Women innovators in Polokwane were in the spotlight when the Department of Trade and Industry (the dti) in partnership with Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) celebrated the World Intellectual Property Day (WIPD) in Polokwane, Limpopo today.

The event, with the theme Powering Change: Women in Innovation and Creativity, celebrated the brilliance, ingenuity, curiosity and courage of the women who are driving change in our society and shaping our common future.

The event was graced by the attendance of an innovator and senior lecturer at the University of Limpopo in the Biochemistry, Microbiology and Biotechnology Department, Dr Kgabo Moganedi, who holds a doctorate in biotechnology. Her thesis dealt with the genetic diversity of the aarula tree in Limpopo and genetic stability within grafted marula lines. She is now in the process and preparation for commercialisation of the marula and by-products.

“Innovation is not just about a creative idea, but it is the implementation of creative ideas in such a way that they can be mass marketed to better the lives of other people. Innovation and women empowerment go hand in hand,” said Moganedi.

She said that breaking the barriers to women's creativity and helping to nurture their innovative ideas was the first step towards powering change in the field of science, engineering, innovation and technology.

“Furthermore, women need opportunities to innovate. They need education, finances, time and most of all inspiration,” stated Moganedi.

An Eastern Cape female entrepreneur who has won awards for creating an innovative energy-saving device for geysers, Ms Sandiswa Qayi is on the verge of heating up the market.

Qayi said that her invention called Hot Spot, which can be fitted onto any geyser and saves energy by only boiling a certain amount of water instead of all the water in the geyser, led to her launching her own business, Amahlathi Eco-Tech (AET) Africa, last year.

“AET Africa’s primary goal is to get the product fitted to the existing seven million geysers on the power grid. We hope to improve energy efficiency to help South Africans who cannot afford to have hot water due to the high costs associated with operating an electric geyser," said Qayi.

Ms Portia Mavhungu from PRD Solutions, creators of Para-Tube, a wheelchair seating with a built-in toilet that retrofits into any existing wheel chair, said that for her, the important and inspiring contributions of countless women around the country are powering change in society.

“We need more women and girls to consider a future in the field of technology, a future as creators of the solutions to the big challenges of our time,” said Mavhungu

She added that remarkable achievements were an invaluable legacy for young girls today with aspirations to become the inventors and creators of tomorrow.