Author: Zakhona Ndlovu and Philani Mkhize

At Amazon Web Services (AWS), we believe that building diverse teams allows us to innovate better for our customers. To work toward this, in 2019, AWS South Africa launched the AWS Equity Equivalent Investment Program (AWS EEIP), as part of its Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) program. The AWS EEIP is a partner development and acceleration program for 100% black-owned small IT businesses in South Africa. Applications for the 2021 intake are now open. Empowering black-owned small businesses According to the International Finance Corporation (IFC), small business ownership in South Africa reflects patterns of racial and gender-based inequality in the…