<h1 style="text-align:center;">RENEW’s Gender Equality Report Card</h1>As International Women’s Day approaches on March 8, I thought it would be a good time to take a step back and look at RENEW’s scorecard as it relates to gender equality. While we aren’t perfect, gender equality and gender-smart policies are something we genuinely aim for. Here’s how that currently stacks up.<ul><li>55% of the SMEs currently in the IAN's <a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/portfolio">portfolio</a> have female shareholders.</li><li>60% of the jobs provided across our portfolio are held by women.</li><li>43% of participants in <a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/resources/blogs/Key%20Resources%20for%20Executives">The Exec’s Program</a> are women.</li><li>36% of the professionals in the <a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/resources/blogs/Building%20a%20New%20Class%20of%20Finance%20Executives%20for%20Ethiopia">CFO100</a> are women.</li><li>43 or 28% of the <a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/apply">Impact Angel Network</a> members are women. We want to have more women join the IAN.</li><li>And finally, 47% of RENEW’s <a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/about/teams">professional team</a> are women.</li></ul>To read real-life perspectives from some of these key stakeholder groups referenced above, check out the following blogs:<ul><li><a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/resources/blogs/Desta%20is%20Like%20Family">Desta is Like Family</a> (Tadelech Buto, a manager in the textile sector)</li><li><a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/resources/blogs/An%20Angel%20Investor%E2%80%99s%20Perspective">An Angel Investor’s Perspective</a> (Beth Marquette, an Impact Angel Network member)</li><li><a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/resources/blogs/Made%20in%20Ethiopia">Made in Ethiopia</a> (Lulit Negash, a former RENEW team member)</li></ul><figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/renew_team_e3591578e1.png"><figcaption>Photo by Ian Christmann: <a href="http://ianchristmann.com/">www.ianchristmann.com</a></figcaption></figure>&nbsp;

We aren’t perfect, but we are proud of our results!

Gender Equality

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RENEW’s Gender Equality Report Card

<h1>Ethiopian Bank Trials Revenue-Based Financing&nbsp;</h1>Cooperative Bank of Oromia has made 18 collateral-free loans for female and male entrepreneurs as part of a first-of-its-kind pilot in the country<ul><li>Innovative Lending -&nbsp; The Cooperative Bank of Oromia introduces revenue-based financing to support entrepreneurs in Ethiopia, with a focus on women.</li><li>Collateral-Free Loans -&nbsp; Revenue-based financing allows loan approval based on evidence of income rather than collateral.&nbsp;</li><li>Supporting Women - A significant portion of the loans disbursed under this pilot program have gone to women.</li></ul><figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/WB_cb4210cc00.png" alt="Image of entrepreneur showcasing her garments in the bustling streets of Addis Ababa, highlighting resilience and innovation in Ethiopia's SME sector,"></figure>In the bustling streets of Addis Ababa, Betelhem Tamene, the dynamic entrepreneur behind a small-scale garment production company, embodies the resilience and ingenuity of Ethiopia's burgeoning small and medium sized enterprise (SME) scene.&nbsp;&nbsp;Tamene's journey epitomizes the challenges faced by women-owned businesses in accessing traditional financing. Armed with determination and a 100,000 ETB ($1,700) revenue-based loan from the Cooperative Bank of Oromia (CBO), she recently embarked on a mission to procure inputs for her diverse product line, ranging from trendy t-shirts to essential student uniforms.&nbsp;Unlike conventional loans with rigid repayment structures and high thresholds for credit history and collateral, Tamene gravitated toward the flexibility of the revenue-based financing (RBF) model. The new lending product is spearheaded by CBO in collaboration with the World Bank's Africa Gender Innovation Lab, Renew Capital and Rise Addis Advisory.Tamene is excited about the new loan product: “This loan offers a great deal of flexibility as repayment is tied to revenue, which is especially beneficial for businesses like mine that experience seasonal fluctuations [and] often struggle to meet the collateral requirements of traditional bank loans.”With the aid of “Souqpass,” CBO's newly launched digital platform, Tamene digitized her financial management. This platform provides a transparent and efficient system that aligns loan eligibility with actual business performance, providing an alternative to collateral-based financing for entrepreneurs like Tamene.&nbsp;On the other side of Addis, Emebet Abit owns a children’s boutique and school accessory shop and noted that she feels she now has an edge over her competition. She also received a collateral-free loan for 100,000 ETB ($1,700) loan and used Souqpass as part of the process. Since using the platform to track her expenses, revenue and inventory, she has consolidated insights about her business through the user-friendly summary dashboards.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/IMG_2199_3b78d4caea.jpeg" alt="Image of an entrepreneur using the Souqpass platform to access a loan application portal, illustrating how visibility into business performance helps reduce reliance on collateral for financing."></figure>Using the Souqpass platform unlocks access to a loan application portal where entrepreneurs can qualify for loans based on the actual performance of their business. The increased visibility into operations reduces the need for the bank to rely on collateral as a risk mitigation measure.Bridging Capital With InnovationBank financing has long been a roadblock for many entrepreneurs, especially women entrepreneurs who often do not have the collateral that banks need to access financing. In addition, a fixed loan repayment schedule is unresponsive to fluctuating macroeconomic realities and the natural seasonality that some industries experience.&nbsp;In basic terms, RBF means that entrepreneurs can pay as they earn. In its simplest form, there are no fixed payments. Their revenue dictates the amount they pay. If a business has a rough month when they do not generate revenue then they do not have to pay.This type of financing is common in the world of venture capital and fintech providers but CBO has pioneered the approach in Ethiopia with support from World Bank's Africa Gender Innovation Lab, Renew Capital and RiseAddis Advisory. To the delivery team’s knowledge, CBO is the first traditional bank to deploy the model.&nbsp;A Step Towards Inclusive FinanceSo far, loans have been disbursed to 20 entrepreneurs, with a majority of them being women. There are two repayment options available:<ul><li>The pure RBF model where companies repay 20% of their revenue each month (no payment if they have no revenue).</li><li>A hybrid model&nbsp;where companies repay 20% of their revenue each month along with a small fixed payment (3% of revenue projections at the time of loan approval).&nbsp;</li></ul>The project team is monitoring loan performance and plans to refine repayment structures and risk management approaches as the pilot progresses.&nbsp;CBO’s revenue-based financing pilot program is still in its early stages, but this could very well become a key innovative strategy for banks to close the financing gap for entrepreneurs across the continent.&nbsp;

