Women and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA): How women entrepreneurs and traders can leverage the benefits of the Agreement Establishing the AfCFTA

She is the Founder and Executive Director of the Center for Accelerated Women’s Economic Empowerment (CAWEE)Nigest is an activist in the promotion of women ... Read more

She is the Founder and Executive Director of the Center for Accelerated Women’s Economic Empowerment (CAWEE)Nigest is an activist in the promotion of women entrepreneurs, with particular focus to women exporters.She has 23 years experience working in the Ethiopian Ministry of Trade and Industry, at differentcapacities. In 2004, she founded CAWEE, a pioneer trade promotion organization working in the country,providing promotional and capacity building support service targeting women exporters.In facilitating export market, in bring buyers to Ethiopia as well as taking trade missions of women entrepreneurs to different counties, Nigest has played crucial role, where in the past few years, she wasable to organize trade missions to over 18 countries.Nigest received her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology (major) and Sociology (minor) from the AddisAbaba University, Ethiopia and her Post Graduate Diploma in Globalization and Development, from theInstitute of Social Studies (ISS), The Hague, Netherlands. She also was able to get trained in women entrepreneurship development and other relevant areas of enterprise development and export promotionin different countries and has different diplomas and certificates.Nigest is actively involved in conducting different kinds of action oriented researches, focusing on womenin business and was able to publish a book compiling the findings of five different researches on‘Challenges Affecting Women in Business’. In the research ‘Strengthening Women-to-WomenBusiness Market Linkages: Lessons from Experience’ which this time is at its dissemination stage,Nigest is leading the research team.Nigest received awards & recognitions from the Department of State, USA, in recognition of herextraordinary contributions to the development of women-led businesses, she was also selected by TheInternational Alliance for Women (TIAW), Canada, as a TIAW Award Winner for the Year 2012, for all thegreat works she does to economically empower women. Nigest also received a Pan-African Award, bythe UN Women and ILO, in recognition of her participation and support of Women’s EntrepreneurshipDevelopment in the African continent. Nigest received the “Enabler of Vision” award from the Center forEconomic and Leadership Development; Nigest received the “Women Stop Hunger Award”, in Paris,France and Global Woman Leadership Award in Jabalpur, India, to mention some.Nigest is one of the promoters and founders of the first women’s commercial bank, named as “ENATBank” in Ethiopia and currently serving as the board member of the bank, her third term serving at theBank Board. Nigest is also member of different boards, jury (Ex: jury member at the Sub-Saharan AfricaJury of the Cartier Women’s Initiate Awards: 2010 - 2017), platforms and networks, both locally, regionallyand internationally.

Nadira Bayat is a Gender and Trade Expert with the African Trade Policy Centre (ATPC)–United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). Nadira has ... Read more

Nadira Bayat is a Gender and Trade Expert with the African Trade Policy Centre (ATPC)–United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). Nadira has previously held the position of Programme Director at Global Economic Governance (GEG) Africa — a policy research and stakeholder engagement programme, focusing on sustainable development priorities in Africa. She served in senior positions in the South African Government, including as Counsellor: Multilateral at the Embassy of South Africa in Washington, D.C. Prior experience includes various roles with the United Nations (UN), including at the International Court of Justice, UN Transitional Administration in East Timor, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, and at the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights. Nadira has a background in international law. She holds two LLMs, the most recent in International Legal Studies from American University Washington College of Law, with a specialization in human rights law.

Caroline has twenty (20) years multi-sectoral and regional professional experience in governance, risk and financial management. She excels at creating systems ... Read more

Caroline has twenty (20) years multi-sectoral and regional professional experience in governance, risk and financial management. She excels at creating systems and processes that bring order, efficiency and profitability to clients’ organizations by helping them manage risks rather than crisis.
Caroline started off her career in Pricewaterhousecoopers (PwC) as an auditor. In her career, she has worked at KPMG East Africa as a Financial Management Specialist and later moved to the position of Senior Manager. She has been a Management Consultant with the European Union.
In 2013, Caroline moved on to set up her own practice, FirstIdea Consulting Limited. The firm offers services in risk advisory and training. Her skills include risk mapping, risk implementation support, risk evaluation, risk monitoring, business continuity plans, public financial management, governance, assessments, training, among others. She has hands-on experience in various sectors and verticals including, manufacturing, education, health, hospitality, county governments, development partners, Not-for-Profit, among others.
Caroline has a master’s degree in Financial Management and a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting. She is an internationally Certified Risk Professional of the Institute of Risk Management in the United Kingdom. She is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA-K) and holds a higher diploma in Human Resource Management. She is a member of Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya (ICPAK), Institute of Risk Management - UK, Association of Women Accountants of Kenya (AWAK), the Kenya Institute of Supplies Management, the Organization of Women in International Trade (OWIT) and the Institute of Human Resource Management.
Her professional experience spans Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Malawi, Burundi, Somalia, Ghana and Tanzania.

