On Saturday, August 20, 2022, I am chairing the Caribbean Women in Technology Conference, where I spoke to over 100 women from over 7 Caribbean countries and the US and EU diaspora. What follows below is the script from which I gave my speech.
Hello to everyone,
I really appreciate this opportunity to speak with you this morning.
First, let me warn you, it likely won’t the kind of talk you expected when you read the title…How to Future Proof the Caribbean Through Tech Entrepreneurship and Investment.
That is why…
I believe that Way number one to safeguard the Caribbean future through technological entrepreneurship and investment is…of women betting on themselves and betting on each other.
Now, I’m not just saying that because I’m speaking to an audience of women now or because I’m a woman … out there it’s the truth and power in us being here together in this forum, yes.
But I’m saying it because I believe it. I say that because emerging trends point to it and frankly, the future of the Caribbean depends on it.
When you check the population numbers for Caribbean countries… women make up just over half of every population for every Caribbean nation.
On average it is between 50 and 55%.
that it is the forerunner of the quietly growing power and embedded influence that women have, which can be seen more now in politics, education and business.
Women literally bear half the responsibility for safeguarding the future of the Caribbean through entrepreneurship and technology investment.
But do they know this, do they know where we come from and do they take leadership and responsibility with themselves and each other?
We have seen slow but impactful changes in our governing power:
We had our first female Caribbean Prime Minister, she was Dame Eugenia Charles in Dominica. Our second was Portia Simpson Miller of Jamaica and now we have the Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley.
Regarding women’s business executive power: Increasingly, the number of women in the C-Suite in private sector companies is so visible that… we hear the numbers add up every year on International Women’s Day.
For example in Jamaica…In 2015, it was reported by the International Labor Organization (ILO) that Jamaica had the highest number of women managers, globally, ahead of countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom.
59.3 % to be exact.
stillin 2022 you can’t throw a rock into a corporate boardroom and hit a woman because they’re barely there.
And don’t get me started on the reported fact that women are paid 25–40% less than men globally.
Concerning Education and our Power of Knowledge: In 2018, almost 70% of West Insides University enrollments were female and this is across the Jamaica, Trinidad and Barbados campuses. In St Kitts…they saw a 78% female registration compared to 18% male registration.
What you don’t often hear is that “For the first 35 years of its existence, the University of the West Indies (UWI) enrolled and graduated more males than females.” So the men had a 35-year head start.
.
In the wild world of Wealth…economic and global, women control $36 trillion in total wealth. how come Women make 70% of all major financial decisions for themselves and their families, everything from cars, homes and investments.
In the US alone, women control $14 trillion in assets or roughly 60% of personal wealth, which is expected to grow to $22 trillion by 2020.
Currently, women collectively represent the world’s second largest economy based on earned income versus GDP.
But what are the women actually doing with his influence and wealth?
then
In Entrepreneurship and Investment: It was reported that in 2020, that venture capital funding was up to US$300 billion. Just 800 startups founded by women worldwide received $4.9 billion. This was a 27% year-over-year decline.
It has been reported that in the US and right here in the Caribbean, women are starting businesses at a faster rate than men…however they are still behind in having mentors, sponsors, coaches, deal breakers and yes…patient and smart investment capital.
However, it is a statistically confirmed factthat investing in more women could boost the global economy by 3-6% or $5Trillion.
As we digest all of this…the challenges, the accomplishments…I want to challenge and inspire you now.
I challenge you to admit that the global economy, entrepreneurship, and the investment system was created by men for men. This is not my opinion, it has simply been a fact for centuries… supported and sustained by religion, wars, governing power and social and cultural factors.
Some will say ah just so di ting set.
In other words, that’s how it’s always been.
Well, of course…until things started to change from the women who came before you…who are now passing the baton to YOU.
I challenge you to reject the myth of the marginalized man. There is a false and manipulative narrative that men are being marginalized … in Jamaica or any Caribbean nation. Not true.
Marginalized means that a person, group, or concept is treated as unimportant or marginalized. When I hear this… My response is always this…..
“It can’t be marginalization when you’ve had a 100-year head start and you’re still in many ways the dominant culture. Not because some numbers have started returning, but all of a sudden you freak out. And then I ask, why are you afraid… the goal is equality, not dominance.
So why is equality so scary to some people?
