ADDIS ABABA – Ministry of Labor and Skills (MoLS) has promised sustainable support for women entrepreneurs to achieveholistic prosperity.
MoLS’s State Minister Solomon Soka made the promise yesterday during the award ceremony of Bruh-Enat Innovative Business Idea Competition 2025, organized by the ministry in collaboration with Entrepreneurship Development Institute (EDI), Enat Bank, and UN Women under the theme“Train, Award, and Empower.”
In his closing remarks, Solomon pledged that the government will continue supporting women entrepreneurs to drive holistic prosperity.
In this regard, he said that the MoLS, in collaboration with other government bodies and private sector is providing training, rewarding women to increase theirimpact in the country’s development.
According to him, ten women have received a financial rewards to translate their business ideas into reality. The program identified the toptenwomen entrepreneurs,out of a total of 612 women filteredin various phases, and rewarded them after a ten-day training ata boot camp, Bishoftu, Oromia State.
“The ten women entrepreneurs received between100,000 Birr to 500,000 Birr each, depending on their innovative business ideas presented during the competition, Solomon said.
He elaborated that the competitors who ranked from the first to the fifth place have received 500,000 Birr, 400,000 Birr, 300,000 Birr, 200,000 Birr, and 150,000 Birr respectively, while those who took6th to 10th ranks wereawarded 100,000 Birr each”.
He announced that recruitingthe entrepreneurs will startsoon in different parts of the country to encourage them and bring solutions for their communities. Therefore, women withinnovative business ideacan participate without any restrictions based on sex, age, and otherdifferences.
EDI’sDeputy CEO and Training and Capacity Building Director,Boru Shana,on his part said that Bruh-Enat is assisting women entrepreneurs to convert their innovative business ideas into reality.
It is an important step to understand women’s potential in overcomingcommunities’ problem through their innovative business ideas, Boru said.
Supporting the above idea, Enat Bank Deputy President Tigist Abate on her part said that the bank has been supporting women by providing them withloans atlow interest rates.
Bruh-Enat Women’s Innovative Business Idea Competition has been held for the past four consecutive years, with support from Enat Bank andMoLS.
BY MESERET BEHAILU
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD SATURDAY 29 MARCH 2025
