Events

The Executive Director of CAWEE Met Ambassador Ervin J. Massinga
 
The Executive Director of CAWEE, Nigest Haile (Dr.) met H. E. Ervin J. Massinga, US Ambassador to Ethiopia, at his Office on January 11, 2024. The meeting was to introduce CAWEE and its activities to the Ambassador, where CAWEE’s current engagement areas were briefly presented by Nigest, underlining the Center’s engagement in the promotion  & facilitation of the AfCFTA, African women taking the lead, mentioning CAWEE’s coming soon e-commerce platform: (https://abyssinia4intraafricantrade.com/). Briefing was also provided on CAWEE’s existing projects that are supported by the US State Department & the US Embassy in Ethiopia: AWEP (African Women’s Entrepreneurship Program) and AWE (Academy for Women Entrepreneurs) program. 
 
Nigest further explained on CAWEE’s presence beyond Ethiopia, currently operating in Nairobi, Kenya & coming soon in Lome, Togo as well as its Office in the US that is under establishment and the Office in Germany coming soon, where she highlighted to the Ambassador the focus on CAWEE’s US Office that is working to strengthen the bilateral trade between Ethiopia and the US in supporting Ethiopian Women Exporters where the Ethiopian Embassy in Washington DC & Ethiopian Mission in New York are fully supporting this initiative.
 
During the meeting, Nigest highlighted her requests to the Ambassador on specific areas of support, where Ambassador Ervin underlined his full commitment to support CAWEE, Ethiopian women exporters and CAWEE’s initiative in the US in strengthening the bilateral trade between the US and Ethiopia, in empowering Ethiopian women exporters.

CAWEE wishes you all a blessed Christmas celebration.

CAWEE Organized Its 2022 GA Meeting at Samor Flower Farm
CAWEE conducted its 2022 General Assembly (GA) meeting at Samor Flower Farm, Sululta, Oromia Region, Ethiopia  December 30, 2023. Forty one (37 women and 4 men) participants including CAWEE Members, Corporate Members and Partners took part.
 
Mrs. Samrawit Moges, Owner of Samor Flower Farm & CAWEE’s pioneer member welcomed participants, where she expressed her gratitude in hosting the GA at her farm and extended heartfelt thanks to CAWEE for choosing Samor Flower Farm as a meeting venue.
 
The GA meeting focused on presentation and approval of CAWEE’s 2022 Performance Report, CAWEE’s 2022 External Auditors Report, CAWEE’s 2023 Work Plan & Budget. Members had the opportunity to provide their opinions and reflections, where the GA also approved new membership of 10 companies and the elected its Board members.
Led by Mr. Eyasu Worku, Farm Manager, Samor Flower Farm, participants had the privilege of visiting the farm where all enjoyed the variety and beauty of flowers at the farm. The GA was concluded with a closing remark delivered by Mrs. Dehab Mesfin, Owner of Diamond Coffee and CAWEE Board Member, where she expressed her gratitude to Mrs. Samrawit and to all the sponsors for their invaluable support.
The Executive Director of CAWEE extended her sincere appreciation to Samor Flower Farm, Technostyle, Ride, Muya Ethiopia & TOMOCA for their generous sponsorship, as well as to its members for their continued support.
.CAWEE Mesirat Project Networking & Cross Fertilization Event

CAWEE, as part of the Mesirat Project, organized Networking & Cross Fertilization Event, December 18, 2023, experience sharing platform at Radisson Blu Hotel, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

At the event, 43 participants (37 women & 7 men) took part, including Mesirat’s Project Office Team, Consortium Partners, project participants and esteemed CAWEE members.

The event was officially opened with a brief remark delivered by Dr. Nigest Haile, Executive Director of CAWEE, where brief presentation on the Mesirat Project was delivered by Saba Zewdu, Regional Project Manager at Gebeya for Mesirat Project.

At the panel organized, the networking & cross fertilization event discussion highlighted and discussed on the theme “Successful Business Journeys of Female Business Leaders, Challenges they Faced & How they overcome that”.

The panel had four esteemed panelists: Mrs. Samrawit Fikru (Founder and CEO of Ride & Co-Founder of Tereta FM 96.7 Radio), Mrs. Azeb Asefa (Founder & CEO of Axis & Yeblu Foods), Ms. Beza Ayalew (Founder and CEO at Be-Singularity) and Mrs. Ararat Tamirat (Founder & CEO at Tuba by Ararat), where they shared their remarkable business journeys, the challenges they faced & the strategies they used to overcome the challenges. The event was participatory, where participants of the event benefited from the invaluable experience & advice of the panelists.

