By Dennis Osei Gyamfi, GNA
Accra, Sept. 11, GNA - The National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI) in partnership with International Trade Centre (ITC), has organised a two-day stakeholders’ workshop on gender equality and mainstreaming gender to develop strategies to enhance policy-making.
The workshop dubbed "SheTrades," was organised to contribute to the implementation plan of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Policy.
The two-day workshop, which brought together representatives of government agencies, including the Ghana Export Promotion Authority, Ministry of Trade and Industry, NBSSI, Ghana Regional Appropriate Technology Industrial Service Foundation, Ghana International Trade Commission, and Free Zones Board ended on Tuesday, September 10.
Mrs Anna Armoo Himbson, the Deputy Executive Director of NBSSI, said the partnership with ITC to organise the workshop had been beneficial to both parties and the stakeholders.
As an Agency, she said, it was within its mandate to help to grow businesses, adding that, there was a need to provide women the platform to grow through better policies.
"Women constitute about 60 per cent of the informal sector, but as you move up the industrial ladder, you realise that it keeps dwindling and that is why it is important for us to identify the issues that do not promote the enterprises of women," she said.
"Once we are able to address them, then we would also find women moving up the ladder and contributing substantially to the economic growth of the country".
Madam Anahita Vasudevan, the Associate Programme Officer of ITC, said gender equality was not only a social and moral imperative, but also an economic necessity.
She noted that across the world, countries were losing $160 trillion of wealth because of differences in lifetime earnings between women and men.
She said "SheTrades," was a joint United Nations and World Trade Organisation initiative to create trade impact by fostering the inclusive and sustainable development of small and medium-sized enterprises.
"The workshop is looking at gender equality and whether gender mainstreaming approaches or strategies should be considered in designing and implementing national policies," she said.
Madam Vasudevan noted that ITC also had as part of its plans to find ways of helping women entrepreneurs and businesses to meet the needs of buyers and connecting them through trade fairs and other avenues.
GNA
Read Full Story
Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
Instagram
Google+
YouTube
LinkedIn
RSS