South Africa’s 2026 Women’s Month will begin not with speeches alone, but with a bustling marketplace of women-owned businesses. Sindisiwe Chikunga, the Minister in the Presidency responsible for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, will officially launch this year’s Women’s Month campaign at the EmpowerHer Market Trade Fair at the Olive Convention Centre in Durban on Saturday, 1 August 2026.
A Flagship Platform for Women Entrepreneurs
The EmpowerHer Market Trade Fair is a flagship government initiative, implemented in partnership with ABSA, designed to advance women’s economic empowerment in a practical, hands-on way. The fair creates space for women-owned businesses to showcase their products and services, reach new markets, build business partnerships and connect directly with potential investors and customers.
Saturday’s event in KwaZulu-Natal will bring together an impressive cross-section of the economy: women entrepreneurs, government departments, state entities, development finance institutions, private sector partners, civil society organisations and members of the public, all gathered to strengthen collaboration around women’s economic inclusion and sustainable livelihoods.
The launch is also a celebration of the significant contribution women already make to South Africa’s economy, while keeping a clear focus on unlocking what still holds many businesswomen back, including access to finance, procurement opportunities, markets, technology, information and business development support. By putting entrepreneurs in the same room as funders and buyers, the trade fair aims to turn those barriers into bridges.
Empowered Women Empower the Nation
The Durban gathering marks the official start of the 2026 Women’s Month programme, which will run under the theme “Empowered Women Empower the Nation”. It is a message that frames women’s success not as a niche concern but as a national growth strategy: when women-owned enterprises thrive, jobs, households and communities thrive with them.
Honouring the Women of 1956
Women’s Month carries deep historical meaning in South Africa. August was declared Women’s Month in tribute to the more than 20 000 women who marched to the Union Buildings on 9 August 1956 in protest against the extension of Pass Laws to women, one of the most powerful demonstrations of unity in the country’s history. That courage is commemorated every year on 9 August, celebrated nationally as Women’s Day.
Seventy years on, the spirit of that march finds a new expression in convention halls and market stalls, where a generation of businesswomen is building enterprises, creating employment and claiming a full stake in the economy. The EmpowerHer Market Trade Fair gives that spirit a stage, and gives shoppers, investors and partners a chance to be part of the story.
For women entrepreneurs looking to grow, and for anyone who wants to see South African talent up close, Durban on 1 August is the place to be, according to details announced by the department and reported by SAnews.
Photo: commons.wikimedia.org
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