UM6P’s Entrepreneur Academy: Exhibition to Celebrate Women Entrepreneurs

Rabat – On the occasion of International Women’s Day, Entrepreneur Academy (EA), a training and mentoring program at Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P) in Benguerir, hosted an exhibition of African women entrepreneurs to highlight high female participation rates in the entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Themed “Dare Entrepreneurship!,” the event, which was co-organized with the Congolese organization Affair’DC, focused on sharing experiences of successful women from Morocco and across Africa, with an aim to inspire young people to kick-start their businesses.

In a statement to Morocco World News, Gaita Kalemba, CEO and co-founder of Progekt Consulting and Affair’DC said, “Africa is the first continent in terms of feminine entrepreneurship.”

The African continent is making notable progress in reaching gender parity and promoting women’s employment. Africa has the highest rate of entrepreneurship worldwide and its women are more likely to own a business than men.

According to the Mastercard Index of Women Entrepreneurs report, published in 2018, Ghana has the highest percentage of women business owners (46%). The report also highlighted that Africa has the highest rate of female entrepreneurs globally, with approximately 26% of females involved in the entrepreneurial ecosystem.

However, there are several persistent challenges that hold many back from launching their projects. Kalemba underlined that finances and securing funding remain the most common challenges faced by women across the continent.

Societal perceptions of women are often a source of difficulty too, she argued, adding that some societies still debate whether it is appropriate for women to generate income in their communities.

“Many solutions are taking place as well with several institutions across the continent aimed at helping women through training and mentoring programs to empower them to deliver the most of what they can,” Kalemba noted.

Meanwhile, Konan Kouassi, development and program manager at EA emphasized that the exhibition is an opportunity to highlight women’s achievements in entrepreneurship, while simultaneously introducing small business owners to a large audience.

“At Entrepreneur Academy, we make sure that entrepreneurs have the right mindset. We mobilize several workshops, bootcamps and training programs for the benefit of students and youth in general to launch their projects,” Kouassi told MWN.

During the exhibition, several panels were held to discuss emerging opportunities in the job market for entrepreneurs, how to win funding, and the process of creating an enterprise.

Among the panelists: Founder of “We Can Morocco” Fouzia Madhouni, CEO of GO4WORK Chaimaa El Ghani, CEO of Hack&Pitch Marwa Cheikh Youssef, and Founder of Awa’Mazing Collection Awa Diakhate.