Sitshengisiwe Ndlovu affectionately also known as Tshengi is a champion of thetrade and gender agenda. She is self –driven and passionate about ... Read more

Sitshengisiwe Ndlovu affectionately also known as Tshengi is a champion of thetrade and gender agenda. She is self –driven and passionate about womeneconomic empowerment. She is also the founder of Her Economy and Trade nowlicenced under Organisation of Women in International Trade Zimbabwe Chapter(OWIT). She is the President of OWIT ZIMBABWE Chapter..Tshengi has vast experience in trade facilitation having worked extensively forthe Department of Customs and Excise in Zimbabwe for more than twenty years.While in Customs she worked at various border posts including the mainAirports of Zimbabwe facilitating trade within the legal frame work. This gave hera rare opportunity to interface with a lot of Women in Cross Border Trade andbuild in her an unlikely activist who is now an advocate of the trade and genderagenda. Her thorough knowledge on Customs and Border Management hasenabled her to have an analytic mind on trade facilitation visa vis women inregional and international trade.After Customs, Tshengi joined the private sector primarily the logistic industry asthe Operations Director. She was appointed to be the Liason Person between theLogistic Industry and Customs Department which had become quasi governmententity now known as Zimbabwe Revenue Authority. She continued to excel in thatcapacity joining the Board of Professional Clearing and Forwarding and theZimbabwe International Trade Fair as part of the Advisory Committee.Her business acumen has enabled her to sit in various boards of differentsuccessful entities. As an eloquent speaker, Tshengi has been able to negotiate,initiate dialogue on difficult topics endearing herself to different communitiesobtaining within society.She is the authentic voice of the marginalized and was part of the first UNWorking Group on Discrimination against Women and Girls held in Addis Ababain November 2019 after participating in Global Governance Programme onServices in Trade and SDGs held at Robert Schuman Centre of Advanced Studiesin Florence Italy.

As the Past President of Rotary Club of Bulawayo, she championed theconstruction of the Waiting Mothers Shelter for Women in rural Lupane, reducingmaternal deaths as well as infant mortality the shelter continues to serve thatpurpose.Tshengi is an accomplished writer with two successful books in her stable. Herdebut novella ‘Who will Feed my Birds ?’ was shortlisted in the prestigiousNational Arts Merit Awards while her second book ‘Red Soils’ is cited in the 2017Zambezia Journal of the University of Zimbabwe.Tshengi is a columnist of the national business weekly, the Herald. She holds aMasters in Business Administration and has received training with UNCTAD andInstitute of Economic Development Programs on Making Africa Continent FreeTrade Agreement Work, Border Management and Trade and Gender Linkages.

Judith is a trade expert at the African Trade Policy Centre (which is housed at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa). She helps to ... Read more

Judith is a trade expert at the African Trade Policy Centre (which is housed at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa). She helps to coordinate the development of AfCFTA implementation strategies as well as supporting the design and implementation of selected interventions among African countries and regions. She has previously worked at Southern and Eastern Africa Trade, Information and Negotiations Institute, helping to support lobby efforts for East African Community regional integration, and lent her expertise to trade and consultancy departments in designing investment policy diagnostics for Uganda and Tanzania.

Mary Heather is the Program Director responsible for TFO Canada’s programs s in Africa, which includes planning and implementation, donor ... Read more

Mary Heather is the Program Director responsible for TFO Canada’s programs s in Africa, which includes planning and implementation, donor communications and partnership management.
Mary Heather brings more than 20 years of management experience in the development sector where she contributed to skills development and sustainable and inclusive livelihoods for women, men and youth. She has worked with numerous leading non-profits and in the higher education sector both in Canada and overseas and created synergies by building multi-stakeholder alliances and being a gender equality champion. Mary Heather has lived in India, Sri Lanka and Indonesia. She holds an MA in International Development from the Norman Patterson School of International Affairs, Ottawa.