Women in Business
Invest in Women of African Heritage
Doing business globally as a Woman has numerous challenges and systemic barriers that see many Women fail as businesswomen. As women of African Heritage, the odds are greater as we deal with culture, political climate, gender inequality, and systemic racism. Doing business is hard and at Stimbok we know firsthand what we go through.
We have spent five years doing business as Women of African Heritage both in Canada and on the African continent specifically in Cote D’Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, Malawi, South Africa, Botswana, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. That is why we have set up Invest in African Women, an investment platform that provides Black Women-Owned Canadian Companies doing business in both Canada and Africa visibility; and When African Women Talk a non-profit Community that supports and celebrates Canadian women of African Heritage.
Women in Business
Women must take a special interest in supporting other women in order to help make gender equality a reality. We need to amplify women whose voices are unheard, reach out, and pull women up the ladder into our circles where we have found success.
We need more access to like-minded women that can invest in us by providing access to funds, one on one mentorship, and business consulting that will open doors for more women to play big and win in the areas they have found purpose.
Acces to Finance
Access to Finance is one of the key challenges that women-owned businesses face globally. According to a Harvard University report, women have access to only 2.8% of Venture Capital globally. In more challenged economies in Africa, the figures for female-owned businesses who have access to capital is even more daunting.
According to an article by National Geographic in 2019, only 37% of women on average across Sub-Saharan Africa had access to bank accounts compared to 47% of men. In most parts of Africa where the financial gap between the poor and the wealthy is increasingly widening, efforts to tackle issues around poverty and gender parity have not yet achieved the successes hoped for. The resulting lack of inadequate participation of women in Africa’s economies leaves a combined loss of $95 billion USD in lost productivity each year.
Drilling down to the Small and Medium businesses space (SMEs), it is important to note that funding/micro-loans for an SME in Canada could be $10,000 to $20,000 while micro-loans (which can make all the difference) for a small business owner somewhere in Lagos, Nigeria or Lusaka, Zambia could be as little as $250.
As a company, Stimbok is committed to finding and channeling appropriate funds and technical assistance to viable business ideas for SMEs in Canada and across Sub-Saharan Africa to build sustainability and bridge the gender inequality gap. We firmly believe and support the underlying principle that women empowerment programs are widely premised on. Building a woman economically equals increased spending in the areas that improve outcomes for her entire family such as proper nutrition, healthcare, and education. Supporting female enterprise is key to lifting nations out of poverty.