BAKU – Celebrated from November 14-20, Global Entrepreneurship Week is also an important event for women entrepreneurs who are expanding and diversifying the economy through their businesses and innovative entrepreneurial activities.
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) implements a number of projects to promote women's entrepreneurship and support the women in the workplace in the world and in Azerbaijan. Here in Azerbaijan, USAID within the framework of its Private Sector Activity (PSA) Project, with the close participation of a Steering Committee consisting of leaders of business associations and organizations, developed the Women’s National Business Agenda (WNBA) white paper and started its implementation by presenting the document to the public in early November. The WNBA is a capstone document reflecting the contributions of eight organizations representing more than one thousand members, across one year period nationally and will form the basis of advocacy work moving forward in a coming year.
“Women are an important factor of change. Utilizing the potential of female entrepreneurs will be crucial for the sustainable and inclusive development of Azerbaijan. Support for women entrepreneurs is not only important from a social standpoint but also from an economic perspective. Achieving greater gender equality is particularly critical to improving the labor market. Entrepreneurship is also a clear opportunity to improve women’s economic independence”, said Michael Nehrbass, USAID Mission Director in Azerbaijan.
WNBA includes a set of reforms to advance the objectives of inclusive economic growth and women’s economic empowerment. The WNBA addresses the challenges for women in economy through recommendations in three main areas: supporting women in entrepreneurship; supporting women in the workforce; and developing gender-sensitive support mechanisms.
These recommendations put forward in the WNBA will help not only women managers, women business owners and women entrepreneurs be successful in the marketplace, but will also help the wider business community and the government.
WNBA offers concrete recommendations and policy solutions in three directions to create a more favorable business environment for women and to seek to remove the barriers they face in the workplace: supporting women in entrepreneurship; supporting women in the workforce; and developing gender-sensitive support mechanisms.
The WNBA white paper will contribute to the reduction of barriers to women's entrepreneurship and employment by strengthening the dialogue between both the public and private sectors as well as offer valuable recommendations for the Government of Azerbaijan as they develop its economic reform agenda for women's entrepreneurship.
USAID is proud to continue supporting women's economic empowerment, and in honor of Global Entrepreneurship Week emphasizes that women are the driving force of the economy.
Aziz Karimov for USAID