Isabel dos Santos Focused on Women’s Rights, Corporate Social Responsibility in 2019
Isabel dos Santos continues to take a “front and center” approach to ensuring women have a place in the business world in Africa, as well as internationally. Her mission is also to ensure African businesses, no matter how large or small, continue growing in the digital economy.
Her work includes becoming a co-founder of Unitel in Angola, partnering with Fernando Teles to open Banco Internacional de Credito, acquiring a controlling share of NOS SGPS in Portugal, and partnering with Sonae to develop an Angola retail trading company.
Her most recent business venture, which she is incredibly proud of, includes helping women start strawberry farms. She’s most proud of this venture because it’s happening in a small town in the province of Huila, Angola, by the name of Humpata. In partnership with Unitel, dos Santos supports agriculture in Africa.
Focusing on Women's Rights
In October, Isabel dos Santos made an appearance at the UN Women debate in New York. She knows how women still face discriminatory practices today. So, because she doesn't want to see women's potential continue to be undermined, she believes that enabling a woman's rights starts with economic empowerment.
"I'd like to see more women in the roles of leadership. I think we don't have enough. We have decisions that are only made by men," she discusses. "Including women in [these] debates is very, very important, and I'm glad to see the UN really also made this part of their motivation, part of their vision, for the next years."
She continues explaining the difficulties young women have regarding finding the same job opportunities as young men. She would like to see that change. Isabel dos Santos also points out that, when women want to borrow money or finance a new venture, it's much more difficult to do so than it is for men. She concludes by stating these inequalities need to stop.
Embracing Corporate Social Responsibility
Isabel dos Santos spoke at the Africa Summit 2019 about the role of technology in the future economy in Africa and defended the technological development applied to the diversification and growth of several sectors, from banking to agriculture.
During that interview, she states, “We have set up a special academy to train young people. They graduate when they leave university, but before they leave university, in the junior year, we organize a competition. We remain with the candidates who, in our opinion, have talent, a talent that is important to our company."
Before the conclusion of the interview, she indicates, “I have many women working with me in my teams, women in management positions. I see that the girls are very talented and take their commitments very seriously. When they take responsibility, they go to the end."
That’s not the only way dos Santos is impacting Angola with her corporate social responsibility. She also led the Home Kuzola project in Luanda. More than three hundred children receive the love, protection, and support they need while living in this home. Ninety other children receive help as part of her direct efforts through ZAP TV in Lar Betania, Angola.
International Growth and Local Content
During November 2019, dos Santos sat down with Balancing Act to discuss ZAP going international and her involvement with investing in local content. Along with Unitel, ZAP is another company she co-founded, except this one is a pay-TV provider.
"My involvement in Unitel started because I used to do Motorola relay radio systems. We used to be a big provider of a 'walkie talkie' radios. We migrated to building telecoms networks," she explains. "There were a couple of networks that were designed by myself with a couple of other engineers: we designed the Luanda network, the Benguela network, and the Huila network so quite a few networks."
"Once Unitel started growing, I quickly understood something. One of the things I do is a lot of forward-thinking," she continues, "One thing I like to do is understand what the world is going to be like in 20-30 years." It's with that mindset that dos Santos decided to invest in banking, retail, and content.
She believes that one day her banking investment will grow to digital banking. Her investment in a retail supermarket chain, Candando, is where she thinks e-commerce will become a front-runner. That's when content comes into play with her investment in ZAP, which is a content provider similar to the top ten IT companies worldwide.
Isabel dos Santos on Climate Change
This year also captures Isabel's passion for climate change and how businesses play an integral role in stopping it in its tracks. She sat down with reporters on the sidelines of the United Nations Climate Action Summit 2019 to discuss these views.
"I think today was a very special day because it's a wake-up call about the climate, and the climate change," she states, "That sense of urgency, I think I've never felt it as I felt it today."
She goes on by explaining how a solution includes efficiency and how it involves technology. An example she uses is how being more efficient with electricity in businesses leads to substantial energy savings. She continues by explaining that those efforts will lead to a better environment.
Africa's Investment in Energy
Isabel dos Santos is a firm believer that, for Africa to have 5G, the same investment must occur in energy as there is in telecommunications. She indicates that "Telecom operators are eager to deploy the 5G network, but that requires a strong investment in Energy, just as it happened in Telecommunications."
Her beliefs stem from how quickly the African population is growing. She adds, “Today we are 1.2 billion people in Africa, by 2050 we will be 2.4 billion — more than in China. The investment required in infrastructure is huge.” One of Africa's most substantial opportunities is building a significant e-commerce platform.
The businesswoman's instincts and market research tell her that, as Africa continues to grow large businesses, they'll be driven by e-commerce and a digital economy. That means there must be financial services, infrastructure, and markets to support this growth.
Technology Is the Key
When attending Africa Con, dos Santos participated in an all-women panel discussing the topic, "Using emerging technologies to support a vibrant and secure digital economy." As one of Africa's most prominent investors, with a 25% stake in Unitel, dos Santos discusses how the company is harnessing the latest in digital technology.
During the discussion, dos Santos explains that Unitel wasn't founded as solely a mobile provider. Instead, the company is also about voice and the ability to build a fiber-optic infrastructure for delivering high-speed data.
“At UNITEL in Angola, we have built over 14,000 km of fiber optic networks, so we've connected all the cities,” she explains. “Through UNITEL in 20 years, we have invested through private money over $2.2 billion in fiber-optic cables with no government money, with no subsidies.”
During this discussion, dos Santos explains why it's necessary to link the ordinary people to the broader digitalization of the African economy. Her focus isn't solely on established financial sectors and urban areas. She also wants to help enact change in farms, farming communities, local producers, and small businesses.
She predicts that, when large companies establish themselves in Africa, they'll have digital economy drivers like e-commerce and trade. She finished her participation in the discussion panel by stating, "I see the rise of African champions. I think that we are going to have some big companies in the digital space in the digital economy. We still don't have the Alibaba of Africa; we still don't have the Amazon of Africa, so that's a massive opportunity."
Where Else Can We Find dos Santos Working?
In addition to making sure everyone knows the critical importance of including women in the business world, she's also looking internationally. She's involved in bridging partnerships between Africa and Russia, as well as awarding scholarships to university students in Cape Verde.
Photo: Isabel dos Santos - Nuno Coimbra [CC BY-SA]
