Strengthening regional economic integration in the SADC region (CESARE) – Project on Industrialization and Women Economic Empowerment

The Cooperation for the Enhancement of SADC regional integration (CESARE) programme, with a total volume of €29 million, supports the SADC Secretariat and selected SADC regional technical bodies in exercising their steering and coordination function for the implementation of the Industrialization strategy and roadmap 2015-2063 (SISR). Among other activities, CESARE enhances opportunities for industrialisation and private sector participation in regional value chains, with special focus on the leather value chain and the anti-retroviral value chain in the pharmaceutical industry, as well as their related services in selected MS.

Recognising that gender inequalities impact negatively on economic growth, exacerbate poverty and deny the disadvantaged full enjoyment of fundamental human rights, SADC considers women's economic empowerment (WEE) as critical to fulfilling the SISR's strategic objectives and expected results. It has now launched the project on industrialisation and WEE, as a specific measure seeking to enhance the business and product development skills of women entrepreneurs, as well as their financial inclusion.

The project's overall objective is to increase women owned businesses’ and female entrepreneurs’ participation in value addition for selected sectors/regional value chains (RVCs) of the SADC Industrialization strategy and roadmap (SISR); the contract's purpose is to (i) enhance business and product development skills of female entrepreneurs and (ii) enhance financial inclusion for women entrepreneurs.

Lead: 
No
Region: 
SADC
Country: 
Botswana
Project number: 
GOPA Worldwide Consultants
Period: 
2021-12-01 to 2023-11-30
Client: 
GIZ