I am in a position to have a positive impact in the lives of thousands of young people in Southern Africa. Imparting value holistically to others is a gift. I’m humbled by my life and the impact I am able to have on young people just like me,” she says.
Owethu is an unstoppable force of nature, who holds a lifetime of lessons and promise in her pursuit for education and freedom. Her own legacy is inspiring and her own influence, immeasurable. Which is why Absa is telling Owethu’s story in its latest Prosper film, The women before us.
Prosper is our Brand purpose that underlies everything Absa does; it’s an approach to doing business that aims to help people achieve their ambitions in the right way. This single-minded idea has resonated with people across the African continent, and has come to inform 22 inspiring videos in Absa’s Prosper film series. These films serve as proof points to this philosophy in action, and have recorded close to nine million views across all media since the series was first launched.
Through ReadyToWork and Owethu’s facilitation of these vital training programmes, she prospers, the students she assists prosper, their families prosper and their communities prosper. Because prosper is more than just a business ideal; it’s an idea that can change the world.
Absa is proud to partner with Owethu on her journey to do just that, as a woman who is leading the way, inspired by the women who went before.
The women before us can be viewed on the Absa Blog at http://blog.absa.co.za/prosper
About Absa
Absa Bank Limited (Absa Bank) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Barclays Africa Group Limited, which is listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and is one of Africa’s largest financial services groups. Absa offers a range of retail, business, corporate and investment banking and wealth management products and services primarily in South Africa and Namibia.
Barclays Africa is 23.4% owned by Barclays Bank PLC (Barclays). We operate in 12 countries with about 40 thousand permanent employees and we serve close to 12 million customers.
For further information about Barclays Africa, please visit our website
