“Successful people do what unsuccessful people are not willing to do. Don’t wish it were easier; wish you were better.” — Jim Rohn At OWIT Nairobi, we have a vision to empower women to transform communities through global trade. We are committed to creating opportunities for women to connect to global markets. As a Business Support Organisation, we work closely with our members to ensure access to the necessary tools to build businesses that can go global. The theme for our July Business Meeting was ‘Thriving Processes For Thriving Businesses’ & the session was facilitated by Rosslyn Mutahi of Top Tier Ltd and Ruth Tabbu, Director at Maersk. Systems and processes play a significant role in building and growing a business – particularly for women going global. In a bid to build a global brand, Women Owned Businesses’ must put in Continue Reading

Access to finance is particularly daunting. Women are significantly less likely to…access to financial services than men. The IFC estimates that the worldwide gap in financing for formal, women-owned small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) totals close to $300 billion. Arancha Gonzalez Women entrepreneurs often start businesses using less capital than men due to limitations in income and reserves as well as lack of knowledge about the availability of institutional funding. They are less likely to use bank loans to fund the commencement of operations and more likely to borrow from family, friends & ‘fools’ or use the more expensive option of non-traditional/non-institutional lenders. This inability to access funding manifests in the relatively smaller sizes of the businesses that women run. According to The World Bank’s Gender at Work report (2014); “On virtually every global measure, women are more economically excluded Continue Reading

“Growth and comfort do not coexist.” ~ Ginni Rometty, CEO, IBM The ability to move goods and services across borders efficiently and predictably, can mean the difference between success & failure for women trading across borders. Unfortunately, across the African continent, women face discriminatory biases that hinder their full participation in global trade. Since 2016, World Bank’s Doing Business country rankings included gender indicators, which highlighted the regulatory biases faced by women. When the written standards are exactly the same, more female-owned exporting firms report procedural obstacles to trade than do male-owned firms, including “information and transparency issues,” “informal or high payments” and “discriminatory behaviour.” In order to ensure that ‘no-one is left behind’ – trade policy initiatives must address the challenges that are unique to women in trade. Reforms should be based on a thorough understanding of their impact Continue Reading

Networking is not about hunting. It is about farming. It’s about cultivating relationships. ~ Ivan Misner The world has become a global village, opening up opportunities for women in business to trade across borders. Success however depends on the ability to develop a strong network of connections across borders. Successful networking can open the door to unexpected business opportunities overseas, and some reports claim that up to 80% of business opportunities are now landed through networking. In their book “Make Your Contacts Count”, Barber & Waymon describe networking as the deliberate process of exchanging information, resources, support and access in such a way as to create mutually beneficial relationships for professional and personal success. Simply put, networking is a support system of sharing information, resources and services.  At its core, networking is about building RECIPROCAL RELATIONSHIPS that grow and develop Continue Reading

“Freedom without rules doesn’t work. And communities do not work unless they are regulated by etiquette.” Judith Martin  Etiquette [et-i-kit, -ket]  Conventional requirements as to social behaviour; proprieties of conduct as established in any class or community or for any occasion. Simply put etiquette refers to how an individual presents themselves to and interacts with others, and this is an essential skill for women doing business across borders. So how does one ensure that they put their best foot forward?  I sought the opinion of a number of Etiquette Expertsand compiled my Top 5 Business Etiquette Tips. Make A Positive First Impression It has been said that “a picture is worth a thousand words.”  The clothes you wear convey a message.  According to William Thourlby, author of You Are What You Wear, you really are what you wear! “When you Continue Reading