Neo Malokela

I first attended Gender Links entrepreneurship training workshop in the year 2014. In these trainings we were taught by our facilitator about gender violence and its effects. It was a very sad moment for me when I realised how much women suffered and I noticed that we were women of different ages, backgrounds and we suffer the same but different kind of abuse. One thing I was happy about was that in the end of the trainings/workshops I was able to have an understanding on how to deal with the issues of gender based violence and where to get help.
Through the training I realised that I have a talent that I was not using, I now have started plaiting hair to make a living for myself and my family so that we won’t go hurry.

I am plaiting people from my house and wishing that one day I will be able to have my own salon whereby I will also create jobs for the other people.
I attended the first workshop with Gender Links which is named I Stories in February 2014. The I stories workshop was very emotional and eye opener to me on abuse. Then I was invited by Gender Links to a workshop which were named Phases 1-3 and I attended all of them and there was a follow up workshop.
It was a bit difficult to understand some of the big words used in the manuals but the facilitator was with great help by explaining in Setswana. The facilitator was a very patient and understanding person and that make it easier for us to ask when I did not understand or needed explanation.
When I started the workshops I had knowledge of hairdressing but I was not interested in pursuing it as a business. After the lessons I felt the urge to start doing something with my life.

In the year 2030, i was to have my well established business, where I will employ women from the disadvantaged background and help them to gain their confidence.