Women Entrepreneurs complete the US Embassy partnering programme

85 female business owners from Kampala, Lira, and Arua graduated from the Academy for Women Entrepreneurs (AWE) programme for the fifth time. These women have built enterprises in the fields of agriculture, education, health, technology, and tourism. The US Embassy and ShonaGroup provided this as a favour to the female applicants.

As part of a programme to support the advancement of women entrepreneurs around the world, the Thunderbird School of Global Management at Arizona State University and Freeport-McMoRan launched AWE with the support of the US Embassy's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA). AWE aims to give women entrepreneurs the knowledge, networks, and access they need to launch and grow their businesses.

Ellen Masi, a counsellor for public diplomacy at the US Embassy, spoke at the graduation ceremony and emphasised the necessity for ongoing support for the initiative.

Because the US government views expanding inclusive economic growth and opportunity for all Ugandans, particularly women entrepreneurs, as a critical objective, Ellen added, "the department of State continues to fund the AWE project." She pleaded with the graduates to keep in mind their ability to spur economic growth, generate employment, and serve as an example for others.

With the primary goal of boosting women's economic empowerment, one of the US Policies, AWE expanded its wings to Africa after having an influence on several countries, including Latin America and the Caribbean. Also, the initiative was created to assist the White House-led Women's Global Development and Prosperity Initiative (W-GDP), which aims to empower women globally to realise their full economic potential and foster global peace, security, and prosperity.

The programme also aims to provide dynamic women with a flexible educational opportunity to learn how to build and expand their enterprises. The online training course on women's entrepreneurship is its focal point. The AWE programme has been a huge success in Uganda since its start and has played a significant role in increasing women's entrepreneurship there. It has also assisted participants in establishing their enterprises, and many of them have gone on to get finance and generate jobs.