About the project

• Supported women’s business associations to improve their services. SheTrades worked with three associations to strengthen their ability to support women entrepreneurs. This approach combined assistance to individual businesses with support for the local organizations serving them.
• Provided business management support for women entrepreneurs. Women working in the fruit and vegetable sector received support to develop the skills needed to manage and grow their businesses.
• Provided guidance on processing and preserving produce. Practical support addressed how women entrepreneurs process and preserve fruit and vegetables, with the aim of reducing spoilage and retaining more of their produce’s value.
• Documented barriers facing women’s business associations in a conflict-affected setting. SheTrades engaged with associations to understand how political instability, intercommunal violence, and restrictions on movement affected their operations and members. The findings highlighted the conditions that business support must take into account.

About the project

• Worked with organizations to identify gaps in their support for women entrepreneurs. A masterclass guided 17 business support organizations through self-assessments, followed by coaching to develop improvement plans suited to their resources and priorities. This formed part of the programme’s wider support for more than 45 organizations.
• Supported businesses that secured funding and additional sales. South African participant Sari for Change, which turns used saris into contemporary clothing, received a $40,000 grant and generated $24,000 in additional sales following its participation. Across the programme, participating businesses established relationships with almost 100 suppliers, mostly women-led.
• Provided tailored advice on digital tools and sustainable production. Webinars, workshops, and individual mentoring covered e-commerce, digital branding, market access, and social and environmental sustainability. Industry experts helped entrepreneurs apply this advice to their own business strategies.
• Delivered business training in English, Arabic, and Kurdish. Training for young women entrepreneurs in Iraq and Jordan covered business development, design, and strategies for reaching international markets.
• Connected entrepreneurs with wider support networks. Participants joined the SheTrades online network and were connected with local business support organizations, including, where applicable, the SheTrades Hubs in Kenya and South Africa. These connections provided routes to further learning, advice, and networking beyond the programme.

About the project

• Provided courses on selling online. Three courses covered market research and strategy, setting up an online sales channel, and digital marketing. Topics included payments and delivery, social media, and customer service.
• Delivered training through local partners. Partner organizations trained 250 women-led businesses to use ITC’s digital tools, complementing the project’s online learning programme.
• Expanded resources available in Spanish. The project developed 25 tools and methodologies to support women-led businesses preparing to operate online.
• Connected entrepreneurs and business support organizations. Two webinars introduced technical organizations to e-commerce opportunities. A networking session brought together entrepreneurs, project partners, and business support organizations to exchange experiences.

About the project

• Identified potential suppliers against Unilever’s selection criteria. The project developed an assessment method and compiled a database of 476 women entrepreneurs. It identified 125 whose businesses matched the criteria, providing a basis for further consideration as potential suppliers.
• Facilitated engagement with procurement officers. 30 women entrepreneurs engaged with Unilever’s procurement team as part of the project’s work to connect potential suppliers with corporate buyers.
• Prepared entrepreneurs for corporate procurement. Online training explained Unilever’s procurement requirements and covered sustainable business practices, financial literacy, and preparation for investment.
• Trained local trainers to share the learning. 18 trainers across six provinces received training to adapt the content for local audiences and share it through their networks.

About the project

• Made digital and financial learning resources available online. Five training modules on digital solutions for financial success were integrated into SheTrades.com. A webinar series covered financial planning, digital tools, and access to capital.
• Provided one-to-one coaching by Visa experts. One-to-one mentoring sessions focused on applying digital tools and strategies in participants’ businesses, covering financial management, marketing, and sales.
• Brought entrepreneurs together to discuss export and investment requirements. A three-day workshop and networking event in Manila involved 100 Filipina entrepreneurs during National Exporters Week in 2023. Delivery partners included the SheTrades Philippines Hub, hosted by the Department of Trade and Industry.
• Developed a business self-assessment tool. Entrepreneurs could use the tool to identify business strengths, assess financial gaps, and pinpoint areas to improve. Findings from the assessments also informed project implementation.

About the project

• An advocacy guide in English and French. The guide will set out policy options to improve women farmers’ access to public procurement and explain how to design and implement an advocacy campaign. It will draw on our experience in Ecuador and ITC’s toolkit for policymakers, Making Public Procurement Work for Women.
• Consultation with farmers’ organizations. Leaders and members of the Network of Farmers’ Organizations and Agricultural Producers of West Africa (ROPPA), the Eastern Africa Farmers Federation (EAFF) and the Asian Farmers Association for Sustainable Rural Development (AFA) will identify the needs, challenges and priorities that will inform the guide and position paper. This will help the publication reflect the experiences of women smallholder farmers.
• Training on procurement advocacy. Online training will bring together ROPPA, EAFF and AFA, and will be complemented by an in-person workshop in Africa with ROPPA and EAFF. Participants will learn how to make the case for inclusive procurement reform in their respective regions.
• A position paper to advance policy reform in public procurement. Developed by ROPPA and EAFF with ITC’s support, the paper will set up African farmers’ organizations with recommendations for public procurement reform, including changes to address barriers faced by smallholder farmers, especially women. The paper will support the organizations’ advocacy efforts in national, regional and global policy discussions, including at forums such as the World Food Forum and the United Nations Food systems Summit.

