Women are key in ensuring long-term growth of Africa’s Small and Medium Enterprises (SME).
26 May 2011, Brussels, Belgium
“Women in Africa represent 52% of the total population, contribute approximately 75% of the agricultural work, and are responsible for 60-80% of the food production. Yet, they earn only 10% of African incomes and own just 1 per cent of the continent’s assets”, explains Nomsa Daniels, speaker at this year’s AfDB-EMRC SME Forum and Executive Director of New Faces New Voices, an African organization of women in business and finance whose mission is to accelerate the economic empowerment of African women.
These figures clearly identify the work that still needs to be done across Africa in terms of women and business but they also highlight the enormous potential of women as key participants in emerging economies. As Nomsa Daniels equally states, “Women tend to save more than men and spend more of their money on education, health, and the welfare of their families, thus societies which try to eliminate gender inequalities reap better economic dividends.”
The AfDB-EMRC SME Forum entitled “Bridging the Missing Middle gap in Africa”, to be held on 6-7 June 2011 in Lisbon Portugal, will enable those involved to analyse and improve the role of SMEs across African economies as well as the role of women in developing this sector. MSMEs (micro, small and medium-sized enterprises) make up the majority of businesses on the continent and there is enormous scope for development.
The goal is clear, according to Ms Daniels, “By addressing the needs of the so-called ’missing middle’ and enhancing women’s access to finance, business support services, and managerial skills, a stronger and more dynamic business sector will be created in Africa.”
Women have already gained recognition through EMRC’s annual Project Incubator Award. Maria Odido won the award for her Bee Natural Project in 2010, receiving US$15,000, allowing her to expand her bee products and to export regionally. This year’s Project Incubator Award nominees are also expected to be from across Africa, showcasing a variety of groundbreaking projects.
The AfDB-EMRC SME Forum will be an opportunity to learn about interesting and innovative projects and to understand what is happening at the ground level and the issues faced by the ”missing middle”. International experts will demonstrate best practice finance models and non-financial support mechanisms from Africa and other emerging markets. Without exception, the inclusion of B2B meetings, where investors and project leaders can meet and conclude deals, will also put a unique spin to this Forum.
“Ultimately, for Africa to succeed in the next decade, be competitive in the global economy, and reach the growth rates required to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, it needs to develop the SME sector and women will play a key part in achieving that goal,” Daniels adds as a final and timely statement.
Through her New Faces New Voices organisation, Ms Daniels has one clear objective: “Our objective is to unequivocally demonstrate that supporting women entrepreneurs can be a win-win proposition for financial institutions, for the women themselves, and for society as a whole.”
Source: Emrc press release
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