Girl power: One small step for women entrepreneurs
Great business ideas are just as likely to be conceived at the kitchen table as in a bar with the boys.
But sadly, compared to men, only a handful of women-owned ventures reach their full potential; thanks to inequalities ranging from institutional barriers hindering prospects for women and limited credit opportunities compared to their male counterparts.
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Efforts to correct this inequalities have often been a bit clumsy – but there is progress being made.
Notable financial institutions across the country are now doing a better job at banking on women’s potential by thinking creatively and even crafting credit facilities for industrious women looking to prop up or start enterprises of their own.
Women entrepreneurs see the world through a different lens and, in turn, do things differently. Entrepreneurial training can also equip women with the confidence to see bold ideas through.
MS Cherie Blair CBE QC, Founder, the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women reckons that Issues facing women entrepreneurs at this time are complex and interconnected but through collaboration and new partnerships across sectors – women enterprises will flourish.
She was speaking during the launch of ‘HerVenture’ a business skills training mobile app for women entrepreneurs in Kenya.
Upon signing in, the Mobile app will ask questions upfront and then tailor the learning experiences for women running small and medium enterprises of any kind.
This feature is crucial seeing that entrepreneurs often need specific information, for example, where to sell their products or source supplies.
Professor Margaret Kobia, Cabinet Secretary for the Public Service, Youth and Gender Affairs – lauded ‘HerVenture’ describing it as an opportunity to invest in, empower and liberate women entrepreneurs to start seeking and exploit available opportunities.
In emerging markets like Kenya, an overall majority of women reinvest their earnings in their families and communities—which means that investing in women is an investment in our collective future.
Professor Kobia reckoned that entrepreneurial training was just as critical as financial support.
‘HerVenture’ is currently available on Android devices, where the training content will be provided in bite-sized, easy to understand formats such as swipe-able cards, quizzes and videos. It also comes with an e-commerce option to support women entrepreneurs with business digitization.
Thanks to a partnership with DHL Express, Kenya becomes the second African nation to benefit from the availability of ‘HerVenture’ after a successful roll-out in Nigeria.
The app will be used as a grand stage to help women entrepreneurs to digitize their businesses and position them to thrive in the new digital world during at a time when the coronavirus pandemic is gathering pace.