Cooperative Bank of Oromia has made 18 collateral-free loans for female and male entrepreneurs as part of a first-of-its-kind pilot in the country

Ethiopia

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Ethiopian Bank Trials Revenue-Based Financing 

<h1>Renew Capital Launches እሷ! (Isua) Network for Women</h1>Empowering Women Entrepreneurs in Ethiopia<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/CU_4_A5847_aa966a2acf.JPG"></figure>Renew Capital has launched the እሷ! (Isua “Her”) Network, a peer-to-peer networking, coaching and training platform for women-owned and -led micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Ethiopia. A launch event for the network, held in Addis Ababa in March, brought together Ethiopian women business owners and executives, alongside resource providers and Canadian and American government officials.Canadian Ambassador Stéphane Jobin provided opening remarks, highlighting the Government of Canada’s commitment to building more gender-responsive economies around the world and their excitement to be supporting this initiative.&nbsp;Nkemdilim Uwaje Bejo, CEO of Futuresoft Nigeria, also shared some of the specific challenges that women in business face across the continent and seven inspiring lessons for women entrepreneurs. Menna Selamu, Ethiopian entrepreneur and co-founder of Flipper International School, also shared insight into her business journey.&nbsp;<img class="image_resized" style="width:97.56%;" src="/uploads/CU_4_A5858_968a13e132.JPG"> እሷ! (Isua) is the Amharic word for ‘her’ and the እሷ! Network is a&nbsp;membership-based network that brings together women business owners and executives from various industries in Ethiopia. Although women's entrepreneurship in Ethiopia is on the rise, female executives continue to face societal impediments that challenge their business growth. With peer support, training and partnership facilitation, the&nbsp;እሷ!&nbsp;Network aims to improve the private sector ecosystem for women business owners and executives.&nbsp;The suite of offerings from the network will support women entrepreneurs in driving their business growth. It aims to build market leaders in their respective industries and strengthen women-to-women business partnerships. Members can access an exclusive directory of fellow business leaders to support these endeavors. The Government of Canada is supporting this initiative as part of its gender-smart development priorities. Implemented by Renew Capital, the እሷ!&nbsp;Network is part of a larger objective to build a gender-responsive economic ecosystem for women in Ethiopia. Ultimately, it will contribute to a growing pipeline of investment-ready, woman-owned enterprises.&nbsp; Are you a woman business owner in Ethiopia?&nbsp;<a href="https://share.hsforms.com/1SOVX-k9JRMuRM3oZJV63_Qee4rj">Apply to be a member</a> of this prestigious network to start making connections to support your business’ growth.

Empowering Women Entrepreneurs in Ethiopia



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Renew Capital Launches እሷ! (Isua) Network for Women

