G20 Flagship projects

Description of the project:

In forest areas, a majority of women make their living by selling non-timber forest products (NTFPs). Harvesting and selling of NTFPs has high economic potential, however, the value chains of these products are not organised well enough to benefit the women. To improve the incomes of female micro-entrepreneurs, the project, funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) in cooperation with Orange Cameroon, will cooperate with selected women’s networks and associations in five regions which are partnering with public Women’s Empowerment Centres (WECs). The project will adopt several approaches. It will establish digital centres at WECs to provide the women with the business knowledge they need to improve their businesses. The materials will be accessed using computers and laptops. In addition, participants will receive training in micro-enterprise management. These trainings are followed by a peer coaching process in each of the associations. A smartphone application will be developed that monitors micro-entrepreneurs’ activities and collects information about their available stock or products and provides them with important market information. This will facilitate linkages between micro-entrepreneurs and customers. Furthermore, the project will also advise three women’s associations on how to improve their general management processes, so they can provide better services to their members.

Area of focus of the project:

• enabling women’s entrepreneurship (entrepreneurship education, financing schemes, incubators)