Women and e-Commerce (WE) organized a policy dialogue at the Rawa Convention Center in the capital on Friday, aimed at empowering women entrepreneurs in the country.
The discussions in the program focused on the challenges, opportunities, and future potential for Facebook-based women entrepreneurs in the country, according to a press release.
During the session, approximately 30 administrators from various Facebook-based women entrepreneur groups actively engaged and collectively endorsed the Multi-Stakeholder Agreement (MSA) to foster unity.
Nasima Aktar Nisha, the founder and president of WE, chaired the policy dialogue programme. Imana Haque Jyoti, the organization's Executive Director, Afrin Parvin, Chief Operating Officer, and Advisor Jahannur Kabir Shakib also attended the programme. .
In the discussion, Nasima Aktar Nisha urged participants to thoroughly analyze the benefits and drawbacks of these platforms for women entrepreneurs. She also underscored the significance of promptly reporting issues within Facebook groups, preventing group deactivation, and moving forward collaboratively.
The speakers announced that this policy dialogue marked the initial stride towards progress, to be followed by a series of successive steps.
A comprehensive policy guideline will be formulated to address various concerns, inconveniences, criticisms, and diverse subjects arising from these dialogues. Additionally, a summit is planned to spotlight conveniences and inconveniences and to address challenges faced by women entrepreneurs.
They advocated for more women to embrace entrepreneurship, even with access to free training. Girls exhibit greater adaptability and entrepreneurial spirit than boys, making a unified platform crucial to attract and support them. The discussion also touched upon plans to adopt a smart women entrepreneur plan for the next five years.
Chaiti Farhana Rupa from the Unity Foundation remarked, "We offer diverse training programs, including some courses as low as Tk50. However, many women are not capitalizing on this opportunity. Despite receiving training, some women struggle to translate it into financial success. Addressing their financial situation could empower them to establish themselves as entrepreneurs."
Nusrat Aktar Lopa, the founder of Hur Nusrat, noted, "While many women undertake entrepreneurship training, a significant number focus on beauty parlors. Yet, their inadequate makeup knowledge hampers their effectiveness. Proper training and education are essential. Otherwise, though beauty parlors exist, customer base may dwindle, leading to reduced entrepreneurial prestige."
Moriom Nesa Boby, founder of the buffet restaurant The Cafe Rio, said, "Entrepreneurs must exhibit innovation through unique products. They should diversify beyond clothing, catering to diverse and essential needs."
Tania Wahab from the Leder Group said, "Primarily, the country's mindset must shift for domestic goods to gain esteem. We often underestimate entrepreneurs. While we can sell a bag of leather goods for Tk75,000 in Europe, we hesitate to ask Tk7,000 in the country. This reveals our lack of faith in the quality of local products."