<h1>Gender Lens Investing: Closing the $42B Funding Gap for Women Entrepreneurs in Africa&nbsp;</h1>USAID and Renew Capital’s SG2X Playbook for fund managers and entrepreneurs&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/shutterstock_2156124527_41d41e0224.jpg"></figure>The funding gap for female entrepreneurs in sub-Saharan Africa is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2022/08/how-female-led-start-ups-can-transform-africa/#:~:text=In%20Sub%2DSaharan%20Africa%2C%20research%20shows%20that%20there%20is%20currently%20a%20%2442%20billion%20funding%20gap%20for%20women%20entrepreneurs.">$42B</a>. Evidently, the African continent is a long way from achieving gender equality in access to funding. This gap hinders women’s ability to take a greater lead in growing the economy and improving their roles as agents of social change. Thankfully, more investors are turning to gender lens investing, an investment approach that promotes women's empowerment alongside maximizing returns to investors.&nbsp;Empowerment of women, however, doesn’t stop at funding. It’s also crucial to ensure that the entire structure of a business initiative is gender-smart. This includes having gender-diverse teams, a characteristic that is consistent with high-performing companies. In fact, <a href="https://gap.hks.harvard.edu/impact-gender-diversity-performance-business-teams-evidence-field-experiment#:~:text=The%20study%20finds%20no%20evidence,gender%20composition%20of%20the%20group." target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">research shows </a>that teams with lower percentages of women have lower sales and lower profits than teams with a balanced gender mix.“Achieving gender diversity not only creates more inclusive organizations, but also more effective organizations,” says Mariah Grubb, a senior consultant at Renew Capital.&nbsp;“Addressing gender biases and opportunity gaps in education and professional development are among the most pressing issues that need to be tackled to fully unlock human potential and drive economic growth on the continent. At the end of the day, gender diversity positively impacts the bottom line. It just makes business sense,”&nbsp;The gender-smart agenda cuts across all of Renew Capital’s work and has been integrated into the capacity-building programs delivered through&nbsp;<a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/companies">the Renew Capital Exchange</a> —- the firm’s on-the-ground hub for pipeline development, ecosystem building and entrepreneur training programs. In 2021, Renew Capital partnered with USAID to create the SME Gender Growth Acceleration (SG2X) Playbook, hosted on the <a href="https://sg2x.squarespace.com/entrepreneurs">2X Collaborative</a> website, a global initiative to support gender-focused investors and drive gender-smart investing.&nbsp;As noted in our&nbsp;<a href="https://latest-api.renewcapital.com/uploads/Renew_Capital_2021_22_Impact_Report_b027a62dd1.pdf">2021-2022 Impact Report</a>, the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/newsroom/One%20year%20strong%20Business%20after%20the%20SG2X%20GenderSmart%20Execs%20Program">Gender Smart Exec's Program</a>, and its corresponding playbook are two significant changes to Renew Capital’s last decade of investing in women’s entrepreneurship. The SG2X Playbook builds on the foundation of the Exchange management training programs and provides asset managers and entrepreneurs with a set of practical tools to aid them in building gender-smart, scalable SMEs in sub-Saharan Africa. The playbook has been made into an easy-to-navigate dedicated platform publicly accessible through the&nbsp;2X Collaborative.&nbsp;In&nbsp;<a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/newsroom/SG2X%20Playbook%20Advantage%20From%20the%20Entrepreneurs%20Perspective">a survey conducted after the initial launch of the playbook</a>, users highlighted the ease of using the platform. One playbook user told Renew Capital:“The tools are easy to talk about and drum into people’s minds. In fact, my eyes were opened to the potential of tools already at my disposal...like my calendar.”&nbsp;&nbsp;The playbook is divided into one portal for fund managers and one for entrepreneurs. For fund managers, the SG2X Playbook highlights gender-smart practices they need to integrate into their work to scale gender-smart SMEs. The playbook was created with the help of a gender lens investing consortium and inspired by our experience as fund managers investing in Africa over the past&nbsp;<a href="https://latest-api.renewcapital.com/uploads/Renew_Capital_2021_22_Impact_Report_b027a62dd1.pdf">10 years</a>. In the portal, fund managers will find helpful resources to better organize their teams and a guide to conduct the investment process, from building a pipeline to closing and managing an SME portfolio.&nbsp; For entrepreneurs, the playbook is a valuable management resource complete with policy templates, materials and standard operating procedures they can tailor to their business. Also included are instructional videos from the Gender Smart Exec’s Program, a comprehensive management course for founders and executives. The playbook includes a suite of more than 45 practical tools that will aid in the execution of the Gender-Smart Exec’s Program and implementation of the playbook’s guidance.Addressing the enormous funding gap for women entrepreneurs will continue to require&nbsp;concerted efforts from many stakeholders with an interest in making an impact in this area.&nbsp;“I am excited to learn more about the management practices of women-owned and led companies,” says Julie Baker, an investor with the Renew Capital Angels network. “By supporting the due diligence and evaluation of women-owned businesses, I hope to learn about the challenges women starting and running companies face.”Baker adds that investors can contribute to Africa’s economic potential by funding high-growth businesses that maximize impact by empowering women entrepreneurs.&nbsp;“We have the privilege of helping them be more successful financially, socially and institutionally. And when these women succeed in business, my hope is that they will attract others who might imitate this model, leading to more opportunities for other women.”&nbsp; Are you a fund manager or a woman entrepreneur? Check out the&nbsp;<a href="https://sg2x.squarespace.com/entrepreneurs">SME Gender Growth Acceleration (SG2X) Playbook</a> to access gender-smart business resources.&nbsp;

USAID and Renew Capital’s SG2X Playbook for fund managers and entrepreneurs 


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Gender Lens Investing: Closing the $42 Billion Funding Gap for Women Entrepreneurs in Africa

