The initiative aims to drive transformation and inclusivity in the country’s innovation ecosystem by increasing the participation of women in research, development, and entrepreneurial activities.  

Speaking at the launch, Patrick Krappie, Executive Innovation Enabling at TIA, highlighted the significance of the programme in addressing systemic barriers that hinder women’s progress in the sector. "We are launching today our new programme. It’s called the Women in Technology and Innovation Programme. It is intended to promote the participation of women in the innovation ecosystem and make sure that we also increase their participation in research and development activities. So essentially, it’s really about promoting transformation," he said.  

Krappie pointed out that women continue to face significant challenges in accessing crucial resources, including funding and professional networks. "There are few women investors as a start, and so you start there women globally account for just about 3% of access to funding from the VC sector," he explained. "It’s about access to funding, but it’s also about making sure that there are more women investors themselves. We have different instruments to intervene in both areas, on the downstream and the upstream."  

TIA has established a direct funding model for innovation activities while also developing a "fund of funds" initiative to support the creation of female-led venture capital firms. The programme also recognises the difficulties women face in accessing traditionally male-dominated networks. "People may take it for granted, but networks are also very male-dominated. People play golf together, and women are not able to penetrate those kinds of spaces. It’s important that we create appropriate networks where they’ll be able to have their voices heard and pursue opportunities," Krappie noted.  

Beyond funding and networking, the initiative acknowledges the additional responsibilities women often shoulder outside of their professional lives. "It is important when we fund people and provide support that we are aware of the peculiarities that women face. Men often have more time to invest in what they do compared to women, who still have to go home and look after family responsibilities," he added.  

The programme is designed to foster gender-responsive innovation, particularly in addressing societal challenges. "In as much as we call it the Women in Technology and Innovation Programme, we are looking at women who will develop solutions that generally solve societal problems, whether economic or social," Krappie said. "More importantly, they are the ones who know best what kinds of solutions address the challenges they face, such as gender-based violence. But this doesn’t exclude men from participating—if they develop solutions geared towards solving women’s problems, they are welcome to be part of it."  

Krappie emphasised the importance of collaboration and strategic partnerships in ensuring the success of the initiative. "The difficulty is that everybody wants to do this, but they generally don’t know where to start. TIA is trying to pioneer this initiative, making it a magnet for other partners to support us rather than creating multiple, competing initiatives that fragment the system. Our role is to curate these relationships and pool resources to scale the programme and achieve a higher impact," he said.  

The launch event featured discussions on key challenges faced by women in the innovation sector, including barriers in academia, limited access to venture capital, and obstacles in high-tech and community-based innovation. "We are addressing the issue of women in universities who act as principal investigators. Most of the applications we receive are male-dominated often white and male-dominated, so we are delving into the reasons behind this," Krappie said. "We are also exploring challenges around access to private sector funding and the struggles women face in community-based innovation solutions."  

--ChannelAfrica--