A young leadership mentorship programme has been borne out of the third edition of the Namibia Women in Finance and Insurance Summit.
The programme will see 40 females chosen to undergo coaching to shape them into courageous, resilient and thoughtful leaders.
It is expected to begin between January and February next year and will run for four months.
The Namibia Reinsurance (NamibRe) Managing Director, Patty Karuaihe-Martin, launched the programme at the conclusion of the two-day Namibia Women in Finance and Insurance Summit (NWFIS) on Friday.
She said following numerous requests from young people to be coached and mentored on leadership, she found it fit to initiate a dedicated programme.
Karuaihe-Martin is the brains behind the mentorship programme.
“I like to add value, and where I cannot do something, I move on. Therefore, after reflecting on the requests, I found it fit to plough back by creating a platform that can focus on assisting young aspiring leaders. The launching is a very important aspect, therefore, my advice to those interested in the programme is if you make that commitment to be a mentee or mentor, you need to commit yourself, as you are taking someone else’s space,” she said.
“We have hosted the NWFIS for three years, with different leaders, to discuss matters on how women can uplift each other in the workplace and society. I have personally received many requests in the past two years. ‘Can you mentor me?’ ‘Can you be my coach?’ And I’m someone who likes to make a difference in one’s life. Hence, I would like to see many young people prospering 10 years from now when we are no longer participating. Thus, I see it fit to prepare and empower the youth now to be able to take over and carry on our work,” she said.
Meanwhile, Patricia Murugami, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Breakthrough Leadership Transformation and Rise School, Kenya, said, those willing to participate are required to script why they would want to participate, how they hope to transform and what they intend to become beyond the programme and the impact thereof.
“Through this programme, we would like to create a personal vision with a legacy of impact, further looking at how the participant or thought leader will be able to connect with the employer and the industry. We shall further look at fine-tuning the dimension of their well-being, so that when they move along the leadership ladder, they should not destroy relationships, but rather embrace it all,” she said.
Murugami urged the mentees to be widely read because a leader who does not read is unlikely to be able to lead in future.
“Hence, we shall enforce reading and, thereafter, analyse the books. In addition, we shall look at how to overcome inner biases for action, trapped challenges, how you deal with fear, including life work integration,” said Muragumi.
The summit aimed to build upon the successes of its previous editions by further advancing gender diversity, equality and inclusion within the financial and insurance sectors. The event was held under the theme ‘Sustainable Finance and Responsible Insurance: Women Pioneering Environmental, Social, and Governance Practices’, aligning with the growing global focus on sustainability and responsible business practices.