<h1>Strategic marketing and sales training to help agri-businesses grow and thrive!</h1>Women are a large part of the agricultural workforce yet there is a gap in access to finance and training that makes women-led agribusinesses more vulnerable to shocks like COVID-19 and the impact of climate change on farming. In 2021, the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) and Renew Capital partnered up to support women in agribusiness through the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/newsroom/ARISE%20Relaunches%20the%20Last%20Week%20of%20September%202022">African Resilience &amp; Investment Series for Women Executives (ARISE) Program</a>, which boosts resilience through capacity building in areas such as business financials; sales and marketing; and investment preparedness.&nbsp;The following is part of a series of blogs detailing ARISE’s most recent training sessions.&nbsp;The next set of those same sessions kicked off on November 16. ARISE encourages women in agribusiness to sign up and join AGRA’s business management on the&nbsp;<a href="https://value4her.hivebrite.com/">Value4HerConnect</a> portal.&nbsp;Join the Enhanced Pitch Coaching Session: December 15&nbsp;<a href="https://agra-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAocemhrjojGNJNu03M_J2WBv4cyF_eNnpZ">Register Here</a>Increasing sales and profit are important measures of success for small businesses but beyond that, female-owned agribusinesses have a role in boosting food production and reducing food insecurity. ARISE is interested in helping these businesses move from merely surviving; to thriving, and with that goal in mind, in October it presented women in agribusiness with a basic marketing and sales training workshop titled Thrive.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/Updated_2x_2c0ea79f2d.jpg"></figure>Defining and Executing a Marketing StrategySince entrepreneurs often do not have expertise in marketing and sales, ARISE’s training starts by defining the main function and principles of this topic. According to Renew Capital’s Head of Shared Growth Services, JC Oelofse, “marketing is any activity that enables the business to meet its revenue targets” which are laid out in the business’s yearly or quarterly plan. Marketing is customer-centric and therefore, marketing activities should be able to deliver and communicate value to the customer.&nbsp;“The world right now is–- grow or die. If you are just sustaining your business, eventually you will die because you are not moving forward, you are not growing revenue,” Oelofse added.&nbsp;Just like any other strategic plan, the marketing plan must be written down and it should help focus and align a company's efforts toward achieving growth. That written plan should include the following:&nbsp;Define a Target Market&nbsp;In defining a company’s target market, its leaders need to be as specific as possible by learning about their customers and creating detailed personas, using demographics and psychographics of people who need the product or service and their attributes and behaviors.&nbsp;As an example, he told the group, “Your persona should be something like this: a 22-25-year-old Ugandan woman with an income of 500,000 Ugandan shillings, who has a four-year degree, single, and just started her first job.”&nbsp;Identify the Core Benefit&nbsp;There are three possible core benefits of a product which are quality, price, and service, and understanding them will help business leaders know the selling point on which they can engage in marketing. Some customers are focused on the quality of your product while others are looking for the cheapest option. This can be easily applied to agri-products even when product prices are determined by directives from the government, explained Oelofse.&nbsp;“When you are in a price-controlled market, you are kind of stuck between two parameters but that drives you to the principle of product market fit. Is there another way to present your product? Is there another channel to present your product? Is there something else you can do to add value before it hits the market?”Consistency&nbsp;Whatever the plans to implement, a business leader wants to make sure they are being consistent in driving it forward and making sure that they are always top of mind for their customers. This means reaching out to your customers as much as possible and using different channels to remind customers of the products the company can offer.&nbsp;Bad Marketing vs Good Marketing&nbsp;The session also taught the participants how to understand the difference between good and bad marketing. Here are some examples:Bad Marketing&nbsp;<ul><li>﻿﻿Not focused or consistent, thus consuming a lot of energy and money, but with few results.</li><li>﻿﻿Not backed up by market research.</li><li>﻿﻿The company is not delivering on its marketing commitment.</li><li>﻿﻿The competition can easily copy the plan.</li><li>﻿﻿The plans, goals and key performance indicators (KPIs) aren’t tracked.</li><li>The marketing plan has no rhythm.</li></ul>Good Marketing&nbsp;<ul><li>Focuses on a core value proposition or benefit to the customer.</li><li>The entire company is designed to deliver that benefit.</li><li>The marketing function is clearly different from the sales function.</li><li>Information on the target market and competitors is regularly gathered and analyzed.</li><li>There is a regular standing meeting each week and month to review marketing goals, activities and KPIs.</li><li>The CEO works closely with the marketing manager to build strategies to take the business forward</li></ul>Gender Smart-Marketing&nbsp;The session also looked at marketing through the often-overlooked gender-smart lens.&nbsp; This strategy is built around the understanding that according to the United Nations World Population Prospects Report,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.un.org/development/desa/pd/sites/www.un.org.development.desa.pd/files/wpp2022_summary_of_results.pdf">women make up almost 50% of the population</a>, and&nbsp;<a href="https://hbr.org/2009/09/the-female-economy">more than half&nbsp;</a>of the purchasing power is held by women. As such, more effort should be put into marketing that speaks to women, without reinforcing gender stereotypes in advertising.Marketing vs SalesAlthough marketing and sales usually feed into each other, they are two vastly different functions. As such, ARISE’s program emphasized the importance of understanding a given business to decide whether it’s marketing or sales that should lead. If the products are small, relatively less costly, and do not require much explanation, marketing leads. However, with products that are more complex and considered expensive, sales leads.&nbsp;Setting Up a Sales TeamSetting up a successful sales team comes down to getting the right people and creating processes to review progress. Oelofse told participants that teams must consist of determined individuals because evidence shows on average it takes up to 12 touchpoints with a customer to make a sale.&nbsp;To ensure a good sales process, he said it was important to consider the following:&nbsp;<ul><li>A detailed description of the ideal customer experience one’s company hopes to deliver.</li><li>A disciplined and persistent person or team running sales.</li><li>A written sales system followed by those assigned to use it.</li><li>A religiously updated and reviewed sales pipeline.</li><li>Sales metrics that are reported to management on a weekly or monthly basis.</li><li>A well-run, focused weekly sales meeting to update the pipeline and KPIs.</li><li>Alignment between the sales teams' compensation and the company’s sales targets.</li><li>A system for gathering and measuring customer feedback and satisfaction.</li><li>Customer feedback is gathered, documented, and reviewed by management, and new initiatives are implemented to improve scores.&nbsp;</li></ul>Following the training, Samrawit Geremew, a Renew Capital senior project manager in Ethiopia, expressed her contentment with the way the training in this partnership with AGRA is growing a more gender-balanced agricultural workforce.&nbsp; “We want women in agribusiness to come away from this training knowing they have what it takes and learn how to make the best of their acquired skills to grow sustainable businesses that will become pillars of the African economy.”&nbsp;

Enhanced Accelerated Women Executives Training

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Strategic marketing and sales training to help businesses grow and thrive!

