Women and Girls Empowered at PSFU's Women's Day Katale 2023 Event

The Private Sector Foundation Uganda (PSFU) and Mastercard Foundation recently held the second annual Women’s Day Katale event at the UMA Multi-purpose Hall on March 10-11, 2023.

The event’s objective was to recognize the potential and contribution of women and girls as entrepreneurs and to empower them.

At the Women’s Day Katale event, attendees had access to a range of business clinics that were facilitated by industry experts. These clinics offered training and skills development opportunities on various topics such as business planning, financial management, marketing, and customer service.

Additionally, the event included a One-Stop-Centre facilitated by URA, URSB, UNBS, and Opportunity Bank. The One-Stop-Centre aimed to provide attendees with financial skills, business development, tax education, access to finance, and business registration services, among others.

Ms. Minsa Kabanda, the Minister for Kampala and Metropolitan, was the guest of honour at the Women’s Day Katale event and delivered a speech at the opening ceremony.

She acknowledged the progress that has been made towards gender equality in business, but also highlighted the challenges that women entrepreneurs still face.

*Ms. Minsa Kabanda, Minister for Kampala and Metropolitan speaking to the media*

“Women are now participating in economic development, but their businesses still remain at subsistence level, low productivity, and profitability,” said Ms.

PSFU CEO, Mr. Stephen Asiimwe, thanked all the partners, sponsors, and participants for making the event a success. He emphasized the importance of empowering women entrepreneurs, stating that it not only benefits the individuals but also contributes to the growth and development of the economy as a whole.

Empowering women entrepreneurs is not only the right thing to do, but it’s also smart business. Women-led businesses contribute significantly to the economy. That is to say about 40%. We need to support and enable them to reach their full potential,
Mr. Stephen Asiimwe

The PSFU Women’s Day Katale 2023 event was well-attended by members of the general public from various sectors, including the government, private sector, civil society, and academia. The event served as a platform for dialogue and collaboration aimed at achieving gender equality in business.

The Women’s Day Katale event provided a platform for over 250 women and girl entrepreneurs to showcase their businesses, network, and access the market.

The exhibitors expressed their gratitude for the opportunity provided and promised to participate in similar events in the future.

Some of the businesses showcased included Hot Loaf Bakery Ltd, Bird Uganda Safaris, MacDough Foods, Abbas Chicken, Iganga Municipal Council Emyooga Tailoring Sacco, New Man’s Food LTD, KawaCom, Crafts with Lizzy, and Yalelo.