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Media release

Media release

Celebrating Every Woman’s Untold Story

8 August 2025

Behind every woman is a story that can inspire the world. At Absa, we see that story.

This Women’s Month, Absa reaffirms its commitment to storytelling that moves beyond campaigns and becomes a lived expression of purpose. Under the banner #WeSeeYourStory, and with a special focus on women through #WeSeeHer, Absa is surfacing the real, remarkable stories of women across business, technology, sport, entrepreneurship, and the arts. These are not just stories of success, they are stories of grit, creativity, ambition, and transformation.

Women’s Month 2025 is not a standalone moment, but part of Absa’s wider brand narrative: one that recognises the power of untold stories and the importance of creating platforms where those stories can be seen, heard, and celebrated. Through a curated calendar of events, programmes and platforms, Absa is demonstrating that investing in women is not a PR statement, it’s a strategic imperative grounded in data, delivery and long-term commitment.

Across the business, Absa continues to drive women-centred innovation, particularly in technology. Internally, the Group’s “Women in Tech” platform, led by Group ITO, will host a showcase on 7 August spotlighting female technologists who are transforming financial systems from within. Absa also made headlines this year with the launch of an AI-powered brand campaign featuring business journalist Fifi Peters, the first South African broadcaster to be digitally cloned using artificial intelligence. This wasn’t just a feat of technology, it was a bold step in ensuring that female voices continue to shape the future of storytelling.

In entrepreneurship, Absa’s investment into women-owned businesses continues to grow, with over R3.2 billion in procurement spend allocated to women-led enterprises across South Africa in the last financial year. Through programmes like She Thrives, women entrepreneurs receive the funding, mentorship, and ecosystem support needed to scale. In partnership with Visa, the She’s Next competition, running from July through September, offers female founders the opportunity to secure funding and exposure. This journey will culminate in the SheNext event on 24 September, where finalists and mentors come together to celebrate breakthrough businesses. Financial inclusion remains a cornerstone of Absa’s approach, with dedicated masterclasses in financial literacy being hosted this Women’s Month to ensure more women are equipped to own their financial journeys.

Absa’s internal culture reflects this external ambition. Today, 52% of the Group’s workforce identifies as female, with targeted initiatives in place to strengthen female representation in leadership. Women-centred employee programmes span mental health, workplace wellness, and gender-based violence (GBV) awareness. Activations throughout August, including the Women in Risk Forum (5 August), the Women Ignite Townhall (18–22 August), and ARO-wide activations (25–29 August), serve not only to honour women internally, but to ensure that policy and practice align with purpose.

Beyond the workplace, Absa’s commitment to equity extends into sport and culture. This August, Absa will once again be the driving force behind women-focused races in four major cities, from the Totalsports Women’s Races in Durban, Cape Town and Johannesburg, to the grand finale Run Your City Tshwane on 24 August. These events are more than races, they are national expressions of empowerment, with Absa colleagues running alongside clients and communities in celebration of women’s strength. Long-term sponsorships like the Sunshine Ladies Tour and the Absa Cape Epic She Untamed continue to create space for women to lead and compete in high-performance arenas, shattering outdated assumptions about what women in sport can achieve.

As a brand rooted in storytelling, Absa continues to invest in authentic platforms that allow women to share their perspectives through the arts. Two major exhibitions will headline this year’s Absa L’Atelier Pan-African Art Series, both led by powerful female voices. In Cape Town, Adelheid Frackiewicz explores personal transformation and the evolving role of women through her exhibition at AVA Gallery (7 August – 25 September). In Kimberley, Bulumko Mbete, winner of the 2023 Gerard Sekoto Award, presents “Like the sky, I’ve been too quiet” at the William Humphreys Gallery (14 August – 13 September), a multimedia reflection on migration, memory, and identity.

This Women’s Month, Absa is also turning the spotlight outward, inviting the public to participate in a national movement of recognition. Through a social storytelling campaign under #WeSeeHer, South Africans are encouraged to tag women in their lives who embody creativity, ambition, potential or resilience, and share their stories. Each week, selected nominations will be featured on Power FM, where both the storyteller and the woman being recognised will be given the opportunity to share their untold story with the country.

The month culminates in one of the most anticipated events on Absa’s calendar: Phenomenal Women, a soulful gathering taking place on 9 August at the NIROX Sculpture Park in partnership with the NIROX Foundation. Set in the heart of the Cradle of Humankind, the event will honour women’s voices through music, poetry, performance and art. The all-female lineup includes Zolani Mahola + The Feminine Force, Poet Nomashenge Dlamini, Shotgun Tori, and WGRUV Dance Company, alongside a curated showcase of women-owned businesses and a full-day art and culinary experience.

“Through Phenomenal Women and every activation across our Women’s Month calendar, we are reaffirming our belief that the stories of women, especially those that have gone unheard, deserve to be honoured, invested in, and amplified,” says Candice Thurston, Managing Executive: Brand and Marketing, Absa Group. “Because when women thrive, communities rise. And when we see her, we all see what’s possible.”

