🌟 Empowering Women Entrepreneurs in Northern Uganda! 🌟
WiBAS Handholding Workshops – Arua & Lira Editions
Managed by Vantage Communications
The recent WiBAS Handholding Workshops, held in Arua and Lira, brought together hundreds of inspiring women entrepreneurs, partners, and stakeholders with a shared mission: unlocking access to business financing, mentorship, and growth opportunities for women-led businesses across Northern Uganda.
Led by Winnie and Carolyn, co-founders of WiBAS, and graciously opened by Grace WiBAS, the workshops provided practical dialogue and direction for navigating Uganda’s flagship GROW Fund — a critical government initiative aimed at advancing women’s access to capital and enterprise support.
🔹 Key Highlights from Arua:
- A powerful keynote by Hon. Beatrice Lagada, Chair of PostBank and a veteran advocate for rural development, highlighted the missed opportunities in Northern Uganda, urging women to seize their economic potential.
- Stories from industry leaders like Emma (honey products), Carolyn (seed oils), and Irene (cross-border trader) laid bare the challenges and opportunities in growing and scaling women-led enterprises.
- Ministry and DFCU Bank representatives clarified loan access criteria, available rebates for timely repayment, and upcoming Business Competition Grants.
🔹 Key Highlights from Lira:
- A vibrant start with business introductions from women in agribusiness, manufacturing, crafts, and services.
- The RDC Beatrice Abalo Molly rallied the women, stressing that “When you train a woman, you train a nation.”
- Panel discussions featured standout voices, including Susan Acen (seeds), Lillian Ochari (poultry farming), and Jackie Achelles (agribusiness aggregator), who shared real-life hurdles and strategies for enterprise development.
🔸 What’s Next?
Participants were encouraged to organize, register, and prepare their businesses to tap into a suite of grants and loans under the GROW initiative, including:
- Women Business Competition Grants
- Gender-Inclusive Infrastructure Grants
- Commercial-Based Services Grants
Universities like Muni University also pledged to support women-led processing and skilling hubs.
✅ Vantage Communications is proud to support WiBAS in creating a platform for women to voice their challenges, learn, and thrive.
🔗 Stay tuned for updates, application deadlines, and upcoming regional engagements.
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