Sourcing funds for business ventures could become easier for women-owned businesses in the Caribbean following the signing late last month of an agreement between the European Union-funded regional business support organization, Caribbean Export Development Agency (Carib-bean Export) and the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) to collaboratively pursue a new initiative titled Women Empowered through Export (WE-Xport) designed to support capacity-building for women-owned businesses to facilitate their access to finance, a release from Caribbean Export says.
The disclosure comes against the backdrop of a persistent region-wide lobby for enhanced access to finance for women-owned businesses, particularly small businesses and the Caribbean Export release says that the new initiative will be launched this month.
A key component of the initiative tagged ‘Access to Finance” will include a two-day workshop which, the Agency says, aims to increase participants’ understanding of the requirements of financial institutions and how best to meet them. Ongoing technical assistance through regional business support organizations will also be available to participating companies through the CDB-funded component, the release says. The Bank’s contribution to the initiative will also include “ongoing technical assistance” to beneficiary businesses through regional business support organizations.