What you need to know:

• Our wide-ranging activities have helped galvanize support from local and international organizations to assist women entrepreneurs overcome enormous challenges. Additionally, we have carried out strong advocacy for enactment of enabling legislation and policies. We have also established networks and marketing linkages in support of women traders.

Uganda occupies a unique position within the expanded East African Community (EAC)– and so do its women. No other country has the singular honour of being completely surrounded by EAC members. This geographical truth gives Uganda the distinction of being at the centre of the region’s cultural and business agenda, presenting numerous opportunities for the country’s women entrepreneurs.

Indeed, Kampala is already a bustling trade hub of sorts for the region. It serves not only as a transit point for trucks transiting to the farthest points of the EAC, but is itself an attractive source of textiles, agricultural products, and other goods for traders from Kenya, South Sudan, and elsewhere.

Yet, even with these natural advantages, it is never smooth sailing with the vast majority of our women traders. Patriarchal, misogynistic attitudes and traditions consign our women to the bottom ranks when it comes to property ownership, perceived creditworthiness, bookkeeping skills, and as serious contenders for tenders and business opportunities.

It is such circumstances that led to the founding of the Uganda Women Entrepreneurs Association Ltd (UWEAL). In the years since its formation in 1987, it has helped in breaking down the walls and barriers that prevented women from obtaining the same help and respect accorded their male counterparts.

These barriers have ranged from official policies to more informal networks that discriminate against women and girls. Our wide-ranging activities have helped galvanize support from local and international organizations to assist women entrepreneurs overcome enormous challenges. Additionally, we have carried out strong advocacy for enactment of enabling legislation and policies. We have also established networks and marketing linkages in support of women traders.

It is in the same spirit that UWEAL teamed up with TradeMark Africa (TMA) in the establishment of iSOKO, to revolutionize the trade environment for women. With support from Global Affairs Canada, iSOKO is meant to support women traders in five East African countries – Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi.

This will facilitate access to up-to-date and real-time information for women traders. It was launched in Kenya in March and was followed by Uganda on May 4. Once all five countries come on board, a vast network of women traders would have been created across the region.
Despite poor road networks, non-tariff barriers and other difficulties, Ugandan women have successfully established networks with traders not only in the targeted five countries, but also with South Sudan to the country’s north and the Democratic Republic of Congo to the west. Even though the latter two are not a part of the immediate targets for iSOKO, the spillover effects of an enhanced trade capacity will influence trade with these EAC sister states as well.

The digital era is upon us; UWEAL is determined to utilize all the available cutting-edge technology for the benefit of its members and women traders in general. .We welcome women traders across the length and breadth of Uganda to use iSOKO to grow their businesses and soar high above our wildest dreams.

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Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of TradeMark Africa.