Mr. Franklin Owusu-Karikari (middle), Project Director, NEIP, addressing the press conference. With him is Ms. Abigail Swad Laryea (left), Deputy CEO, NEIP, and Ms. Appiah Boakye (right), Director, INVEST. A new business competition to empower young women in the male-dominated technical and vocational education and training (TVET) trades has been launched in Accra. Dubbed “Women in TVET Business Competition”, the initiative will provide technical and financial support to more than 100 women entrepreneurs to expand their operations and create jobs.
As a result, organizers of the competition are inviting interested applicants to access the online or hard copy application form between August 31 and September 25, this year. The competition, which is expected to be held annually for the next five years, is targeting women operating in three cities in Ghana, including Accra, Sekondi-Takoradi, and Kumasi. Interested applicants should be between 18 and 35 years. It is spearheaded by the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme (NEIP) in collaboration with the World University Service of Canada (WUSC).
Competition launch
Launching the competition at a press conference in Accra on August 31, the Project Director of NEIP, Mr. Franklin Owusu-Karikari, said through access to business development services, participants would have the opportunity to grow their business acumen and enterprises in an enabling environment. That, he said, would help the beneficiaries to get exposed to the major private sector and industry players in the TVET sector as part of efforts to revamp mainstream TVET.
He said the winners would be supported with technical and financial assistance including a $5,000 Canadian dollars support package. “The beneficiaries will also go through six months’ training in order to help them improve on their knowledge to build a strong business that can create jobs,” he said.
Operating sectors
Mr. Owusu-Karikari stated that applicants should operate in sectors such as manufacturing engineering (welding and fabrication, mechanical engineering and auto-mechanics), information communication and technology (ICT), extractives, construction, and energy.
“In this period of the COVID-19 pandemic when many people have lost their jobs and livelihoods, I urge women to take advantage of this initiative to bring their ideas to life. It is high time we supported women entrepreneurs in the TVET trades. “With support from the INVEST project, NEIP invites applications from women TVET graduates, start-ups, and established business owners interested in incubating or accelerating their TVET businesses within male-dominated trades to apply,” he said.
A new business competition to empower young women in the male-dominated technical and vocational education and training (TVET) trades has been launched in Accra.
Sustainable opportunities
The Director of INVEST, a project by WUSC, Ms. Appiah Boakye, said the INVEST project sought to explore sustainable opportunities for young women to curate TVET businesses and become competitive in the marketplace. She said NEIP offered to aspire and current entrepreneurs access to a network of accredited service providers and resources set within an initiative solely focused on the advancement of youth through entrepreneurship. According to him, WUSC, in collaboration with NEIP, has identified entrepreneurship in the TVET sector as a strong pathway towards creating opportunities and empowerment for women.
Support for women
The Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of NEIP, Ms. Abigail Swad Laryea, said the project was being launched for the benefit of urban poor women in three cities in the country. “I urge all Ghanaian women in the three urban cities including Accra, Sekondi-Takoradi, and Kumasi to take advantage of opportunities under this program to improve their businesses,” she added.