<h1>One year strong: Business after the SG2X Gender-Smart Exec’s Program</h1><h3>Q&amp;A with Rebecca Mugwanya, CEO of Ugandan-based Lhexcopt Investments&nbsp;</h3>For the past six years, Renew Capital has been helping to build the capacity of East African small and medium businesses through its training platform, the Renew Capital Exchange. Addressing gender imbalances and enhancing the role of women in SMEs has increasingly become an integral focus of that program as noted in the firm’s <a href="https://latest-api.renewcapital.com/uploads/Renew_Capital_2021_22_Impact_Report_b027a62dd1.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">latest Impact Report</a>.&nbsp; Today, Renew Capital is furthering that effort through the creation of an SME Gender Growth Acceleration (SG2X) Playbook and its corresponding SG2X Gender-Smart Exec’s Program.&nbsp;&nbsp;Ugandan business leader Rebecca Mugwanya was one of its 2021 participants and agreed to share some of her learnings with Renew Capital. Rebecca has worn many hats in her career and within her community, something that explains her passion for community-centered interventions. Today, she is the CEO of Lhexcopt Investments, the owner of the Orga registered trademark. In 2018, Rebecca got her start with the value addition of sugarcane, producing natural sugarcane juice that is preserved with lemon, ginger, and passion fruit. This was after a life-threatening situation that took her off all carbonated soft drinks and processed sugars, as well as wheat. Through this innovation, her purpose was to provide a healthy alternative to the many carbonated soft drinks that are currently flooding the Ugandan market. Together with her innovative team, the company later added on more products like cane caramel, pumpkin-based flours, gluten-free pumpkin rice, and cassava blended flours for baking and for porridge that are now in a number of supermarkets.&nbsp;She says she continues to pass the value of SG2X throughout the business, and she is seeing the difference that it’s bringing to the company, such as successfully achieving gender balance in their senior management team.&nbsp;-This interview has been edited for length and clarity.<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/New_Thumbnail_b07105a899.jpg"></figure>Q.&nbsp;Roughly one year has passed since you were part of the SG2X Gender-Smart Exec’s Program. What are some components that still stand out in your mind?A.&nbsp;The Five Habits of Effective CEOs training changed my way of thinking and doing things, especially the habit of practice. As entrepreneurs, we learn a lot, go through many training sessions, and read a lot, but the challenge is that we don’t put it into practice. During training, I learned that you first learn to do, and then go ahead and teach others. That's integrity because you cannot teach what you're not doing. And then the other habit is the habit of mindset, having a winner's mindset, waking up early and having my desk set, journaling my day, making sure I take my water, making sure I work out, making sure that I repeat my vision, the vision of the company and the vision of my life. I find that very interesting and exciting. You know you wake up and you're all bubbling with energy because you're focused. You have reason to live. You have reason to win. I find that very encouraging and very interesting.&nbsp;Q. In what ways did the tools you learned during the training have an impact on the way your business operates?A. When we started working with Renew Capital, I was afraid of strategic planning. I thought of an encyclopedia of plans that are too broad and too wide, and that you cannot put into practice. The training demystified that, asking what your future state is, what is the case for change, what are the bottlenecks and barriers, and what is the strategy. And then, of course, there’s the execution system that enables you to achieve your strategy. The other thing that really stood out for me was, as a team, we didn't know whether our product is a sold product or a bought product, but when we did the mastery of sales and marketing training, we learned that our product is a niche product, and therefore it is a sold product. That means sales leads and marketing support. Now that we know who our clients are, we’ve stopped getting into the spaces of clients that don’t belong to us, and we are already seeing the results.&nbsp;Q. The sessions specifically focus on teaching SMEs how to incorporate gender equality, diversity, and inclusion. How have you been able to incorporate gender-smart practices in your business?A. Right from lesson one, I remember gender balance was intertwined throughout the course. We were challenged about the mindsets that we hold even as entrepreneurs, even ladies, and gentlemen. For example, we learned that the two genders balance each other. You cannot afford to have so many ladies and you cannot afford to have so many gentlemen. We learned that as a company, these two contribute effectively when they're well balanced. So as a team, we did have a board, but that board was basically male-dominated. During the training, we were able to work through that. So as a team we are now cognizant of the need for gender balance. Whether it's in the production function or in the senior management, you find that we are well-balanced. For example, my production manager is a male. I'm the CEO. Our head of operations is male. Our finance is female. Our HR is female, and the head of marketing is male.Q. Have there been any difficulties in implementing gender-smart business practices?A.