Relief Measures Available for Women Entrepreneurs During and Post Covid-19
New Faces New Voices Rwanda in collaboration with the SME Response Clinic will be hosting a live discussion focused on how public and private sector measures to address the economic effects of COVID-19 can support women entrepreneurs. The discussion will be hosted on the SME Response Clinic’s Facebook page at 3:00 pm on July 16 and will be held in English and Kinyarwanda.
Micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) play a significant role in the Rwandan economy and contribute to sustain livelihoods for many. According to the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda’s Establishment Census 2017, the sector, including private sector and cooperatives, represents 99% of businesses and over 70% of in-establishment employment. Women entrepreneurs are a vital force in Rwanda’s economy. Statistics from the National Gender Policy in Rwanda indicate that women head 42 percent of enterprises and comprise 58 percent of enterprises in the informal sector, which accounts for 30 percent of GDP. National surveys indicate that women entrepreneurs also have a tremendous impact on job creation in Rwanda, with many hiring between 3 and 5 employees to work in their businesses.
In addition to contributing to the development of their local communities through offering employment opportunities, women entrepreneurs contribute substantially to the development of their families through health and nutrition, ensuring funds are available for school fees and higher education for their children, and making improvements to their homes with profits from their businesses. Their contributions, however, are not without challenges. Women entrepreneurs in Rwanda face difficulties in access to three important factors: information, business skills training and development, and finance. They grapple with issues such as high taxes and transportation costs as well as discrimination in property ownership.
As in many markets across the globe, women entrepreneurs in Rwanda have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and measures to contain the spread of the virus have deepened some of the existing challenges they face. In the face of drops in demand or disruptions in the supply chains, a number of jobs have been lost or are at the brink while loans, taxes and rent are going unpaid. To respond to the challenge, the Government of Rwanda introduced the Economic Recovery Fund (ERF) as a mechanism to mitigate the threats that the pandemic is putting on the sector. Due to known barriers women in business face, there is a legitimate concern that without a deliberate effort women-owned/led MSMEs are likely to remain ill-informed and their uptake of ERF less than optimal.
To provide information about ERF and other private and public sector measures available to support women entrepreneurs in these uncertain times, New Faces New Voices Rwanda in collaboration with the SME Response Clinic will be hosting a live discussion focused on how government measures to address the economic effects of COVID-19 can support women entrepreneurs. The discussion will be hosted on the SME Response Clinic’s Facebook page at 3:00 pm on July 16. To increase accessibility for women entrepreneurs, the event will be held mostly in Kinyarwanda.
Panelists include:
Dr. Monique Nsanzabaganwa, Deputy Governor, National Bank of Rwanda
Jeanne Françoise Mubiligi, Chairperson, Rwanda Chamber of Women Entrepreneurs
Claude Kabutware, Project Coordinator, Pro- Femmes Twese Hamwe
Hannington Namara, Managing Director, Equity Bank Rwanda
The panel will be moderated by Ida Ingabire, Secretariat at New Faces, New Voices Rwanda and Ruziga Emmanuel Masantura, Business Journalist, Rwanda Broadcasting Agency.
This discussion will be the first of a two-part conversation with key stakeholders in the Rwandan economy. The second webinar, scheduled for July 30, will focus on how financial services providers are addressing the specific needs of women entrepreneurs in the face of COVID-19.