GENEVA, Switzerland, Sept 12, 2024 (BSS) - The World Trade Organization (WTO) and the International Trade Centre (ITC) has started the implementation of the Women Exporters in the Digital Economy (WEIDE) Fund, a global fund to help women tap into opportunities in international trade and the digital economy. 

WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and ITC Executive Director Pamela Coke-Hamilton signed the first grant agreement to the WEIDE Fund with the United Arab Emirates government at an event at the 'WTO Public Forum 2024' on Wednesday.

In her speech, Okonjo-Iweala said: "It brings me great joy today to launch the pilot phase of applications for the Women Exporters in the Digital Economy Fund. The WEIDE Fund represents a pivotal step forward in our collective journey towards gender equality in trade and economic opportunities. This initiative is about much more than financial contributions and technical advice; it's about fostering a future in which women are recognized as indispensable drivers of economic progress."

"One generous donor has helped us kick off this fund with US$ 5 million, which we are signing today and that is the United Arab Emirates. As we launch this, we are going to encourage other donors who will see that it actually works," DG Okonjo-Iweala said, thanking Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs; UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi; and UAE's Ambassador Abdelsalam Mohamed A. Al-Ali.

Coke-Hamilton said: "The WEIDE Fund was set up with a very clear and simple purpose to help these women-led businesses take full advantage of the digital revolution so they would grow trade and take the world by storm. It's also a promise to women entrepreneurs around the world that we will never falter in our commitment to gender equality underpinned by women's economic empowerment. It's what compels us to call on everyone here today to step in and step up so that this WEIDE fund can not only live up to the expectations of women entrepreneurs, but actually surpass them."

The WEIDE Fund, launched by the WTO and the ITC in February 2024 at the 13th Ministerial Conference (MC13) in Abu Dhabi, aims to empower women entrepreneurs by helping them grow their businesses through international trade and digitalization. Specifically, the targeted beneficiaries are women-led micro and small enterprises in the formal sector which are already exporting or have export potential.

Through a competitive process, four business support organizations in developing countries will be selected as partners in the pilot phase. These business support organizations will then help launch competitions in each country, targeting hundreds of women to benefit from the fund through grants of up to US$ 30,000 along with technical assistance.

The WEIDE Fund will unlock opportunities in international trade and digital trade for women entrepreneurs by improving their access to grants and support from financial institutions to reduce the finance gap, technical assistance and training related to digital skills and improving export competitiveness; export markets, with the aim of connecting more women to digital market platforms; and networks and support services, with the objective of creating more inclusive and effective business ecosystems including leveraging partnerships with the private and public sectors.

The WTO and ITC aim to raise US$ 50 million for the Fund, with an initial target of US$ 25 million, from public and private sector partners. The Fund will actively seek partnerships with various stakeholders, including governments, international organizations, development banks, philanthropic foundations and the private sector to implement initiatives aimed at maximizing the impact of the Fund's activities. 

Collaboration and knowledge-sharing will be crucial to achieving sustainable and scalable solutions.

The Fund's activities will be implemented through projects in specific countries in cooperation with business support organizations selected through a competitive call for proposals. At the country level, the Fund will implement a two-track system tailored to meet the needs of the targeted MSMEs. 

Both tracks will include a grant and complementary technical assistance.