&nbsp;We realized that it can sometimes be hard to recruit the right talent while working to create workforce gender equity because of already existing opportunity gaps in education and professional development in which women haven’t been afforded the same privileges as men. At the same time, we also know that attitudes about women’s place in society have an impact on employers giving them a chance to show their skills and talents.&nbsp;You need to constantly keep educating because we come from different backgrounds. But as a team, we are determined to make sure that we challenge negative beliefs, stigmas, and gender biases that we had held on to. All of us are works in progress, I would say. Once in a while, you find something that is not gendered smart, or this is not favorable. And then because you are already aware of the challenges that all of you are dealing with as a team, then you're able to discuss it openly and see how best it can be resolved.<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/Screen_Shot_2022_11_30_at_6_09_25_PM_1_1b71a07a32.png"></figure>The SME Gender Growth Acceleration (SG2X) Playbook portal for entrepreneurs&nbsp;Q. What advice would you give to SMEs deciding if they want to take the journey to become gender-smart?A.&nbsp;&nbsp;So, for an SME to progress and grow and flourish, we need to have gender-smart goals, and we have to be very intentional, right from the board. Having a board that is full of one gender will definitely affect the talent that you're bringing and can cause the company to miss out. Just be focused always on being gender-smart and setting gender-smart goals.&nbsp; We come from different backgrounds, and we are raised by the culture of the communities that we live in. But some of the culture we grew up with is making us miss such a very important component when it comes to the growth of an SME. I'm just encouraging them to try it out. It has worked for us, and I know it will work for them.Q. How could these tools be improved? Or what would you like to see more support in to develop your gender-smart business?A.&nbsp;I think that gender smartness starts from home. Those of us who have worked in the community as development workers can tell you that sometimes when a parent does not have enough school fees for all children in the household, the boy goes to school and the girl stays home. Sometimes you find that religious institutions have been key in promoting gender&nbsp;inequality. How do we promote gender equity at the school and community levels? This is a journey that we have started, but I know that it can't be solved by just having training of a certain few individuals.&nbsp;I am requesting that entrepreneurs, SMEs, the business community, and the development partners come together on this journey that we are supposed to work on as a team. We need more corporate social responsibility in that area of educating our people,&nbsp;of educating the different power centers about the need for gender equity and its benefits also at the family level, just knowing that all children are equal.As a&nbsp;CEO, you are at a level of influence, and you’re interacting with farmers and suppliers. You can identify key players in the community. We need to get started now by knowing how to deliver this material, how to influence, how to train, how to sensitize what you should say, what you shouldn't say, what may sound offensive. We need help in that direction.&nbsp;Q. Do you have any final words of encouragement for people who are thinking of participating in the training?&nbsp;A. We've just been onboarded by one of the biggest players in the confectionery industry and they were clear that they want to work with us because of the way that we do things. Where did we learn all these things that we are doing differently? From Renew Capital. The training has transformed our business forever. So, I'm encouraging those who have not yet gone through the SG2X Playbook training. For me, it is the best business training I've attended. I don't think there is anything that can transform an enterprise as well. It changes not only the business, but also changes your family, your mindset, and the way you carry yourself. I'm encouraging my fellow SMEs and my fellow CEOs. Let's get on board. It's what Africa needs. Check out the&nbsp;<a href="https://sg2x.squarespace.com/entrepreneurs">SME Gender growth Acceleration (SG2X) Playbook&nbsp;</a>for Women Entrepreneurs to access gender-smart business resources.&nbsp;

