In a timely effort to champion women’s economic empowerment, the Uganda Women Entrepreneurs Association Limited (UWEAL) proudly hosted its 10th Annual Women-in-Business Leaders’ Conference on November 29th, 2023.
This pivotal event unfolded at the UMA Show Grounds Main Hall, marking a significant contribution to the Month of Women Entrepreneurs (MOWE). Themed “Digitalization Advancing Women in Trade,” the conference aimed to address crucial challenges hindering the full potential of women in trade.
Representing the State Minister for Trade, David Bahati, Cleopas Ndorere, Commissioner for External Trade, called on women entrepreneurs to formalize their businesses to benefit from government programs. He urged agencies responsible for registering and formalizing businesses to provide incentives, such as literacy and financial training, aiming to attract more participants.
Ndorere emphasized, “Let’s Formalize with Incentives. Let’s get an interaction where we say once you formalize, you will get different benefits like education and connections to different financing opportunities.”
Insights derived from UWEAL’s baseline study underscored the primary barriers faced by women entrepreneurs, with an 83% prevalence of the lack of trade and market information. These challenges were further compounded by digital readiness inequalities, a dearth of competitive advantages, high business costs, and inadequate management skills. Despite women’s substantial contributions to agricultural production in Uganda, their participation in value addition and trade, both locally and internationally, lagged behind their male counterparts.
A contextual analysis emphasized the critical role of women’s leadership in driving economic opportunities, considering women constitute 51% of Uganda’s population. Globally, women own or operate 25% to 33% of all private businesses. However, economic, legal, and cultural obstacles hinder their ability to scale enterprises for substantial economic growth.
Speaking at the event, Rosa Malango acknowledged the conference’s role in providing crucial information for women entrepreneurs. Malango urged women to formalize and register their businesses, emphasizing the importance of being registered in the digital age. She addressed challenges, particularly for small-scale entrepreneurs, including certification, expressing her commitment to working on accelerating solutions. Malango stressed the necessity to deepen training on branding, emphasizing the value of products made by women and youth to enhance exports and trade.
The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) 2021/2022 report signaled a concerning 15% drop in startup rates for women from 2019 to 2020, with subsequent stagnation in 2021. This alarming trend necessitated urgent policy actions to support female entrepreneurs and address structural and environmental inequalities. Women entrepreneurs continued to be underrepresented in traditionally male-dominated sectors, emphasizing the imperative for unbiased support across all sectors and countries. UWEAL’s regional approach aimed to uplift women operating micro and small businesses, creating a lasting impact on their economic well-being.
The conference convened industry leaders to address unique challenges faced by women in business, focusing on expert opinions in key areas such as access to finance, digitalization adaptation, business-to-business linkages, formalizing businesses, legal clinics, and knowledge enhancement about opportunities in export markets.
Key objectives of the conference included providing digital skills and tools, showcasing women SMEs’ activities through exhibitions, conducting capacity-building initiatives, facilitating advocacy for women SMEs, promoting information exchange, and fundraising for increased outreach.
Connie Kekihembo, CEO of UWEAL, emphasized the transformative power of digital tools and underscored the importance of creating an enabling environment for women entrepreneurs. Addressing the challenges faced by female entrepreneurs, such as limited access to finance and adapting to technological advancements, Kekihembo highlighted the need to embrace new digital trends in business. She shared that UWEAL has conducted trainings and distributed laptops to chapters, expanding the digital network and fostering an environment for women entrepreneurs to thrive in the digital age.
UWEAL remains committed to empowering women entrepreneurs, fostering an enabling business environment, and championing women’s interests in crucial areas such as public procurement, financial accessibility, digital inclusion, trade and market access, business incubation services, and technology availability.
