When Akhona Qengqe was a little girl, her father often told her that she’s not “just a girl, but a viable human being” who could do whatever she wanted in this world.
Ms Qengqe, the general manager of KFC Africa, shared this at a gathering of women in the food industry held to mark Women’s Month, at the Pepper Club Hotel on Monday August 26.
Emphasising the importance of women to occupy seats at decision-making tables in businesses, she asked: “Why is it that when women climb the proverbial corporate ladder, it has to come at the expense of something else – be it family or having children?”
Themed “Women Shaping the Future of Food Safety”, the event was hosted by food safety management provider AssureCloud, and was attended by women from food franchises, food packaging companies and consulting companies, among other organisations.
Elfriede Giard, head of inspection and certifications at Assurecloud, said women shouldn’t have to give up their careers as consequences of “wanting it all”, and described them as “true leaders and innovators in the industry”.
Another guest speaker Deshan Deysel-Bester, who is a mountaineer as well as the founder of GoPeak International, a company specialising in leadership support and coaching, spoke to the women about her journey of summitting Kilimanjaro, which she has done five times. In 1996, she she was part of the first group of South Africans to plant the new democratic flag on the top of Mt Everest.
She has also summited some of the world’s other highest peaks including Mt Blanc in the French Alps, Mount Meru in Tanzania, Mount Kenya, Mount Elbrus in Russia, and Mount Kala Pathar in Nepal.
She urged the women to chase opportunities in life, find their purpose and to be the difference they want to see. “If you are that first person to follow your passion, people will start seeing that things are possible for them, and you become a leader.”
“As you let your light shine, you subconsciously give others the right to do the same, and as you are liberated from your own fear, your presence automatically liberates others.”
