Tracy Wessels, Group Head Sustainability and Investor Relations
Every day, my role requires me to look at our business through two very different lenses. On one hand, I sit in boardrooms and speak with global investors who analyse our performance through balance sheets, ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) targets and the hard numbers of the circular bioeconomy. On the other hand, I have never lost sight of what is happening on the ground, because that is exactly where my own journey began.
More than two decades ago, I walked into Sappi’s Saiccor Mill as a young graduate with a PhD in Organic Chemistry. Working in research and development and customer technical services, I spent years in laboratories and manufacturing plants learning the intricate science of woodfibre. I discovered how a tree could be transformed into everything from dissolving pulp for sustainable textiles to renewable packaging that helps reduce reliance on fossil-based materials.
That technical foundation shaped my career. It taught me that sustainability is not simply a corporate buzzword or another reporting requirement. It is a living value chain that begins with a seedling in rural South Africa and extends into global markets.
As we celebrate Women’s Month, I believe South Africa’s bioeconomy represents one of the country’s greatest yet often overlooked opportunities for the economic empowerment of women.
The bridge between global markets and rural communities
In investor circles, we often discuss the growing demand for renewable, plant-based materials. Yet the true engine of the bioeconomy is not found in laboratories or stock exchanges. It is found on the land.
Across South Africa’s rural communities, women are proving themselves to be entrepreneurs, employers and stewards of sustainable growth.
Corporate forestry has an important role to play in connecting these women to the global economy. The sophisticated demands of international customers must translate into meaningful opportunities through enterprise development, skills transfer, market access and long-term business ownership.
That is exactly what Sappi’s Khulisa programme was designed to achieve.
Today, Khulisa supports 4,434 growers and 1,033 contractors, with women accounting for almost half of all independent growers. Since 1995, the programme has delivered more than 5.5 million tonnes of timber valued at R3.565 billion, while providing technical training, subsidised seedlings and ongoing support that enables entrepreneurs to build resilient businesses rather than depend on assistance.
The numbers are significant, but they only tell part of the story. The real measure of success lies with the women whose businesses are transforming families and communities.
Growing businesses, not just trees
There is no better example than Dumisile Caroline Vumase.
When Dumisile joined the Khulisa programme in 2005, she began with just four hectares of planted forestry. Today, she manages more than 105 hectares while continually looking for opportunities to expand her business.
Recognising that forestry is a long-term investment, she diversified into macadamia farming and has established a thriving orchard alongside her timber operations. Her farm also incorporates livestock, creating an integrated farming system where natural resources are used efficiently to improve productivity.
What makes her journey particularly inspiring is that her success extends beyond her own business. She actively shares her knowledge with younger members of her community, helping develop the next generation of agricultural entrepreneurs.
Dumisile perfectly reflects the mindset Khulisa seeks to cultivate. She continually learns, reinvests, diversifies and creates opportunities for others rather than seeing obstacles.
She is not alone.
Pinky Mooko, director of Baleti Estate in Mpumalanga, has also demonstrated how sustainable farming can create resilient rural enterprises. Her business combines forestry with avocado, macadamia, pecan and honey production, while creating permanent and seasonal employment opportunities within the local community.
Through Sappi’s Enterprise and Supplier Development programme, Baleti Estate received business development support together with 30 beehives and honey processing equipment, allowing the business to establish an entirely new income stream while developing additional skills among employees.
Pinky is also refreshingly honest about the challenges many women still face in agriculture. Access to finance, land, equipment and established business networks remains more difficult for women than for many of their male counterparts. Yet she believes determination, continuous learning and the right support structures can overcome these barriers, enabling women to build successful businesses that positively impact entire communities.
Opportunity extends across the value chain
The bioeconomy is about far more than growing trees. It creates opportunities throughout the value chain, including transport, logistics, processing and manufacturing.
That is where entrepreneurs like Thulisile “Cannie” Ntombela demonstrate another side of the industry’s potential.
After years spent building her entrepreneurial journey, Cannie established Lisile Logistics to focus on timber transportation. Through Sappi’s Enterprise and Supplier Development programme, her business has grown to include three logging trucks, three trailers and dedicated office premises, while creating 14 direct jobs alongside opportunities for consultants, technical specialists and administrative staff.
Perhaps most importantly, Cannie speaks about business ownership not simply as personal success, but as a responsibility to create employment, develop skills and contribute to South Africa’s economy. Her story demonstrates that empowering women within the bioeconomy extends well beyond forestry itself.
Building the next generation of women entrepreneurs
Looking at these women reminds me why I fell in love with science and forestry in the first place.
Whether you are a scientist developing the next generation of biomaterials, an investor evaluating sustainable businesses, a grower managing commercial forestry or an entrepreneur transporting timber across the country, the bioeconomy has a place for you.
What programmes like Khulisa continue to demonstrate is that when women succeed, the impact reaches far beyond individual businesses. We see women investing in education, creating employment, supporting extended families and becoming respected leaders within their communities. Strong businesses become stronger households, stronger communities and ultimately a stronger economy.
My advice to women looking to build businesses or careers in South Africa’s growing bioeconomy is simple: believe in your vision, start with the resources you have and never stop learning.
The transition to a more sustainable future is already underway. If we are serious about building a resilient, low-carbon economy, we must continue creating opportunities for women at every stage of the value chain, from the laboratory and the mill to the farm, the boardroom and beyond.
When we empower women, we do far more than strengthen individual businesses. We strengthen families, communities and the future of South Africa itself.
