Bangladesh Launches WE-HELP Initiative to Empower Women Entrepreneurs with Comprehensive Support

By: WE Staff | Friday, 15 September 2023

The "WE-HELP" digital platform is a big step towards assisting female entrepreneurs by providing a wide range of services.

This platform, created in collaboration with the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNSCAP), offers 20 various types of services, including policy advice, networking, market formation, marketing assistance, displays, webinars, and more.

Entrepreneurs can receive assistance with business financial management, product quality assurance, ICT and digital services, skill development, finance and financial aid, and adherence to international labour rights and factory safety standards.

WE-HELP was inaugurated at the Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation in the capital by Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar. The event was presided over by Professor Md Masudur Rahman, Chairperson of the SME Foundation, and was attended by Zakia Sultana, Secretary of the Industries Ministry.

Cai Cai, head of UNSCAP's Social Development Division's Gender Equality and Social Inclusion Branch; Gwyn Lewis, UN Resident Coordinator; Rita Houkayem, senior development officer of the Canadian High Commission in Bangladesh; and Mantasha Ahmed, president of the SAARC Business Council, Bangladesh were among those present.

According to the Bangladesh Government's 2013 Economic Survey, cottage, micro, small, and medium businesses account for 99.93% of the country's approximately 78 lakh small and medium businesses.

These companies are vital to the economy, accounting for more than 25% of GDP and supplying 85% of job opportunities. Despite this, women entrepreneurs make up just 7.2% of the industry and receive only 8% of all SME loans in the country.

Women entrepreneurs, on the other hand, stand to benefit from the project because they will have access to 25-30% of all SME Foundation loans and 70% of all SME Foundation services.

Women-owned enterprises employ 8.4 lakh people in Bangladesh, accounting for 10% of total employment, according to the Bangladesh Institute of Development Research. Women presently account for more than 36% of labour force participation; increasing it to 45% might raise GDP growth by 2%.

Under the project "Catalysing Women's Entrepreneurship - Creating a Gender Responsive Entrepreneurial System," the SME Foundation and UNESCAP are working to carry out many programmes.

The launch of WE-HELP is an important step in this endeavour, which aims to provide essential information and support for entrepreneurial development to women entrepreneurs across the country, such as online business information exchange, networking opportunities, training, market connections, and loan access.