WB ‘We‘ll improve women’s capacity to participate in the economy’
Tell us more about SheTrades SheTrades is a global initiative run by the International Trade Centre. The International Trade Centre is a joint organisation run by the United Nations and the World Trade Centre organisation. It was put together to improve competitiveness and integrate SMEs into the international market.
Under the women development programme, which is looking at the intersections between gender and trade, we have the SheTrades initiative. The idea behind SheTrades is this: We work on seven pillars, championing quality data on gender and trade, announcing policy on gender and trade, secure government contract and strike business deals, enable access to market and unlock financial service and grant ownership right to women businesses to improve the economic environment that will support women’s participation in the economy and also participation in international market. That is the SheTrades initiative itself.
In April this year, the UK government launched the SheTrades Commonwealth project and it is under that project that we have our country programmes, such as that run in Nigeria, which is also run in Ghana, Bangladesh and Kenya. Every country has its different sector focus, but in Nigeria, we focus on agriculture. We are focused on textile and apparel and we are also focused on services. Services make up about 60% of the economy in Nigeria so it’s important that we get more women participating there and empowered.
Under agriculture, we are focused on cashew, Shea and spices - ginger and turmeric. And in textiles and apparel, we also include handicraft.
In Nigeria, are you recording progress in your initiatives?
We are noting very good results. The project in Nigeria was launched in June and the kick-off Terfa Ashwe is the National Co-coordinator of SheTrades, a global initiative run by the International Trade Centre aimed at building capacity for women entrepreneurs. She spoke to Daily Trust about SheTrades’ Commonwealth Project at the sidelines of the 2018 annual conference of the African Women Entrepreneurship Programme (AWEP) held in Abuja recently. project is in partnership you are getting it for free. just started up and need with the Nigerian Export It is a very educative and to go to the next stage, Promotion Council amazing training. some have been at the (NEPC), and we have You will be in the middle stage and just started a lot of activities network of fantastic need a little coaching to in terms of capacity women; women who are get their products ready building. Most of them passionate about their for export. We will be have been online for now work, women that know putting them out for trade and most of the feedback their business and you are shows. We have women we have been getting able to network. During who are already export from the online courses the Lagos Fashion Week, ready, we will be giving have been encouraging. we were with a couple of them extra coaching, We just finished a course women, and some were mentoring and support on analysing trade flows. sharing their challenges in order to get them up
We have done courses on how difficult it is there. on introduction to accessing finance; there The start-ups have the business planning. and then someone information they need We have been doing with background in to have solid businesses/ entrepreneurship investment, offered solid foundation so they courses and we are explanation on what know that even if they getting feedback on needed to be done. cannot export today, this them. We have a lot of So you key into this is their plan, their strategy women participating network of women that to export in say five/10 in the online courses, are coming from different years. So they get a lot globally - that is in the backgrounds - law, from the programme, four countries. banking and business and and are excited about it.
We have about 700 they give you advice It’s free. If you sign women who are signedon. on how you navigate in up, you get the modules The target of the the so-called complicated every two weeks. We are programme is about issues. You have keyed almost at the end of the 3,000 women. In Nigeria, into a fantastic network. first cycle. The SheTrades we are focused on The project is for programme ends in April building the capacity of two years, and we do 2020. So women have this at least 1,050 women. understand that there opportunity till 2020. All From the feedbacks, is a limit to what we can they need to do is signup. women are excited and do. All the women on the happy about it. platform may not be able
We have been to attend this but we are participating in trade going to be supporting fairs. We were at the women. People are at Lagos Fashion Week a different levels in their couple of weeks ago, businesses, some have talking about our brand.
How can women participate in your programmes?
All you need to do is go to our SheTrades platform and register. It’s a communal platform and you register at www. shetrades.com, then you apply to become a beneficiary. The criterion for being a beneficiary is that your company has to be 30% women owned and controlled by a woman. That is how we define it. It has to fall into the relevant sectors and it has to be registered in Nigeria.
We have noticed that we have a lot of women entrepreneurs in Nigeria doing things but they are not registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC). They are in the informal sector which makes it difficult to grow and expand in business, especially if you want to go into international trade. So you have to be registered in Nigeria.
What do women gain when they register on your platform?
When you are registered and you are accepted on the SheTrades platform, you are going to be tutored on 13 modules of business courses. That is like getting a free MBA. That is, courses on entrepreneurship, how to write a business plan, how to develop an export strategy, how to analyse the market, how to get cash flows.
These courses what people go to university to learn are the but
Are there financial benefits, like grants for women apart from the training?
We are not going to be giving out grants and loans. We will be creating investment opportunities. The idea of the project is to equip you to do what you are doing and to do it to the best quality. That is why we are connecting women to events; we take you there and you meet buyers. So far, we have been able to generate about US$2 million in sales leads, which means women went for events and met buyers who placed orders. I think this is better than grants and loans, because it is money that is coming into your pocket directly that you don’t have to pay back.
What is you view of Nigerian women entrepreneurs?
I think women entrepreneurs are dynamic people. Women in Nigeria are very creative in finding business solutions to problems. I think it is unique to the Nigerian woman. There are many things that a Nigerian entrepreneur balances; you have business you are thinking of, employees and then family to balance. It takes a lot of creativity and strength.