THE BERTHA CENTRE

SOCIAL INNOVATION
& ENTREPRENEURSHIP
ABOUT

THE BERTHA CENTRE FOR

S O C I A L I N N O VAT I O N
AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
IS A SPECIALISED UNIT
AT T H E U N I V E R S I T Y O F
OUR VISION
C A P E T O W N ’ S G R A D U AT E WE ENV I SI ON A MOR E
SCHOOL OF BUSINESS (GSB). I NCLUSI V E , SUSTAI NABL E
ECONOMY AND MOR E
JUST SOCI ET Y D R I V EN BY
SOCI AL I NNOVATI ON &
Established in 2011 in partnership with the
ENTR EP R ENEUR SHI P.
Bertha Foundation, a family foundation that
works with inspiring leaders who are catalysts
for social and economic change and human
rights, the Centre has become a leading
academic centre in Africa.
OUR MISSION
In collaboration with the GSB, the Centre has TO BUI L D C APACI T Y AND
integrated social innovation into the business PI ONEER PR AC TI CES I N
school curriculum, established a wide AFR I C A - WI TH PAR TNER S,
community of practitioners and awarded over P R AC TI TI ONER S AND
R7 million in scholarships to students from STUD ENTS - TO ADVANCE
across Africa. At the GSB, the Centre works THE D I SCOUR SE AND
closely with academic faculty, the MTN
SYSTEMI C I MPAC T OF
Solution Space, and the Raymond Ackerman
SOCI AL I NNOVATI ON.
Academy of Entrepreneurial Development.
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RESEARCHING
FOR ACTION
WE ARE BUILDING AN EVIDENCE DOWNLOAD OUR ONLINE
B A S E T H AT D E M O N S T R AT E S T H E PUBLICATIONS AND GUIDES:
I M PA C T O F S O C I A L I N N O VAT I O N
+ African Investing for Impact Barometer
I N A F R I C A A N D D I S S E M I N AT I N G
+ Education Innovators Review
ACTIONABLE INSIGHTS.
+ Health Innovators Review
+ Innovative Finance in Africa Review
+ Guide to Impact Bond Investing
We build an evidence base of African-centred
social innovation and systems entrepreneurship, + Guide to Innovative Finance in Africa
generating actionable insights for practitioners + Guide to Legal Forms for Social
and students, and publishing them as case Enterprises in South Africa
studies, research and media articles and + Social Franchising Accelerator Insights
curriculum. We work to advance individuals, Guide & case studies
institutions and systems. We do this through + Switching on finance for off-grid energy
offering funding such as our scholarships and
+ Beyond Organizational Scale:
social venture test or start-up capital. Our
How Social Entrepreneurs Create
faculty and team members teach curricula Systems Change
created to advance social innovators, social and
system entrepreneurs with a focus on
addressing Africa’s social challenges and
inequality in direct and in systemic ways.

OUR PUBLICATIONS
EDUCATING
FOR IMPACT
W E E D U C AT E S T U D E N T S , We educate students on GSB Programmes
ENTREPRENEURS AND including the MBA, EMBA, MCom in Development
LEADERS, IN SOCIAL Finance and the MPhil in Inclusive Innovation. We
also teach Executive Education courses and
I N N O VAT I O N , S O C I A L
Massive Open Online Courses. Our Social
ENTREPRENEURSHIP Innovation Lab (SIL) is a pioneering addition to the
AND SYSTEMS CHANGE. GSB’s core MBA programme that seeks to support
and equip purpose-driven people who are looking
to drive social impact in emerging markets.
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COURSES &
CURRICULUM
GSB PROGRAMMES
+ M BA (Social Innovation & Entrepreneurship & Social Innovation Lab)
+ E MBA
+ Master of Commerce in Development Finance (MCom)
+ Master of Philosophy specialising in Inclusive Innovation (MPhil)

GSB EXECUTIVE EDUCATION COURSES

+ Impact Investing in Africa
+ L eading Innovative Partnerships in Extended Education
+ S ocial Entrepreneurship & Systems Change

