Kathmandu: Women-led businesses from Nepal have set a link with UK companies to explore business opportunities. Women-led businesses from Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, Mongolia and Pakistan also participated in the trade mission, where British buyers met women entrepreneurs working in the fresh and processed agrifood, handicrafts, textiles and apparel, handicrafts, beauty, information technology, and business process outsourcing sectors, through a series of business-to-business meetings.
The trade mission from 10-12 February helps strengthen the UK’s manufacturing sector by providing British companies with reliable potential suppliers and reducing production costs, directly supporting the Made in UK strategy to promote high-quality British exports and drive domestic industry growth.
Participating women-led businesses visited UK companies relevant to their sectors, and attended information sessions with sector-specific associations, standards bodies and partnering chambers of commerce to bolster their knowledge of trends, the business environment and UK market entry requirements.
The delegation of Nepali women entrepreneurs who visited the UK companies was led by Shova Gyawali, the president of Federation of Woman Entrepreneurs’ Associations of Nepal (FWEAN). Entrepreneurs included Reshma Shrestha from Sunil Cashmere Pvt Ltd, Nabina Dhakhwa Shakya from Manushi Laghubitta Bittia Sanstha Ltd, Geeta Shrestha from Nepal Silk, Lumbina Shrestha and Sushma Shrestha from Alpine Pashmina House Pvt Ltd and Sapna Bajracharya Lama from Loom Story Pvt Ltd.
“Women entrepreneurs across the world face greater challenges to export compared to their male counterparts, with fewer connections to buyer networks and limited access to key market information,” said UK Minister for the Indo-Pacific, Catherine West. Pamela Coke-Hamilton, Executive Director of the International Trade Centre (ITC), which led on the organization of the trade mission with the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce and other UK-based chambers, said: “We’re laying the foundation for women entrepreneurs to meet directly with buyers, scale up their businesses and access new markets, benefiting from global trade opportunities. This trade mission will enable collaboration and knowledge sharing to drive gender-inclusive economic growth, led by the women entrepreneurs—a priority we share with the UK.”
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