Elegance Mission represents Namibia continentally

A local farming business, which started small by growing crops to add value to its products, recently represented Namibia on a continental level.

Elegance Mission Investment, owned by May Hikumah, represented Namibia at the Regional Conference on Intellectual Property for Women in Agribusiness, which was held in Kigali, Rwanda, last month.

The event hosted women in agriculture from various African countries.

Hikumah says the World Intellectual Property Organisation (Wipo) held the conference in collaboration with the African Union Commission, the government of the Republic of Rwanda, the Regional Intellectual Property Organisations (Aripo and Oapi), with the financial support of the Japan Patent Office (JPO).

She says she was selected by Wipo to represent Namibia.

“The main objective of the conference was to raise awareness of African women entrepreneurs in the field of agriculture on intellectual property, and to empower participants with tailor-made intellectual property knowledge, tools and resources we need for our businesses to thrive,” she says.

“We were provided with platforms to network with other women entrepreneurs in agribusiness, discuss and share experiences on the best practices and common challenges, interact with and learn from intellectual property experts, and express our intellectual property-related needs.”

Hikumah says the event focused on the role of intellectual property in agribusiness, and the possible contribution Wipo can make to the development of an intellectual property culture in agribusiness.

“… as well as understanding the landscape of agribusiness value chains in Africa, and the state of women in intellectual property/innovation ecosystems in the context of the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement,” she says.

Towards the end of the conference all country representatives were awarded certificates by Wipo, she says.

“There is no success story without challenges. As women in agribusiness, we are facing barriers to participating in and reaping the benefits of digitised agricultural value chains, such as social norms, a lack of access to resources to fuel productivity and increase yields, and also barriers to digital inclusion,” she says.

Hikumah says she believes various organisations can collaborate and develop women in various agricultural and other small and medium enterprises.

“I believe by investing in women’s education, providing access to financing, and promoting entrepreneurship, you ensure food security and improve their livelihood,” she says.

She encourages young people to venture into food production in Namibia and Africa, because they have so much potential to improve the industry.
Hikumah says the youth needs to be at the front line of building the food systems of the future, while also bearing significant risks due to climate change.
“The younger generation could help introduce new technologies while also learning from traditional methods, holding the potential to offer the perfect fusion of new and traditional solutions to some of the farmers’ biggest challenges,” she says.

“It was an honour to represent my beautiful country at regional level. It was not about me, but being an advocate for Namibian society … for African women to create wealth through value addition,” she says.