By Valrie Grant,
Entrepreneur,
Managing Director, GeoTechVision
Chairperson Small Business Council
Global Entrepre-neurship Week (GEW) is the world’s largest celebration of entrepre-neurs. The week aims to inspire people everywhere through local, national and global activities designed to help them explore their potential as entrepreneurs and innovators. Thousands of activities, from large-scale competitions and events to intimate networking gatherings, connect participants to potential collaborators, mentors and even investors—introducing them to new possibilities and exciting opportunities. The Small Business Bureau and other organizations that support entrepreneurship have been involved in a series of activities geared at empowering entrepreneurs during this week.
Entrepreneur,
Managing Director,
GeoTechVision
This week’s activities in Guyana will end with the celebration of Women’s Entrepreneurship Day tomorrow. One may wonder, with a variety of days dedicated to various causes why does the world need a Women’s Entrepreneurship Day? The answer should be evident when consideration is given to the fact that women perform 66% of the world’s work, yet earn 10% of the world’s income. At the same time, they account for 85% of consumer purchases and control $20 trillion in worldwide spending. Women’s Entrepreneurship Day (WED) is generating a movement that carries throughout the year in support of women in business globally. WED ignites women leaders, innovators, and entrepreneurs to initiate start-ups, drive economic expansion, and advance communities worldwide. WED is celebrated in 144 countries and 110 universities/colleges internationally reaching over 1.4 million people. The mission is to empower the 4 billion women across the globe to be catalysts of change, and uplift the 250 million girls living in poverty globally.
Women’s Entrepreneurship Day is a great occasion to make life-changing connections, participate in a worldwide celebration for women in business, and be a part of a larger discussion to empower women.
This year in Guyana we will be celebrating women in business at a summit under the theme ‘Fostering Entrepreneurship, Celebrating Women in Business’. The event will be held at the Pegasus Hotel, Georgetown from 1 pm tomorrow. It is organized by CUSO International, Georgetown Chamber of Commerce, Small Business Bureau and GeoTechVision Guyana and is aimed at:
Empowering Guyanese women to be a catalyst for change
- Exposing girls to the prospects of entrepreneurship as a career
- Amplifying the message of expanding women in business
- Being a networking event giving all the opportunity to interact with distinguished entrepreneurs and leaders.
All are invited to participate in this event. An exciting programme is prepared and women in business will also be showcasing their products and services in an exhibit and women in business lounge, a place for women to recharge and relax in a serene environment.
The Small Business Bureau will be talking about future plans to support small businesses and also launching the SBB Website on this occasion.
Small businesses are the lifeblood of our nations and increasingly, it is women who are in charge of these growing, thriving enterprises. As we celebrate women entrepreneurs tomorrow, there must be a recognition that entrepreneurship is vital to a competitive, knowledge-based economy and this should compel the policy-makers and government departments, universities, civil society and the business community to work cooperatively to identify and foster the conditions which will drive people to start new businesses and sustain business growth. In similar manner, it should drive the powers that be to remove or lower barriers to entry for new small, medium and micro enterprises. This will allow us to reflect on and to distil the elements of a healthy entrepreneurial ecosystem so that they become the cornerstones of the policy, programmes, funding and human capital development that is critically needed to advance entrepreneurship in Guyana.
It is my hope then that the event will be more than a celebration but a reflection that will propel action and the advancement of entrepreneurship in Guyana. Let’s make an active choice to support the event and network with the entrepreneurs and use this day to really celebrate the women in business in Guyana who are making a positive contribution to its economic growth and development.
If you have a question related to this article or just a general question on entrepreneurship, write to us at guyanabusinesswise@gmail.com. Your question may be addressed directly or in our next article.
