How Financial Literacy Training Transformed Nkwana’s Small Business Success

Empowered with financial and business skills after attending the “Boost Your Income” training offered by Avo Vision, Mapaseka Mkwana from Cosmo City, North of Johannesburg, has successfully launched a confectionery business that now generates profits equivalent to her wages as an Early Childhood Development teacher in her community.
Avo Vision is a social Impact organisation that supports South Africans to live better lives through Community training, Livelihood creation and Enterprise and Supplier Development. As part of protecting sustainable income for the SEF participants, Avo Vision offered the ‘Boosting your Income’ training programme. SEF is the Social Employment Fund, one of the Presidential Employment Stimulus programmes that seeks to reduce unemployment while addressing key social, environmental and economic challenges in the country.

How Avo Vision’s Training Transformed Mapaseka Mkwana’s Business and Life

Mkwana says she heard about this module she grabbed the opportunity to attend this module with both hands because she was trying to find ways to gain financial knowledge before, she started her business. “I was unemployed for nine months and (I) was getting frustrated and slipping into depression. When I heard about ‘Boost Your Income’ training I decided to attend because I was determined to find ways to boost my current income with plans to further my studies,” she explained.
Mkwana is currently working under the Social Employment Fund (SEF) and used her monthly stipend to kick-start her entrepreneurship journey. SEF is one of the Presidential Stimulus Programmes, managed by the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), and aims to address the challenge of unemployment through employment creation. Avo Vision has placed X people in green businesses and ECD centres across 5 provinces.

Mkwana’s confectionery business sells cupcakes andscones at the nearby primary school, her workplace and to private clients during special occasions such as parties, weddings and family gatherings. After passing matric in 2012, Mkwana studied Computer Literacy before going to TVET College and studying Welding. Soon after graduating, Mkwana says she started experiencing eye problems and had to quit her welder job.

From Early Childhood Teacher to Successful Entrepreneur: The Impact of Financial Literacy

Mkwana is currently furthering her studies towards Early Childhood Learning (Level 4 qualification), with the aim to one day start her own ECD centre. “I always knew that I love working with children, but being an ECD teacher under SEF has solidified that passion and it’s something that I would like to do for the rest of my life,” she said.
Although Mkwana’s business has been striving since it was launched, she says it comes with a lot of sacrifices and to this day she is still trying to get used to it.
"Running your own business takes a lot of sacrifices, especially if you’re a parent. Every morning from 06:30 to 08:30, I am at the school selling my baked goods. After that, I go straight to work. After work, I help my child with school homework, do household chores and then bake for the following day before going to bed. It takes passion and dedication to make the business successful," the mother of one added.

“My advice to a young person is to start with whatever amount that they have, and I encourage them to attend short courses such as Boost Your Income to empower themselves with skills such as financial literacy and how to run small businesses successfully,” Mkwana advised for anyone who wants to start a business.
‘Boost Your Income’ is one of the training modules offered by Avo Vision in person and through online platforms such as WhatsApp, Zoom and Microsoft Teams to reach individuals from every corner of the country. The participants are equipped with in-depth financial skills, offering them the opportunity to explore new business prospects and secure their financial future.