One year strong: Business after the SG2X Gender-Smart Exec’s Program

Q&A with Rebecca Mugwanya, CEO of Ugandan-based Lhexcopt Investments 



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One year strong: Business after the SG2X Gender-Smart Exec’s Program

<h1>Speaking Up and Stepping Up</h1>A Self-Confidence Seminar by the ARISE Program Helps Women in Agriculture Assert Themselves in Business&nbsp;Women represent a large percentage of the agricultural workforce yet there is a gap in access to finance and training that makes women-led agribusinesses more vulnerable to shocks like COVID-19 and the impact of climate change on farming. In 2021, the Alliance for Green Revolution (AGRA) and Renew Capital partnered up to support women in agribusiness through the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/newsroom/ARISE%20Re-Launches%20The%20Last%20Week%20of%20September%202022%20">African Resilience &amp; Investment Series for Women Executives (ARISE) Program</a>, which boosts resilience through capacity building in areas such as business financials; sales and marketing; and investment preparedness.&nbsp;The following is the first in a series of blogs detailing ARISE’s most recent training sessions. The next set of those same sessions kicks off November 16. ARISE encourages women in agribusiness to sign up and to join AGRA’s business management on the&nbsp;<a href="https://value4her.hivebrite.com/">Value4HerConnect</a> portal.&nbsp;Those sessions are listed here:&nbsp;<ul><li>Enhanced Investment Preparedness: November 16</li><li>Enhanced Investment Seminar: November 29&nbsp;</li><li>Confidence, Self-esteem and Ambition Setting Seminar: November 30</li><li>BDS Providers Seminar: December 14 - <a href="https://agra-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIocOurrDwpG9ZFNYZR23g5Y3RDIZGoz_VD" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Register Here</a></li><li>Enhanced Pitch Coaching Session: December 15 - <a href="https://agra-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAocemhrjojGNJNu03M_J2WBv4cyF_eNnpZ" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Register Here</a></li></ul>While there are always exceptions to the rule, inequitable male-dominated power structures have existed throughout human history, and that has certainly been the case in many African societies. Often, it happens under the guise of benevolent intentions and institutions such as marriage, religion, education, division of labor and protection. Today, despite major growth in the number of women-led businesses on the continent, old attitudes about women’s capabilities and societal roles still take a toll on women's willingness to take risks and make entrepreneurial decisions that can take them to new levels of economic empowerment and leadership. Women participate in and own many agribusinesses in Africa, but their businesses tend to be small and don’t often operate as an alliance.&nbsp;Now, in an effort to mitigate these historic dynamics, entrepreneurial ecosystem builders are focusing on increasing women entrepreneurs’ chances of accessing finance and helping them build on other soft and hard business skills that will, in turn, empower them to scale their businesses.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/Confidence_Session_2x_940e30271b.jpg"></figure>“Being on the investment side, it’s unfortunate to see the number of women-led and -owned companies who drop off during the investment appraisal process due to lack of self-confidence,” said&nbsp;Renew Capital senior investment manager Diana Njuguna, who is helping to lead the ARISE program. “It’s time for women entrepreneurs to rise up, articulate their ambitions and take advantage of opportunities that would support their businesses to scale.”One of the new additions to the 2022 course was a preliminary seminar titled Confidence, Self-Esteem and Ambition Setting, hosted by Njuguna and two of Renew Capital’s other African women staffers, Senior Investment Manager Dagmawit Shiferaw and Senior Project Manager Samrawit Geremew.&nbsp;&nbsp;"We want to tell you that believe it or not, support organizations like AGRA, investors like Renew Capital, peers like the men that display more confidence than you in the business arena, have a lot of respect and admiration for you as women entrepreneurs who are consistently pushing multifaceted boundaries and running a business with much potential to impact food security, job creation and economic growth for the continent, so rise to the occasion throughout your entrepreneurial journey,” Geremew told the participants. &nbsp;A Safe Space for Sharing&nbsp;Inversely, a lack of self-esteem can cause an entrepreneur to have trouble accepting feedback, setting boundaries, and taking care of their own needs, all of which contribute to the so-called “imposter syndrome,” in which a qualified and talented individual - usually a woman - doubts their abilities and feels like an imposter, not belonging in the space.“Your success is determined by how confident you are. Business is like a game of sport, so you have to go out and win, and if you are doubting yourself already, then you are less likely to win,” Shiferaw told the group.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/LWN_4477_888f08a91c.jpg"></figure>The women attending the session are no strangers to these concepts.“Lack of confidence gives me trouble when I need to speak about my business. I am often overshadowed by people, especially males, who are confident in expressing themselves,” noted Piloya Innocent, the head of the Ugandan agribusiness company Ayandwe Foods, recognizing that women are less likely to put themselves out there by applying for big opportunities or voicing an idea that might get shot down. “I am learning to speak up, and learning along the way where I can.”And while there are real social and political barriers that can hinder women’s success in business, a huge part of rising to the challenge requires mind over matter.“When I look back at the times when I was not confident, I realize it's all in the head, and in the end, it is about reframing our internal conversations with ourselves,” commented Charity Ndegwa, one of the agribusiness owners in attendance. She encouraged the group to remember that they are already doing something great by running these businesses: “We should take up space accordingly.”Toward the end of the workshop, the women were challenged to articulate “ambition statements,” which they can repeat daily as a way of reaffirming their goals and giving them the confidence they need to direct and fully integrate their employees in the company’s mission. &nbsp;Joy Mary Lwanga, owner of Shalom Organic Farm in Uganda, thanked Renew Capital’s trainers with a self-affirmation that simultaneously reaffirmed them.“I am a risk taker, I am ambitious, and I am learning to be confident.” she said.&nbsp;&nbsp;

A Self-Confidence Seminar by the ARISE Program Helps Women in Agriculture Assert Themselves in Business 

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Speaking Up and Stepping Up

<h1>Renew Capital Releases Gender Smart Investment Playbook to the World</h1>Two weeks ago, we launched the SME Gender Growth Acceleration&nbsp;<a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/newsroom/What%20is%20the%20SG2X%20Playbook%20">(SG2X) Playbook</a> hosted by the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.2xcollaborative.org/">2X Collaborative</a> and designed with support from USAID. The gender-smart tools and resources of the playbook can be found on this dedicated&nbsp;<a href="https://sg2x.squarespace.com/entrepreneurs">website</a>.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/SG_2_X_2x_9ff530eb9f.jpg"></figure>If you missed the event, here a a few links to help you start or continue your gender-smart investing journey:<ul><li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKDorejDWjc">Introduction to the project and event&nbsp;</a>(remarks from Jessica Espinoza, CEO of the 2XCollaborative and Jennifer Hansel, Senior Women’s Economic Empowerment Advisor from USAID’s Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Hub (GenDev))</li><li>Here is a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCA7EYuGqCA&amp;feature=youtu.be">Live walk-through</a> of the SG2X Playbook website</li></ul>Additionally, for those testing out the SG2X Playbook, we hope that this resource will improve and expand with your help. There is a feedback form on the website so you can add additional comments and recommendations as you test the Playbook.As always, please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions. We look forward to continuing to build a gender-smart investment community together.

