Growing Entrepreneurial Interest Amongst Women
Pini Bothoko | Monday April 3, 2017 15:26
The Minister of Nationality, Immigration and Gender Affairs, Edwin Batshu said this responding to Specially Elected Member of Parliament, Bogolo Kenewendo.
Kenewendo had wanted to know the current status of the Gender Empowerment Fund, the number of people who benefited from the fund in the financial year, 2015-2016 and when the Ministry will invite more to apply.
Batshu said that more women have developed a strong interest in entrepreneurship with 107,871 customers approaching the Gender Affairs offices for assistance.
He said all the 107,871 were taken through orientation and given guidance on how to apply, out of which 4,478 submitted proposals for funding.
“To this end, 566 businesses have been approved for funding at the tune of P106,611,567.92 creating employment for 1,416 beneficiaries,” Batshu said.
Batshu said as at January 2017, the Ministry had a backlog of 3,825 proposals pending consideration and noting the high number of the backlog.
He said on February 1 this year, they suspended receiving new proposals to allow the opportunity to deal with the backlog.
He said for the financial year 2015-2016, a total of 155 businesses were funded at a total of P31,151,275.90 and this created employment for 611 beneficiaries.
Batshu said in order to address the situation of women in Botswana, in 1998 Government adopted the National Gender Programme, which intensified and strengthened the Women Economic Empowerment Programme as a gender integration model. He stated that the programme aims to address the beneficiaries’ immediate and practical needs as well as long term and strategic needs that promote gender equality.
“The programme’s specific objectives included empowering women for their advancement in all spheres of development, alleviating poverty among women through economic empowerment, and creating employment for women through small enterprises.
He added: “The programme’s objectives also include facilitating participation of women entrepreneurs in all activities that promote, expose and enhance their social and economic status, promoting collaboration and networking among women’s entrepreneurs with a view of strengthening market site and exposing them (women) to the trade sphere,” Batshu said.
Batshu said funding of women was as such meant to build their capacity on business management so that they could graduate to run their own businesses.
He said funded businesses are therefore regarded as incubations for acquisition of business skills, hence the ability for enhancing women’s social and economic status. “This also enables them to have employment outside home, have ownership rights and participate in decision-making outside the home,” Batshu said.
He said the programme evolved with time, now taking the business model that is moving from informal groups to companies.
Batshu stated that this therefore means that applicants need to run their businesses in a more organised and formal way stating that the programme also evolved from funding groups of five up to 10.
He said in November 2015 and July 2016, the programme was reviewed as the eligibility threshold increased from the initial P500 to P1,000, funding individual women, a group of two women and a group of three or more women, which may include men who must be in the minority.
“The programme was also reviewed for the funding group of 10 or more for community projects and cooperatives and special dispensation was also made for people with disability, relating to their unique circumstances,” Batshu said.