EBRD Celebrates Women Entrepreneurs Making Strides

EBRD Celebrates Women Entrepreneurs Making Strides

(IN BRIEF) In honor of Women’s Entrepreneurship Day, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) shines a spotlight on the remarkable achievements of three inspiring women-led businesses. These entrepreneurs have thrived with the support of the EBRD’s Women in Business program, which empowers women entrepreneurs by providing financial support, advisory services, entrepreneurial skill development, and business development opportunities. From health foods to sustainable solutions and recruitment services, these women entrepreneurs are making a significant impact, showcasing the limitless potential of women in business.

(PRESS RELEASE) LONDON, 21-Nov-2023 — /EuropaWire/ — 19 November was Women’s Entrepreneurship Day, an occasion to mark the achievements and resilience of women worldwide, who are leading the way forward in social and economic change.

To celebrate, we are highlighting the achievements of three women-led businesses which are working relentlessly to expand and grow with the support of the EBRD and its donors, who are committed to empowering women entrepreneurs through the Women in Business programme.

The programme is dedicated to helping women realise their potential and provides financing and advisory services, along with support including tailored services for developing entrepreneurial skills and linking women entrepreneurs to opportunities, and platforms for business development.

Health foods: a new approach

Zagorka Blazevska founded Vita Nova in 2006. The family-owned company based in North Macedonia offers raw materials and healthy ingredients to the pharmaceutical, food and cosmetic industries in the Central Balkans.

Zagorka has been leading her company’s strategy to become an international brand in health food components. Its unique approach goes beyond selling the ingredients: the company advises clients on their own business development as well as offering over 2,000 custom product solutions.

While it was not easy for Zagorka to start her own business as a young entrepreneur – even with the support of her family – today she mentors young women on establishing their own start-ups, and her company collaborates with universities to deliver seminars and training for students.

Facing challenges head-on

As Vita Nova faces the issue of deficiency of raw material and difficulties in logistics due to disruptions resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic, Zagorka is prioritising diversifying the recipes of its ingredients and products, as well as transforming the challenges into new opportunities for innovation.

With support from the EBRD and the European Union, Vita Nova hired a consultant in 2022 to work on premix recipes and train the staff on mixing recipes, allowing it to optimise production. Prior to that, the company had sought to improve the effectiveness of its management system through an earlier project to implement a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system.

The digitalisation project was highly successful, and Vita Nova significantly improved its operational productivity and efficiency, mainly in sales and development. Today, Zagorka’s ambition is to continue to grow her company by supporting further research and development in the industries it serves. In her own words, Zagorka sees her company as a “brand that stands out with a stable, quality and sustainable offer of raw material and ingredients”.

Redefining the industrial sector in Jordan

In Jordan, Amina Mari founded MEHNA for Engineering Solutions and Machine Manufacturing in 2018, a social impact company aiming to make her country a hub for the research and development of modern engineering and sustainability solutions. MEHNA offers tailored solutions and products accompanied by high quality and safety standards.

Its ability to set and implement new standards customised for each individual project within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals and the circular economy sets it apart in the industrial production sector, which it aims to revolutionise.

On the status of women’s entrepreneurship in her field, Amina believes that “women’s participation in any sector today is a necessity as women bring a set of talents that make any business more rounded and has been proven to be a business case when considering profitability”.

Upholding local expertise in Jordan’s industrial sector

Jordan is abundant with engineers and capabilities for innovation, and Amina wants to invest in the local sector to enable it to grow and compete with international standards. MEHNA faces the challenge of promoting locally made machines to clients and sustainable solutions and practices, as this field is still in its early phases of development.

During the pandemic, MEHNA had only been in the market for two years, and faced financial difficulties, but Amina and her team were already prepared for potential disruptions and found a solution by navigating the resources available. As the industrial sector in Jordan has yet to grapple with full digitalisation, MEHNA created a new, modern website with the support of the EBRD and its Southern and Eastern Mediterranean Multi-Donor Account in 2022 which made it stand out with professional presentation.

The industrial field is not a common place for women entrepreneurs, and Amina wants to change that by proving how women’s entrepreneurial skills and achievements can be a major factor in the success and profitability of businesses.

MEHNA has already designed its own recycling operation and become the first producers of recycled hollow fibre in Jordan, which had always been an import into the country. Coming from a multicultural background and experience, Amina’s ambitious next steps include expanding to new markets in the Middle East and North Africa region in the next five years, and building on the milestones already achieved in her country after successfully expanding into Saudi Arabia.

Promoting Kyrgyz talent internationally

In the Kyrgyz Republic, Alina Makenova founded the recruitment company Make Nova shortly after going on maternity leave in 2018, and it is now a market leader in the field of recruitment and talent acquisition with a success rate of 92 per cent. With the mission of helping people find their dream jobs, and without any prior experience or education in Human Resource management, Alina’s passion to support employment has made Make Nova a trusted resource for matching talents with vacancies.

“Entrepreneurship in Kyrgyzstan has a feminine face, and women in business are very persistent and creative,” says Alina. “When Make Nova started, I realised that all my previous experience was accumulated precisely for this mission ­­­­– to help people find their dream job, identify their strengths, and develop their talents.”

Today, Make Nova provides recruitment services to clients not only in the Kyrgyz Republic but Germany, Singapore, the UAE, the United Kingdom, the USA and more besides.

Perseverance and humility in the face of industry challenges

Although the recruitment industry in Kyrgyz Republic is young, Make Nova managed to gain the trust of its clients and consistently matched qualified candidates with the correct vacancies. Alina developed her approach in trial-and-error manner, continually refining it based on analysing results.

One notable challenge Make Nova faced was ensuring the cultural fit between the candidate and the vacancy, especially given the international scope of its operations. But Alina considers that this an opportunity to constantly learn and improve the matching process at Make Nova.

She sought the support of the EBRD and the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi) to promote her company and its work. The EBRD put the company in touch with a local consultant that helped the company develop its unique brand and website. The increased visibility has led Make Nova to receive ever more recruitment requests and expand its client base.

Today, Alina’s vision is to make Kyrgyz citizens an internationally demanded talent and to connect her country to the rest of the world through talent matching.

Building an inclusive future across EBRD regions

These three talented women represent the limitless possibilities that all industries can have when the right support is available for women’s aspirations.

Women’s entrepreneurship is crucial for economic development locally and globally. At the EBRD, we are proud to support it with our donors across our regions.

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SOURCE: EBRD