8 August 2025

Behind every woman is a story that can inspire the world. At Absa, we see that story.

This Women’s Month, Absa reaffirms its commitment to storytelling that moves beyond campaigns and becomes a lived expression of purpose. Under the banner #WeSeeYourStory, and with a special focus on women through #WeSeeHer, Absa is surfacing the real, remarkable stories of women across business, technology, sport, entrepreneurship, and the arts. These are not just stories of success, they are stories of grit, creativity, ambition, and transformation.

Women’s Month 2025 is not a standalone moment, but part of Absa’s wider brand narrative: one that recognises the power of untold stories and the importance of creating platforms where those stories can be seen, heard, and celebrated. Through a curated calendar of events, programmes and platforms, Absa is demonstrating that investing in women is not a PR statement, it’s a strategic imperative grounded in data, delivery and long-term commitment.

Across the business, Absa continues to drive women-centred innovation, particularly in technology. Internally, the Group’s “Women in Tech” platform, led by Group ITO, will host a showcase on 7 August spotlighting female technologists who are transforming financial systems from within. Absa also made headlines this year with the launch of an AI-powered brand campaign featuring business journalist Fifi Peters, the first South African broadcaster to be digitally cloned using artificial intelligence. This wasn’t just a feat of technology, it was a bold step in ensuring that female voices continue to shape the future of storytelling.

In entrepreneurship, Absa’s investment into women-owned businesses continues to grow, with over R3.2 billion in procurement spend allocated to women-led enterprises across South Africa in the last financial year. Through programmes like She Thrives, women entrepreneurs receive the funding, mentorship, and ecosystem support needed to scale. In partnership with Visa, the She’s Next competition, running from July through September, offers female founders the opportunity to secure funding and exposure. This journey will culminate in the SheNext event on 24 September, where finalists and mentors come together to celebrate breakthrough businesses. Financial inclusion remains a cornerstone of Absa’s approach, with dedicated masterclasses in financial literacy being hosted this Women’s Month to ensure more women are equipped to own their financial journeys.

Absa’s internal culture reflects this external ambition. Today, 52% of the Group’s workforce identifies as female, with targeted initiatives in place to strengthen female representation in leadership. Women-centred employee programmes span mental health, workplace wellness, and gender-based violence (GBV) awareness. Activations throughout August, including the Women in Risk Forum (5 August), the Women Ignite Townhall (18–22 August), and ARO-wide activations (25–29 August), serve not only to honour women internally, but to ensure that policy and practice align with purpose.

Beyond the workplace, Absa’s commitment to equity extends into sport and culture. This August, Absa will once again be the driving force behind women-focused races in four major cities, from the Totalsports Women’s Races in Durban, Cape Town and Johannesburg, to the grand finale Run Your City Tshwane on 24 August. These events are more than races, they are national expressions of empowerment, with Absa colleagues running alongside clients and communities in celebration of women’s strength. Long-term sponsorships like the Sunshine Ladies Tour and the Absa Cape Epic She Untamed continue to create space for women to lead and compete in high-performance arenas, shattering outdated assumptions about what women in sport can achieve.

As a brand rooted in storytelling, Absa continues to invest in authentic platforms that allow women to share their perspectives through the arts. Two major exhibitions will headline this year’s Absa L’Atelier Pan-African Art Series, both led by powerful female voices. In Cape Town, Adelheid Frackiewicz explores personal transformation and the evolving role of women through her exhibition at AVA Gallery (7 August – 25 September). In Kimberley, Bulumko Mbete, winner of the 2023 Gerard Sekoto Award, presents “Like the sky, I’ve been too quiet” at the William Humphreys Gallery (14 August – 13 September), a multimedia reflection on migration, memory, and identity.

This Women’s Month, Absa is also turning the spotlight outward, inviting the public to participate in a national movement of recognition. Through a social storytelling campaign under #WeSeeHer, South Africans are encouraged to tag women in their lives who embody creativity, ambition, potential or resilience, and share their stories. Each week, selected nominations will be featured on Power FM, where both the storyteller and the woman being recognised will be given the opportunity to share their untold story with the country.

The month culminates in one of the most anticipated events on Absa’s calendar: Phenomenal Women, a soulful gathering taking place on 9 August at the NIROX Sculpture Park in partnership with the NIROX Foundation. Set in the heart of the Cradle of Humankind, the event will honour women’s voices through music, poetry, performance and art. The all-female lineup includes Zolani Mahola + The Feminine Force, Poet Nomashenge Dlamini, Shotgun Tori, and WGRUV Dance Company, alongside a curated showcase of women-owned businesses and a full-day art and culinary experience.

“Through Phenomenal Women and every activation across our Women’s Month calendar, we are reaffirming our belief that the stories of women, especially those that have gone unheard, deserve to be honoured, invested in, and amplified,” says Candice Thurston, Managing Executive: Brand and Marketing, Absa Group. “Because when women thrive, communities rise. And when we see her, we all see what’s possible.”