Tools and resources to upgrade your gender smart investing strategy

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Renew Capital Releases Gender Smart Investment Playbook to the World

<h1 style="margin-left:auto;text-align:justify;">SG2X Playbook Advantage: From the Entrepreneur's Perspective</h1>We look forward to seeing you on September 22 to celebrate the launch of USAID and RENEW’s SME Gender Growth Acceleration (SG2X) Investment Playbook (or “the Playbook”) hosted by the 2X Collaborative. The Playbook is part of their growing toolbox of resources for the responsible investment community.&nbsp;In our past communication, we focused on the purpose of the Playbook and the trainings, templates, tools, etc. it contains. Today, we want to share feedback from entrepreneurs who have first-hand experience with the training and related materials.&nbsp;Most of the SMEs with whom we spoke said the implementation training program changed the course of their companies as well as their day-to-day lives.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><a href="https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYsfumorzMsGNFbdSErJAJWZ99xB9aJMEn9"><img src="https://latest-api.renewcapital.com/uploads/SG_2_X_Promo_V2_2x_253a849373.jpg"></a></figure>“We covered certain foundational principles that I simply didn’t know. This information was not available to me in other business or entrepreneurship training programs that I’ve taken. Things like board governance, gender-smart marketing, cashflow management – I didn’t realize how important they were until after I took the program.”Many of the participating companies joined the training after seeing how their businesses were negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and needed to decide how to manage cash flows, add new business lines, or pivot to a new industry.“My company is pivoting in what we do because of COVID-19, and I found the tools to be immensely helpful in executing our new strategy and managing my time as CEO.”“My business badly needed this overhaul at this point in time, especially after COVID-19. My understanding of executive management and having the business move to a more secure future is now much more clear.”Since men still typically dominate the executive space, participants also came to learn the value of gender inclusion and promotion in the business environment.“I appreciated that the program had a consistent message throughout that gender equality contributes to the bottom line. Financial performance and gender equality don’t have to be at odds with one another.”“Even as a female executive, I didn’t understand why I had to intentionally pursue gender equality, but now I understand why it’s so important, which makes it easier to implement. Now that I understand the “why” and have that reasoning in hand, I feel that I can now go to my team and properly explain.”One of the consistent praises from those that have interacted with the Playbook is how accessible and user-friendly it is. We can all understand the frustration of opening up a guidebook and staring down countless pages of description and methodology without a clear step-by-step implementation plan and practical tools to support the process.&nbsp;“I loved the fact that they were brief! I don’t have the time to read really long documents; one to two pages is enough. When you produce a piece of information that’s 30 pages, it’s hard to maintain your attention. The tools are easy to talk about and drum into people’s minds. In fact, my eyes were opened to the potential of tools already at my disposal. I now have a fresh perspective on how to leverage the simplest of tools, like my calendar.”<a href="https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYsfumorzMsGNFbdSErJAJWZ99xB9aJMEn9">REGISTER TODAY</a> to learn more about this innovative toolkit and how it can benefit you and your business(es).&nbsp;<ul><li>DATE: Thursday, September 22, 2022</li><li>TIME: 9:00 a.m.-10:30 a.m. EST; 4:00 p.m.-5:30 p.m. EAT</li></ul>

Hear from entrepreneurs who have directly benefited from the training encapsulated in the SG2X Playbook and how that training transformed their business.

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SG2X Playbook Advantage: From the Entrepreneur's Perspective

<h1 style="text-align:center;">Three Reasons to Attend the SG2X Playbook Launch Event</h1>We hope you can join us for the upcoming launch event of the SME Gender Growth Acceleration (SG2X) Playbook, a gender-smart investment toolkit for fund managers and small- and medium-enterprises (SMEs) operating in Africa.<figure class="image"><a href="https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYsfumorzMsGNFbdSErJAJWZ99xB9aJMEn9"><img src="/uploads/SG_2_X_Comms_2_2x_ead7122005.jpg"></a></figure>Here are three reasons why we think you should attend:<ul><li style="text-align:justify;">Engage with the Broader Investment &amp; Development Communities: USAID, RENEW, and a consortium of leading GLI initiatives, including members of the 2X Challenge, will be in attendance to participate in a practical and engaging discussion on barriers affecting the GLI space and solutions.</li><li style="text-align:justify;">Learn Project Best Practices and Key Takeaways: Better understand how you (as a DFI, fund manager, development agency, SME, etc.) can better support the SME asset class to become gender-smart, providing positive portfolio results and catalyzing gender-lens capital into the space.</li><li style="text-align:justify;">Implement the Latest in GLI Resources: The launch event will provide a detailed overview of the SG2X Playbook, including its materials, tools, resources, trainings, etc., which represents the culmination of an 18-month project conducted through USAID’s Women Economic Empowerment Fund.</li></ul>Interested in registering for the launch event? Complete the registration form and mark your calendars!<ul><li style="text-align:justify;">Date: Thursday, September 22, 2022</li><li style="text-align:justify;">Time: 9-10:30 a.m. EST; 4-5:30 p.m. EAT</li><li style="text-align:justify;">Please register via this <a href="https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYsfumorzMsGNFbdSErJAJWZ99xB9aJMEn9">LINK</a> &nbsp;</li></ul>

Join USAID, RENEW, and other leading gender lens investors on September 22, 2022!
