Deadline: January 28, 2024.

The African Women Entrepreneurship Cooperative (AWEC) is a 12-month, high-touch leadership and management capacity building program. AWEC empowers women from across Africa and the diaspora with the knowledge and network needed to build resilient and scalable businesses. They use applied and collaborative learning models, enabling immediate business impact and cultivating a pan-African cooperative of entrepreneurs, experts, and allies. Their mission and impact are aligned with the UN’s SDGs focused on gender equality, economic empowerment, and high-quality learning opportunities. AWEC is a program created through the Center for Global Enterprise (CGE), a nonprofit and nonpartisan research institute focused on developing insights that help current and future business leaders build resilient enterprises.

PROGRAM ELEMENT

The core components of AWEC are:

• Online and in-person learning opportunities led by world-class business practitioners and academics
• One-on-one mentoring by senior business professionals
• Individual applied learning assignments and collaborative team projects
• Online and offline peer networking and feedback

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

Women who are:

• Founders of businesses that have been in operation for at least two years in any industry and have at least two employees (either full time or part time) OR women who have a strong business concept and plan to launch their business within the next year
• Founders of social enterprises are encouraged to apply; founders of NGOs or nonprofit organizations are no longer eligible for the 12-month program
• Citizens of any African country, currently living on the continent or in the diaspora
• Comfortable with remote teamwork and collaboration, especially using digital tools
• Proficient in verbal and written English
• Able to regularly (at least weekly) access the Internet through a computer or tablet.

BENEFITS

Upon successful completion of the 12-month program, Fellows will:

• Form connections with a diverse network of African women entrepreneurs
• Establish a relationship with a senior business mentor
• Strengthen strategy, leadership and business management skills
• Gain skills in finance, marketing, and strategy needed to grow and scale their enterprise
• Develop a toolkit of soft skills, including self-confidence, resilience, collaboration, and cross-cultural communications

Apply through the OFFICIAL LINK