Social Enterprise Ghana, with support from the GIZ Pan-African E-Commerce Initiative (PECI), is advancing digital trade and e-commerce skills in peri-urban communities to empower women entrepreneurs.

The initiative seeks to enable women to promote their products and services to a broader range of clients through digital platforms.

To achieve this, Social Enterprise Ghana has organized training sessions and workshops for small business owners, with a particular focus on women entrepreneurs in Dodowa and Akatsi.

The training covered various topics, including Strategies for leveraging e-commerce to grow small businesses, effective use of digital platforms for marketing, online customer engagement and retention and secure and efficient online transactions.

Edwin Zu-Cudjoe, Executive Director of Social Enterprise Ghana, emphasised the significance of such initiatives.

“This kind of training equips social entrepreneurs, especially women and entrepreneurs with disabilities, with the skills to promote their products globally using digital platforms. It removes barriers and allows for wider reach and engagement with users and clients,” he said.

He also encouraged private companies to collaborate with small businesses, particularly those in rural communities, to integrate them into global value chains.

A participant at the training workshop, Madam Rafatu Nasara Alhassan of The Experience Tribe, says she was excited to participate in the training as it will provide her with the opportunity to enlist her product on an e-commerce platform and be able to gain new customers, especially in Accra, Kumasi and other major cities in Ghana and abroad.

The GIZ PECI programme has facilitated cross-border digital trade across Africa and ensured women entrepreneurs are incorporated in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

Social Enterprise Ghana is a network of social enterprises, especially women entrepreneurs, and has been at the forefront of supporting women entrepreneurs and inclusive businesses in their trade capabilities and export orientation.

This initiative underscores the commitment of Social Enterprise Ghana and GIZ PECI to fostering inclusivity, economic empowerment, and sustainable development through digital transformation in underserved areas.