The International Visitor Leadership Program at the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs recently brought 40 women entrepreneurs from 36 African countries to the U.S. under the second African Women’s Entrepreneurship Exchange Program (AWEP).
AWEP is a Department of State partnership among the Secretary’s Office of Global Women’s Issues, the Bureau of African Affairs, and the Bureau of Economic, Energy, and Business Affairs.
During the three week program, these African women entrepreneurs had the opportunity to meet American counterparts from civil society, corporations, industry associations, non-profit organizations, and business alliances leading to their professional development training and networking.
This exchange programs was a continuation to the 2011 African Women’s Entrepreneurship Program Conference, which was held in Lusaka, Zambia in June, in conjunction with the 2011 African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Forum.
AWEP was launched in 2010, and since them it has had an impeccable effect leading to empowerment of women business owners from Africa. They are now equipped with many tools that have helped them export to the United States under the terms of AGOA; increase their export capacities; strengthen public-private partnerships to reinforce program goals; and to establish or expand business relationships with U.S. partners.
Since the 2010 program, ExxonMobil has funded two follow-on trainings in Africa in partnership with Vital Voices. Moreover, program alumnae have established local chapters in several countries that strengthen economic ties and allow them to stay connected.
Currently, the countries from which the women are participating in AWEP include Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Comoros, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Ethiopia, the Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
