Bridging the Gap: The Role of Incubation in Women Entrepreneurship Development

If you are reading this article from our website or LinkedIn page, then I’m sure you know that Propella is an incubation hub.  If you don’t know or are still not too sure what an incubation hub is, then you are on the right page.

What is an Incubation hub?

Business incubators provide a low-cost start-up environment, as well as a variety of administrative, coaching, and networking services. These programs, which are run by colleges and universities, local governments, for profit companies and economic development organisations function as homes for new businesses.

 Incubation hubs are commonly seen as key to addressing business development challenges, particularly in disadvantaged countries. They have the power to boost growth, produce jobs, and provide the needed services to communities. 

In a nutshell, the purpose of incubation is to increase the success rate of start-up businesses.

Importance of incubation hubs?

There are so many start-ups that have amazing ideas with enormous potential for growth. These businesses, however, lack management skills and quickly deplete their capital recourses. Business Incubators assist Start-ups in managing their finances and ensuring that money is used properly. Companies also have access to the Incubator’s services and resources. Through business incubation each entrepreneur’s uniqueness is recognized and supported.

What is the role of incubation in women entrepreneurship development?

Over the years, women-owned small businesses have been experiencing higher barriers of success despite a history of exclusion of women in the workplace. The Government and Civil society are slowly correcting the years of injustice that women have suffered by providing more opportunities for women in the workplace.  The rising number of business incubation centres around the country is one of the most important interventions. 

Incubators are the connecting link between women entrepreneurs and the relevant networks that can help them establish a solid footing in the field and receive the assistance that they need.

Business incubators give business owners the opportunity to network with specialists in their field as well as other founders who are going through the same process of creating these companies.

What Propella is doing to help bridge the gap for women?

At the Propella Business Incubation we offer two programmes- The ICT Programme and the Industrial Programme. In both programs we target young women of colour that are in the ICT or Industry 4.0 space. We have always prioritised getting women onto our programmes, however, finding suitable candidates remains a challenge. This is one of the reasons why we have previously partnered with STEM based organisations such as YAWIC (Young African Women in Computing) which is an initiative by Nelson Mandela University Department of Computing Sciences, aimed at skills building and career guidance to promote the inclusion of young African women in the field of computing.

At Propella, 78% of our staff are women and we also pride ourselves in our female entrepreneurs and alumni.

Our core mission at Propella is to increase the number of successful grassroots entrepreneurs and to instil success, innovation, and fun in our incubatees.

Investing in women sets the tone for the development of their communities and country and it also sets a great example for future generations of female entrepreneurs.