BERTHA CENTRE SHORT COURSES

+ Impact Measurement
+ O utcomes-Based Contracting

MASSIVE OPEN ONLINE COURSE

+ B ecoming a changemaker: Introduction to Social Innovation (MOOC)
+ Innovative Finance: Hacking finance to change the world (MOOC)
CONVENING
FOR RESULTS
WE CONVENE AN INCLUSIVE
S E T O F S TA K E H O L D E R S T O D E S I G N ,
E X C H A N G E A N D C O L L A B O R AT E I N
SYSTEMS WORK.

We have connected over 7000 students, citizens,

practitioners and knowledge generators across different
sectors, providing a space and structure for them to
exchange ideas through conferences, webinars,
workshops, hackathons, business planning competitions,
etc. We collaborate with African systems innovators and
entrepreneurs working in disadvantaged communities,
and make them visible, and build and support this network
of changemakers to be more systemic and impactful.
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CATALYSING
FOR CHANGE
WE ADVISE AND SUPPORT The Bertha Centre provides government, private
PA R T N E R S I N E X P L O R I N G , investors, donors and NPOs with advice and
support on impact investing, creating pathways
TESTING AND SCALING
to funding and growing social enterprises
I N N O VAT I V E I N I T I AT I V E S . through workshops, labs, seed funding,
mentorship, etc. We advance outcomes-based
models in the public sector to improve the
effectiveness of service delivery, and advise
government on policy interventions to advance
social innovation and entrepreneurship.
We are open to discussing new and exciting
collaborations and partnerships as some of our
key projects have included The World Bank,
Rockefeller Foundation, Johnson & Johnson,
South African National Treasury and Western
Cape Government, to name but a few.
SCHOLARSHIPS
BERTHA CENTRE SCHOLARSHIPS
ARE OFFERED TO AFRICAN
CITIZENS. APPLICANTS MUST
A L S O A P P LY T O T H E G S B
PROGRAMME OF THEIR CHOICE.
The Bertha Centre offers scholarships to
UCT GSB applicants who would like to
complete either the UCT GSB MBA or
MPhil in Inclusive Innovation. These
scholarships are open to innovators,
entrepreneurs, out-of-the-box thinkers,
system-entrepreneurs, changemakers,
social activists and cross-disciplinary
candidates from any field, provided they
are actively involved in the exploration of
social, environmental and/or economic
justice using innovative approaches.
FAST FACTS

CREATED OVER 250+ NEW CASE STUDIES and VIGNETTES

UNCOVERED & DOCUMENTED 300+ INNOVATIVE MODELS AND
SOLUTIONS IN FINANCE, EDUCATION, HEALTH + OTHER SOCIAL FIELDS

CONVENED 7000+ CITIZENS AND

PRACTITIONERS IN SUPPORT OF OUR MISSION

BENCHMARKED IN THE TOP 5 CONNECT

GLOBALLY FOR SOCIAL IMPACT IN A
2017 BRIDGESPAN GROUP REPORT WITH US

AWARDED OVER R7-MILLION IN BERTHA

SCHOLARSHIPS TO AFRICAN STUDENTS
PRESENTED WITH UCT’S SOCIAL
RESPONSIVENESS AWARD IN 2015
Attend our events.
Apply for a Bertha Centre scholarship.
Sign up online for our monthly newsletter.
Participate in our courses, curriculum
and workshops.
Download our online publications and
guides.

ENGAGE WITH US

Awarded Social Innovation Leadership @BerthaCentre

Award in African Leadership Awards 2016 Bertha Centre for Social Innovation
& Entrepreneurship
Bertha Centre for Social Innovation
& Entrepreneurship
Conducted 300+ Executive Education and Short Courses Whatsapp: +27 81 813 1948
8 Portswood Road, Green Point,
Cape Town, South Africa
+27 (0)21 406 1524

berthacentre@gsb.uct.ac.za
www.gsb.uct.ac.za/berthacentre