Equipping Youths and Women with basic business management skills

A step towards Youths and Women’s Empowerment

20 February 2023, Harare: The Forum for African Women Educationalists Zimbabwe Chapter (FAWEZI) has partnered with the Coca-Cola Foundation to implement the Youth and Women Empowerment (YAWE) project in the Chitungwiza District of Zimbabwe. The intervention that is targeting youths and women (18 – 45 years) seeks to equip the rights holders with basic business management skills. The targeted population relies on small businesses as a source of livelihood and faces a myriad of challenges that were ushered in by the COVID-19 pandemic. The restrictive environment induced by the global pandemic led to the loss of markets and capital. Many women and youths failed to grow their businesses and remain relevant in the dynamic environment.

The situation negatively impacted the financial status of many youths and women and they were left with only one option of depending on other people for survival. The dependency scenario reversed the gains made in the empowerment of youths and women as they were made vulnerable. Most of the targeted youths and women were no longer having control in their relationships and they were exposed to violence in the hands of the people whom they were depending on for survival.

The new environment that was ushered in by the COVID-19 pandemic demanded a shift from analogue to digital business management for any business to remain relevant. There was, therefore, a growing need to expose the targeted population to the use of digital tools to revamp and further grow their businesses.

It is under this backdrop that FAWEZI partnered with Coca-Cola Foundation to respond to the problem. The intervention is targeting 100 youths and 100 women as well as 10 to 15% of women and youths with disabilities. The aim of the intervention is to equip the project participants with digital literacy and basic business management skills. Intensive mentorship sessions will also be done so as to make the participants abreast with modern digital tools.

 The intervention will be implemented from February to June 2023. New opportunities as well as lessons learned will be extensively shared for the replication of the intervention in other districts. FAWEZI will work in partnership with the Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development (MWACSMED).

For more information contact: Lydia Madyirapanze (Executive Director)

• executivedirector@fawezi.org |  0263 242 307793 |  0785541612 |  @fawezim 

  FAWEZimbabwe |   www.fawezi.pamtech.co.zw        

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