By Mariatou Ngum
She Trades under the Ministry of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment (MOTIE) in partnership with the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) recently concluded a two-day training for 50 entrepreneurs who are members of the She Trades Hub.
The training was held at the Gambia Tourism and Hospitality Institute (GTHI) in Kanifing.
The objective of the training was to support women-owned businesses in the areas of fashion, horticulture and public procurèrent to be able to make stock of financial transactions, data recording and accountability.
During the training, participants were exposed to various topics in relation to book keeping and financial literacy and a hands-on coaching component that will allow them to implement what they have learned during the training and make tangible transformations in their businesses.
In her welcome remarks, Isatou A. Jallow - Programme Officer, SheTradesHub, stated that the project aims to increase women’s participation in trade by facilitating the development of a supportive business ecosystem, improving competitiveness as well as strengthening market linkages in strategic and potential productive sectors.
According to her, the project acts as a convener, working with key public and private stakeholders to improve the business environment for Gambian women entrepreneurs and facilitates women entrepreneurs’ access skills, and support systems required to run successful businesses, improving their competitiveness and connecting them to local, regional and international markets.
She expressed appreciation to the SheTrades team members and implementing partners for supporting the event.
She also thanked GIEPA for partnering with them in this two-day activity.
Mrs. Jallow further expressed gratitude to Mr. Ousman Bojang EIF Project Coordinator who also doubles as the Director of Trade at MOTIE, for ensuring that the HUB activities are being supported through this project and offering assistance wherever needed.
She also applauded ITC Gambia for always being great partners in women’s economic empowerment initiatives.
For her part, Fatou Mbenga Jallow, ITC Gambia encouraged the participants to make good use of the opportunities that have been given to them to be in the SheTrades cohort and to participate in this training.
She told the participants that they are all businesswomen and are great at what they do, therefore, this training is key and should be utilised to ensure that their businesses grow.
She thanked the Ministry of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment for always taking the lead in SheTrades initiatives.
