Deadline: 24-May-22
The Academy for Women Entrepreneurs (AWE) program is now open for applications to promote economic prosperity by creating opportunities for women with brilliant ideas to become successful entrepreneurs.
The Academy for Women Entrepreneurs (AWE) is an award-winning training and coaching platform specifically designed for women micro-business owners. It gives enterprising women the knowledge, networks, and access they need to launch and scale successful businesses. By promoting women’s economic opportunities and ensuring that women have the capabilities and resources needed to participate in the economy, the AWE program directly supports the U.S. National Strategy on Gender Equity and Equality.
Through AWE, participants learn core business skills and then get together as a class to discuss the material with experienced implementers, local mentors, and U.S. Exchange Alumni.
Partnerships with local NGOs, universities, and chambers of commerce offer women the opportunity to amplify their newly learned business skills and network with other business people through speed mentoring, pitch competitions, and entrepreneurship fairs. At a local level, AWE harnesses the power of public-private sponsors, local partnerships, and the U.S.
By giving women the tools and the confidence they need, the AWE program is generating income and creating jobs in women-led businesses, driving local prosperity in more than 80 countries worldwide.
Objectives
The objective of the Program is to engage 120 female entrepreneurs aged 25-45 From Mombasa, Lamu, Nakuru and Nairobi.
Participation Benefits
Participants will have: –
- Access to the online business planning platform -Dream Builder.
- A dedicated one-on-one mentor to support you in their business planning process.
- Access to a community of female entrepreneurs with opportunities for peer-to-peer inspiration and learning.
- The opportunity to pitch your business to a prominent jury of seasoned entrepreneurs/industry leaders.
- The chance to win seed funding to launch or consolidate your business.
Activities
- The AWE training will take place over a period of 3 months of guided formal training through the Dream Builder platform and 3 months of mentorship and business linkages culminating in graduation, business planning competition and exhibition to allow the participants to celebrate their hard work.
- Further, the primary beneficiaries will be trained on pitching their businesses to access opportunities. They shall have a team of qualified Program staff facilitators and mentors to support the learning agenda all through the program.
- They will also have safe spaces to dialogue on issues affecting them and their businesses and linkages to support mechanisms.
- Participants will increase their knowledge and understanding of business, marketing, finance and operations.
- The participants will also gain access to seed capital (specific to winners of the pitching competition) as well as access to key strategic partners.
Eligibility Criteria
- Women entrepreneurs 25 years to 45 years and fluent in English.
- Reside in Nairobi, Lamu, Mombasa and Nakuru.
- Have recently started a business and have at least a year of experience selling their product or service.
- Have basic computer skills.
- Must be able to commit on average five hours per week to AWE both physically and virtually as required by the program.
- Have a good understanding of written and spoken English.
- Have access to the internet.
For more information, visit https://ushindiempowerment.org/awe/