![KOBİA represented at the VI Congress of Azerbaijani Women](https://smb.gov.az/storage/10876/1---20231019160745_A18I2315.jpg)
At the 6th Congress of Azerbaijani Women, topics on encouraging women entrepreneurship and empowerment of women in business were also discussed.
The 6th Congress of Azerbaijani Women was held in "Gulustan" palace.
State officials from Azerbaijan, Türkiye, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, deputies of the Milli Majlis, representatives of non-governmental and international organizations, and foreign embassies in Azerbaijan attended the event held on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Great Leader Heydar Aliyev.
In addition to the official session, panel discussions on various topics were also held at the event, uniting some 600 women entrepreneurs across Azerbaijan. In the panel discussion on the topic "Gender aspects of socio-economic reforms. Representation of women in formal and informal employment", Orkhan Mammadov, Chairman of the Board of the Small and Medium Business Development Agency (KOBİA), conveyed information on the promotion of women's entrepreneurship, expanding the role of women in business, and the Agency's support to women entrepreneurs. It was reported that women`s interest in small business, self-employment, as well as the number of founders and managers of legal entities and enterprises is rising in our country. Analysis of research studies and surveys exhibit that the lack of business skills, access to financial resources, lack of sales opportunities are among the challenges facing women entrepreneurs. Encouraging women to self-employment and business activities, providing support for the development of women's entrepreneurship is one of the priority directions in the activities of KOBİA. Women are encouraged to benefit from the Agency's support and services for training, counselling, access to financial resources and sales markets, grants, support for involvement in exhibitions, domestic market research, etc. to start and expand business activities. As part of the support mechanisms of KOBİA, 9 women entrepreneurs were awarded grants, 17 were given "Startup" certificates, and over 3,500 women benefited from the training and consulting services held in 2023 alone.
Powered by Froala Editor