Six African women have joined the group of final contenders vying for the Empretec Women in Business Awards, organised by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development’s (UNCTAD).

The awards are handed out biennially to celebrate exceptional women entrepreneurs who have benefited from the UNCTAD’ Empretec training programme. A maximum of three nominations are received from each of the 36 national Empretec centres across the world.

According to a statement by UNCTAD, the finalists are individuals who have overcome obstacles and persevered to establish and grow successful companies. They come from Africa, Latin America and the Middle East and work in a variety of sectors ranging from education, martial arts and security services.

In the education sector, Lara Cookey, a Nigerian innovative designer, who focuses on early education made the finals. Her Contextplay Matrix designs educational toys and recreational tools for early child development, including learning materials, playground equipment and furniture.

In the manufacturing and distribution sector, Mauritius’ Maya Sewnath of SSS Furniture, a company that manufactures tailor-made wooden furniture using local raw materials, specializes in the wedding and children’s market, also made the final cut.

From the services sector, Divine Ndhlukula of Securico Security Services, Zimbabwe and Renay van der Berg of Procomm, South Africa made the cut, while Senegalese Thiane Diagne of Jour J Couture and Angelica M. Runsey of Angel Bites from Zambia, completed the list of African women in the final list.

The three final winners will be announced tomorrow, at a gala event in Geneva, during the UNCTAD World Investment Forum 2014.