About the project

• Six-part webinar series. 1,768 participants joined sessions on business models, AI and digital tools, budgeting, financial planning, digital payment solutions, and peer-to-peer learning networking. Microsoft, Visa, and Absa Bank each led thematic sessions.
• In-person workshops in Johannesburg and Nairobi. Two-day workshop in each city covered business model design, financial planning, digital payments, AI tools and export readiness, with 74 participants in Johannesburg and 130 in Nairobi. The Nairobi event included an exhibition where participants showcased products.
• E-learning course on e-commerce content creation. 95 participants completed a four-hour online course on creating content for virtual marketplaces, earning a UN certificate.
• Coaching on business models and AI integration. Group sessions helped selected entrepreneurs revise their business models, integrate AI tools, and sharpen value propositions, customer engagement, and operational efficiency. The format combined coaching with peer feedback to translate learning into action.
• Ecosystem connections for sustained support. SheTrades connected participants to SheTrades Hubs in South Africa and Kenya, where they continue to access training, market linkages, and advisory services.

About the project

• Digital skills and leadership in Ghana, Mexico and Viet Nam: We work with small businesses and young entrepreneurs to strengthen their digital capabilities, improve their online presence and adopt e-commerce platforms, digital payment solutions and emerging AI tools to grow their businesses. The programme adopts a blended curriculum, comprising online trainings, technical masterclasses and in-person workshops and personalized coaching.
• Tailored coaching to turn skills into business growth: Selected businesses receive customized support focused on tangible areas such as digital maturity, e-commerce, store optimization, online marketing, payment gateways, customer loyalty strategies and digital business planning. In Ghana, 90% of coaching participants expanded their online presence, while 22% reported immediate revenue growth. In Mexico, 54% of coaching participants secured new commercial agreements.
• Market access and buyer connections for businesses: The programme helps small businesses move from training to concrete market opportunities through trade fairs, B2B facilitation, buyer engagement and commercial follow-up. In Viet Nam, we took eight small businesses to the Viet Nam Food Expo 2025 with a co-branded SheTrades–UPS pavilion, pre-event coaching on trade fair readiness, and direct B2B meeting facilitation. All eight made new contacts and 88% closed new sales.
• Digital financial inclusion at scale in India’s informal economy. With SEWA, we trained 12 master trainers who then delivered sessions to 4,390 nano and micro entrepreneurs across Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra. Participants learned to use mobile wallets, digital payment platforms, and business accounting apps, with ongoing one-on-one support to make the change stick.
• Global reach through the SheTrades Academy. Eight UPS-funded e-learning modules cover logistics, Incoterms, international shipping, sustainability and business resilience. They are available in English, French and Spanish. Since launch, 5,583 entrepreneurs have enrolled.
• Advocacy for inclusive trade: The programme leverages high-level events and global platforms, such as the WTO-ITC High Level Event at MC13, to showcase practical solutions for small businesses and position the SheTrades and UPS WEP as a successful model of UN-private sector partnership. 

About the project

• Four new laws and regulations now in force. A March 2025 organic law recognizes women-led businesses in Ecuador’s procurement system for the first time. Three October 2025 reforms add operational rules, a preference margin for women-led suppliers, and a national definition aligned with ISO IWA 34.
• National Interinstitutional Working Group established. It links Ecuadorian institutions across procurement, gender, agriculture and provincial governance, and will continue tracking the reforms beyond the project’s end in June 2026.
• A step-by-step guide for women suppliers, in Spanish, Kichwa and Shuar. Vende al Estado: Pasos Claves para Mujeres en la Agricultura walks women farmers and entrepreneurs through registering as a public supplier, identifying procurement opportunities, preparing documents and submitting bids.
• Training designed for women in agri-food. We delivered 72 workshops on selling to the state across 33 cities and 16 provinces, equipping 3,140 women with the steps to register, identify tenders and submit bids.
• Speed-networking with government buyers. Each session pairs one procuring entity with a few women suppliers, opening direct conversations on procurement opportunities, documentation requirements and payment terms.