Minister of Information, Communication and Technology Savannah Maziya has warned that fear of what people will say is holding women back from pursuing their dreams, building businesses, advancing their careers and making decisions about their lives.
Speaking at the InnovationHer Indaba held at the Royal Swazi Convention Centre yesterday, Maziya challenged women to break free from the fear of public opinion and invest in themselves.
The indaba brought together women from various backgrounds for sessions aimed at exposing participants to emerging trends in technology and innovation. The event is the brainchild of entrepreneur, communications strategist and wellness advocate Nadja Smoor. Maziya said women often allowed the fear of being judged by others to prevent them from doing things they wanted to do.
She said this fear could affect important decisions, including starting a business, leaving an unhappy relationship, pursuing an opportunity or simply doing something that made one happy.
Maziya questioned why women continued to worry about what other people would say when those people had their own problems and challenges, saying women were effectively stealing opportunities from themselves if they would allow fear to dictate their choices.
She urged women to stop living their lives according to the expectations of others.
“There’s nothing worse than being somewhere you don’t want to be because you bring your bad energy. Women should also take time to understand themselves beyond the roles they perform for their families and society,” she said.
She challenged participants to ask themselves who they really were instead of defining themselves only through titles such as mother or wife.
“Do you ever go to you and say, who am I really?” she asked.
The minister said women were often so busy taking care of other people that they neglected themselves and urged them to make self-investment a priority and think seriously about their personal development, careers and businesses.
Maziya said women should also consider where they want to be in the next five years and start preparing themselves for that future now.
She said confidence was particularly important for young girls and challenged mothers to raise daughters who believed in themselves.
Maziya warned against raising girls to believe that the attention or approval of men was the ultimate measure of their worth. Instead, she said girls should be taught confidence and encouraged to inspire themselves and others.
“Women need to overcome fear not only in their personal lives but also in the workplace, particularly as technology continued to transform traditional careers. Artificial intelligence (AI) was already becoming part of almost everything people did. Everything we do now is infused with some kind of AI,” she said.
Maziya said technology resulted in some jobs being lost while creating new opportunities.
She questioned whether women were adequately prepared to take advantage of the new jobs being created. Maziya said the ministry of information, communication and technology was working to build capacity in the country, particularly among women.
She said women could access opportunities to learn about AI, data analysis, cybersecurity and other emerging areas without having to pay.
She urged women to take advantage of such opportunities instead of allowing fear of new technology to prevent them from learning.
Maziya also called for greater solidarity among women, saying women needed to support one another rather than compete destructively.
“Women should show up for each other, celebrate each other’s achievements and provide support when another is facing difficulties,” she said.
She further challenged women to ensure that they did not just have a place at decision-making tables but also occupied leadership positions.
Reflecting on her own role in government, Maziya said serving the nation was one of the greatest responsibilities a person could have.
She said public servants had a duty to serve citizens with dignity, responsibility and commitment.
