Africa-Press – Botswana. Women in Business Association (WIBA) president, Ms Christinah Leshego has expressed a desire to collaborate with the Office of the First Lady to enhance women empowerment.
While she acknowledged that WIBA had empowered thousands of women across Botswana, not only in starting businesses but also in diversifying income streams by harnessing opportunities across value chains, she believed that through collaboration with the First Lady Kaone Boko, they could do more to uplift women entrepreneurs and ultimately contribute meaningfully to the economy.
Ms Leshego made the remarks during a women empowerment session held at Batawana main kgotla on Thursday where Ms Boko interacted with women to appreciate their challenges and share ideas on how they could be addressed.
She said WIBA operated across all sectors and worked hard to support the informal sector which formed a critical part of the country’s economy but was often overlooked.
To broaden its impact, WIBA has expanded to eight regions of Chobe, Kasane, Francistown, Maun, Gaborone, Boteti, Palapye, and Ghanzi to enable the association to deliver training, capacity-building programmes, and mentorship to women nationwide.
Ms Leshego informed the First Lady that product development was a challenge because even with talent and passion, women struggled to meet international standards due to limited funding and access to experts who could assist them.
Sub-standard products, she said hindered their ability to compete globally despite partnerships with institutions such as Botswana Investment and Trade Centre, that had aided export readiness.
Ms Leshego explained that non-governmental organisations such as WIBA were stretched and fell short to address such gaps.
“We believe that your support can be transformative in bridging the product development gap by advocating for tailored financial projects, technical expertise and access to certification/testing facilities. You can help women refine their crafts to meet global market demands,” she added.
Furthermore, Ms Leshego highlighted that influence could also mobilise stakeholders to fund critical steps like sampling, international exhibitions and production of export-ready batches, phases that were prohibitively expensive for most women.
While exhibitions and craft competitions showcased talent, she said they rarely translated into exports and believed that through First Lady’s advocacy, they could convert potential into tangible results thus creating jobs, boosting exports and ensuring Botswana products shone globally.
Ms Leshego stated that WIBA was committed to collaborating with government and other partners, to ensure a significant contribution by women and youth, to the economy.
“This requires deliberate actions such as cluster-based training to meet market demands under agreements like the African Continental Free Trade Area which prioritises women and youth. Without scalable support, Botswana risks remaining a net importer while missing export opportunities,” she said.
On youth issues, a representative, Ms Lucy Poonyane said the North West region boasted natural beauty, rich culture and potential for various business to thrive, yet young people faced numerous challenges that hindered their development.
She said youth unemployment was among challenges and should be attended to urgently.
Ms Poonyane said the area had limited job opportunities owing to few economic activities that included, tourism, agriculture and the informal sector.
She also said strict financial requirements by banks and other financial institutions made it difficult for young people to secure funding to either expand or start businesses.
She said sustainable industries such as eco-tourism, fishing, and agriculture presented opportunities for long-term employment, as well aiding youth with grants to support their businesses.
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