The next challenge I have for you women is 100% internal and personal.
I challenge you to Find ways to reject the Impostor Syndrome and stand in your personal power, stand in your collective power.
I challenge you to ask por help more and accept it kindly. You are not meant to be a burden bearer, you are meant to be a leader and a record breaker….women warriors and path makers.
I challenge you to tell your full, authentic storyprivately, publicly, and constantly—we all need to hear it, see ourselves in it, and be inspired and challenged by it.
I challenge you to speak for yourself wherever you are and talk about women near you and far away. We cannot make it on our own in this world.
These are the first challenges I have for you.
But, I have a few more… so clutch your pearls… and get COZY!
I challenge you to agree what Danielle Kayembe said in 2017, what’s proving to be true in the trends we’re seeing, and also what I believe from the top of my head to the bottom of my toe.
In her article – The Silent Rise of the Female Economy she said “I would argue that women are the single biggest opportunity in the market today – overlooked and underfunded. There are few markets left in today’s world with little competition – yet this is exactly the state of affairs when it comes to women’s needs and dreams.”
Why….because In this new age“every woman, because of her lived experience, is now a top center of multi-million dollar business ideas. “If she stays in that knowledge and power, if she’s in touch with her needs and her dreams.
See, As a woman, if we start innovating and investing in products based on our experiences and pain points, it will result in a fundamental change in consumer buying, trust and behavior patterns.
And the beautiful thing too, is that “unlike your standard emerging market, you don’t have to wait years for the market to mature. Women are now a fully mature market in terms of size and economic spending. There is almost no lag or lag time. And because of a lack of access to capital, women don’t have the luxury of building wildly unprofitable businesses for 5-7 years. Women are more likely to build businesses with positive income simply because they have had to be more resourceful.
And yet, with all this going on…. The current business, technology and investment enterprise is asleep at the wheel. These companies and funds do not have the internal culture or external network to identify, invest in and nurture this next generation of companies. But YOU DO!
Men may currently control much of the investment system, but women represent the greatest arbitrage opportunity in the market today.
So
If you are called to be a tech entrepreneur….look first at yourself and the unique pain points and desires of other women… and start that business and that could be in any tech industry – crypto, fintech, e-commerce, Web3 or tech -enabled industries such as media, wellness, health, fashion or beauty…. find and join groups of women-founded companies and ecosystems. Take advantage of the unique ways women communicate and sell to each other. Milk this moment we have now.
And if you’re not called to be a tech entrepreneur – then invest in a female-founded business by spending money with them. Send the business their way first. You can also become an angel investor and also when they go public, collect as many shares as you can.
Remember what I told you earlier, women around the world control $34 trillion in equity choices. When this wave of female-controlled equity picks rolls out, it will be a game changer.
so yes I believe the number one way to protect the Caribbean future through tech entrepreneurship and investment is…women betting on themselves and each other.
I want to inspire you by showing you that women are protecting the future of the Caribbean in their own way…
- Kimala Bennett – runs a multi-billion dollar public media company called The Lab.
- Crypto Isle – a Crypto and Blockchain startup and community in the Bahamas run by two women – Dr. Jillian Bethel and Davinia Bain
- Kenya Mattis runs the premier Animation and Design Studio in the Caribbean right here in Jamaica called ListenMi.com
- Narda Ventura – Co-founded and runs a fast growing e-commerce service platform called ezeepayments.com
- Monique Powell – Runs leading online food and grocery delivery business- QuickcartOnline
- Monique Powell – leads the leading HR/Talent platform – Pocmi.com
Improving the Caribbean for the future through technology entrepreneurship and investment is literally your responsibility – as women you hold up half the Caribbean sky.
You see, I believe that when we accept the truth of where we come from and get clarity from ourselves and other women – we are protecting the Caribbean for the future.
When women stand in who we are, stand in the strength and achievements of the women who came before us and those who are before us now…we are safeguarding the Caribbean for the future.
When, women take the lead… without fear – we are protecting the Caribbean future.
And a reminder, this is not a man-against-the-man speech or an us-against-them speech.
This speech, however, is unapologetically a pro-equality and ownership speech.
This is a pro-Caribbean speech to you women who make up 53% of our region’s population… I just want to get pissed off enough so you get out there and break the rules, make a scene, make a noise and never look back!!
Thank you.
