Sauti East Africa Limited Empowering smes to trade safely, legally and profitably across borders

Women entrepreneurs play a key role in East Africa’s agricultural sector. As farmers, brokers, and traders, 77% of women in the sector are estimated to be self-employed. Typically operating small and micro-enterprises, women’s equitable access to markets is a significant avenue for women’s economic empowerment, however, current trade facilitation strategies have focused on promoting medium to large-scale enterprises in male-dominated high-value sectors. Thus, women SMEs typically face distinct gender-based constraints when accessing the ICT-based information necessary for their business activities. Women SMEs’ equitable participation in the agricultural sector is challenged by several key factors:
-Lack of required technology to access available business information resources
-Poor digital literacy to navigate online browsers or smartphone apps
-A gendered power environment limits fair information sharing
-Few information networks for women’s gendered business experience