Women in Trade: Connect Communities, Open Doors
of MSMEs are owned by women.
Source: International Trade Centre, Women and Trade programme
of public procurement goes to women-owned businesses.
Source: International Trade Centre, Women and Trade programme
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Build a roadmap to empower women to trade
Improve data on women in business, bring gender into trade policy, provide public procurement opportunities, tackle the business environment, extend access to financial services and strengthen ownership rights.
“Push for governments to denote a percentage of every public procurement contract to women entrepreneurs. Government support is critical. Get integrated into that ecosystem.”
Xoliswa Daku, Small Enterprise Development Agency; SheTrades Hub, South Africa
“In the Mongolian national export strategy, for example, has there been consideration on what translates into economic empowerment for women? Conduct gender impact assessments before policy is implemented. Sometimes these are done after a policy is in place, and by then you are looking to mitigate some of the impacts that would already have taken place.”
Opeyemi Abebe, Head, Trade Competitiveness, Commonwealth Secretariat; SheTrades Commonwealth Programme
“In Mongolia, we did a gender assessment of the financial sector and provided financial institutions with the ability to target their financial instruments to female entrepreneurs.”
Elaine Conkievich, UNDP Resident Representative, Mongolia
Tech is the next frontier for women’s empowerment
E-commerce has become a mainstay in the global economy. For women-led businesses, benefits include lower initial entry costs, better access to buyers and suppliers, greater time flexibility, more knowledge and skills. Yet women still face challenges such as gender-blind e-commerce policies and agreements, online harassment and algorithmic bias to poor infrastructure and digital literacy.
“The world is going digital, so it’s much easier to access training to trade internationally. We then can assist them to get different licenses or certification to meet different market requirements. We also bring banks to explain how women can access money – which is available.”
Thérèse Sekamana, CEO, LED Solutions; CEO, Green Energy Rwanda; SheTrades Hub, Rwanda
countries
are part of the WTO Buenos Aires Declaration on Trade and Women’s Empowerment.
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Gender-sensitive trade policies accelerate change
Many countries are now bringing a gender lens to WTO work. ITC has supported with analysis and recommendations in the areas of trade facilitation, public procurement, ecommerce and investment. These can help women gain a greater foothold in international business. Similarly, there is much that can be done in bilateral trade agreements.
“Participation matters – let women be involved in the conversation from the get-go, and we will see outcomes that are better for women entrepreneurs.”
Opeyemi Abebe, Head, Trade Competitiveness, Commonwealth Secretariat; SheTrades Commonwealth Programme
Connect women to networks to unlock doors to trade
Within countries, opportunities and initiatives abound. Linking and managing those networks helps women build skills, find mentors, make contacts and access finance. Internationally, women can share practices to access market opportunities and grow their businesses.
ITC’s network of SheTrades Hubs catalyses a community of partners in each country to accelerate women’s economic empowerment. It encourages a trade ecosystem that supports women in business, including development partners, government institutions, women-led businesses, banks and other partners.
“The inauguration of the SheTrades Mongolia Hub today signifies a significant milestone in advancing the opportunities of women in business in mongolia.”
H.E. Bulgantuya Khurelbaatar, Minister of Labour and Social Protection, Mongolia
“We are ready to collaborate and learn from sister hubs. That’s the most important lesson for me.”
Baigali Ochkhuu, Vice President, Mongolian Chamber of Commerce and Industry
“I congratulate Mongolia for its investment in gender-sensitive business surveys. We know very well that it’s difficult. This is a best practice you can share with other SheTrades hubs across the globe.”
Judith Fessehaie, Head, SheTrades Global, International Trade Centre
Full session recording
Supporting Women in Trade
Full session recording
Women in Trade
Full session recording
Launch of the SheTrades Mongolia Hub
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