Category: Entrepreneurship, Workshop
Date: 1 February – 15 March
Geographical Scope: Albania – Vlora and surrounding regions
Partners: Forum for Women, Local Municipalities, NGOs
Project Overview
The Entrepreneurial Women Project – Workshop aimed to empower women in Albania by enhancing their entrepreneurial skills, fostering the creation of start-ups, supporting small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and promoting sustainable models for women’s participation in business, economy, and community development.
The initiative addresses the gap in women’s economic participation, providing practical skills, networking opportunities, and guidance for creating and improving businesses, while contributing to local economic growth, employment, and income generation.
Objectives
Overall Objective
To increase women’s entrepreneurial capacity and foster their engagement in SMEs, start-ups, and cooperative business ventures, contributing to sustainable regional development.
Specific Objectives
Strengthen entrepreneurial and communication skills of women across sectors;
Promote women-led business initiatives and start-ups;
Encourage collaboration and partnership among women entrepreneurs and local stakeholders;
Support the integration of women into sustainable development models, influencing social and economic outcomes.
Project Description
The project responds to international, national, and local needs regarding women’s participation in business and politics. Key drivers include:
Increasing global and national awareness of women’s participation in economic development;
Low representation of women in start-ups and SMEs;
The potential for women to actively influence sustainable development and regional economic solutions.
The target group included women of different ages, new and existing entrepreneurs, and women involved in business management.
The workshop methodology combined:
Theoretical guidance – introduction of basic entrepreneurship concepts;
Practical application – case studies and examples from real-life business contexts;
Active participation – group work and discussion to generate innovative ideas and encourage peer learning.
The workshop emphasized political, economic, and service sector entrepreneurship, ethical communication, and skills for collaboration and partnership development.
InSET’s Role and Contribution
InSET coordinated and implemented the workshop, including:
Promotion of the initiative and establishment of partnerships with Forum for Women;
Design and facilitation of the women entrepreneurship workshop;
Organization of follow-up meetings with potential partners and stakeholders;
Negotiation and support for cooperation agreements with local institutions and CSOs to ensure sustainability.
Key Activities
Promotion and outreach of the initiative;
Conducting the Entrepreneurial Women Workshop;
Group exercises to generate practical business ideas and cases for start-ups or existing business improvement;
Follow-up meetings to develop partnerships and engagement strategies with institutions and NGOs;
Facilitation of agreements for future collaboration to support women-led initiatives.
Results and Impact
The project achieved:
Training of women in entrepreneurial, communication, and partnership skills;
Development of concrete business ideas, with at least 2–3 selected for potential implementation;
Strengthened networking and collaboration among women entrepreneurs and stakeholders;
Increased awareness of the importance of women-led SMEs and start-ups for regional sustainable development.
Project Future and Sustainability
To ensure long-term impact:
Partnerships will be established with Vlora Municipality and other interested municipalities;
Collaboration with NGOs focused on women’s entrepreneurship will be pursued;
The training program will serve as a foundation for continuous development, enabling the creation of new start-ups and improvement of existing businesses;
Lessons learned will inform future workshops, mentoring programs, and donor-supported initiatives for women entrepreneurs.
By implementing these strategies, the project aims to sustain and expand women’s participation in entrepreneurship, fostering economic growth and innovation in Albania.