The Women Entrepreneurship for Africa (WE4A) project in Ghana, an initiative of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, co-funded by the European Union and the Organization of African, Caribbean, and Pacific States closing ceremony has been successfully held in Ghana.
The event saw 40 women owned SMEs in Ghana supported through entrepreneurship training.
The closeout event was held under the theme “Capitalising on the full potential of women entrepreneurs for employment creation.”
The The closeout event also provided a platform for women entrepreneurs to share their experiences, including their journey, opportunities, challenges, and valuable lessons acquired during the programme’s execution
The closing event of the Women Entrepreneurship for Africa project was held at the Alisa Hotel, Accra.
Gerald Guskowski, Cluster Coordinator, Sustainable Economic Development, GIZ Ghana speaking at the event explained that the objective behind the project was to increase the economic inclusion and empowerment of women in order to create decent jobs
“The GIZ, as a rule of thumb sets out to reach at least 30% women participation in all its initiatives and activities in Ghana.”
“For the Women Entrepreneurship for Africa Programme (WE4A), the overall objective is to increase the economic inclusion and empowerment of women in order to create more decent jobs in African economies”
Speaking at the program, Gerald Guskowski further added that the program is targeted to increase the number of African women entreprenuers and has “significantly boosted” efforts towards empowering African women economically.
“Specifically, it is targeted to increase the number of African women entrepreneurs who have enhanced business capacities, have access to formal financial services, are integrated into local and regional value chains, and contribute to employment creation in their communities.”
“This programme has significantly boosted efforts towards economically empowering women in Ghana, and on the continent, and I therefore encourage all stakeholders to continue to join hands to empower women led enterprises even after the closure of the programme.”
He urged the 40 beneficiaries of the program to work hard to become “shining examples of economically empowered women.
On her part, director of SMEs at the Trade Ministry, Stella Ansah also urged policy makers to put in place the necessary measures to ensure economic inclusion of women through entrepreneurship training in order to create decent jobs
According to her, the Trade Ministry will work with the various development partners to implement a lot more training initiatives for women entrepreneurs.
Some project participants include owners of the brands; Delse Shop, Kawa Moka, FarmerTribe, 57 chocolates.
Other speakers at the event included; Timothy Dolan, Team Leader (Trade and Macroeconomics, EU Delegation), the deputy CEO of the Ghana Enterprises Agency, Anna Armo-Himbson and the technical advisor on women entreprenuership for Africa at GIZ Ghana, Gideon Mankralo
About Women Entrepreneurship for Africa (WE4A) Programme
The WE4A Programme is a collaborative initiative supported by the European Union, the Organization of African, Caribbean, and Pacific States, and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. Its mission is to empower African women entrepreneurs, foster economic growth, and promote gender equality in entrepreneurship through targeted training, financial support, and partnerships with the private sector.
About GIZ Ghana
As a provider of international cooperation services for sustainable development and international education work, GIZ is dedicated to building a future worth living around the world. GIZ has over 3 Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations 50 years of experience in a wide variety of areas, including economic development and employment, energy and the environment, and peace and security.
GIZ works with businesses, civil society actors, and research institutions, fostering successful interaction between development policy and other policy fields and areas of activity. T
he German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) is our main commissioning party. Currently, GIZ promotes sustainable development in Ghana via about 50 programmes and projects. Our activities currently cover three priority areas: Energy and Climate just Transition; Sustainable Economic Development and Employment, and Peaceful and Inclusive Societies, which looks at good governance.