The event was officially closed by Saba Zewdu, in appreciating CAWEE’s great work and thanking all participants of the event. 

CAWEE Took Part at EEDs Panel Discussion
CAWEE’s Executive Director, took part in a panel discussion which is part of the Manufacturing Enterprises Exhibition & Bazaar organized by Ethiopian Enterprise Development (EED), December 15, 2023, at Skylight Hotel, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia where over 30 participants from different Government offices and the private sector took part.
The panel focussed in discussing the theme: “The Role of Manufacturing Small & Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the Development of Industrialization”, which was moderated by H.E. Melaku Alebel, Minister, Ministry of Industry, where Dr. Nigest Haile, Executive Director, CAWEE; Dr. Yohanes Ayalew, President, Development Bank of Ethiopia; Dr. Alebachew Nigusse, Director, EED and Mr. Ayesheshum Tilahun, Private Manufacturer of Engineering Products were the panelists.
The panel focused on discussing the role Manufacturing SMEs are playing in the  country’s economic development, their current status, the challenges they are facing, exploring best practices of other countries and what needs to be done for the way forward. Participants were given opportunities to provide their reflections and to ask questions, where the panel discussion was very interactive and participatory. 
In wrapping-up the panel discussion, the Moderator of the panel, H.E. Melaku, highlighted the core take-aways for the way forward, where he underlined the importance of partnerships between the Government, the private sector and the concerned ones to take the Manufacturing SMEs Sector to the next level, the need for a vibrant and strong business associations to represent the sector, the need to expand financial outreach, etc. where he summarized the overall issue areas of concern that the panel was able to explore in strengthening the Manufacturing SMEs Sector in Ethiopia.

5th Breakfast Meeting of CAWEE & KAS

 

CAWEE in partnership with Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) organizes a series of breakfast meetings. The 5th breakfast meeting took place on Saturday, December 2, 2023, at the Sheraton Addis Hotel, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The breakfast meeting focused on discussing the theme “Social Enterprises in Ethiopia: Opportunities and Challenges.” 

 

The meeting was officially opened by Mr. Lukas Kupfernagel, Country Director, KAS Office Ethiopia/African Union, where he thanked the panelists, participants and CAWEE for being a social agent.

 

Present at the meeting were 43 (29 females and 14 males) invited guests from the private sector, social enterprises, development partners and CAWEE members.

 

The meeting had three panelists (Mr. Kibret Abebe, President of Social Enterprises Ethiopia & Founder and CEO of Tebita Ambulance; Mrs. Serawit “Cherry” Teketel Friedmeyer, Co-Founder of Ellilta International and Dr. Hassen Hussien, CEO of the Entrepreneurship Development Institution, where they shared their opinions and involvements under the theme for discussion. The meeting was moderated by Dr. Nigest Haile, Executive Director of CAWEE.

 

The panel aimed at identifying the underlying challenges and opportunities in the emerging Ethiopian social enterprises ecosystem; as such enterprises play a pivotal role as agents of social and economic transformation in the country. The meeting was very engaging, where participants provided their reflections and opinions.

 

 

The breakfast meeting served as a platform for meaningful discussion about the pressing issue faced by social enterprises in Ethiopia. It also provided opportunities to explore potential solutions for the way forward.

Celebrating Global Entrepreneurs Week at the US Embassy
CAWEE in collaboration with the US Embassy, organized an engaging event in which the Academy for Women Entrepreneurs (AWE) program graduates exhibited their products in celebrating the Global Entrepreneurs Week at the US Embassy compound on November 17, 2023. The event featured products of 23 companies, covering diverse sectors. The AWE program is financially and technically supported by the Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs of the US Department of State and the US Embassy Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
In representing the Executive Director of CAWEE, Nigest Haile (Dr.), Mr. Solomon Wole, AWE Program Facilitator, officially opened the event with welcoming remarks. Participants that were able to showcase their products had the opportunity to promote their businesses, to network and sell their products to the Embassy staff and invited guests. During the event, His Excellency Mr. Ervin Massinga, Ambassador of the United States to Ethiopia, graced the occasion with his presence and visited each company’s booth.
 
Throughout the event, participants were able to share each other’s business journey and highlighted the tangible benefits gained from the AWE program. The event, beyond exhibiting products, served as a platform for meaningful connections, knowledge exchange, experience sharing and useful engagements.
CAWEE Members are Taking Part at the IATF2023
The third edition of the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2023) is jointly organized by the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) in collaboration with the AUC & the AfCFTA Secretariat, November 9-15, 2023 in Cairo, Egypt.
IATF2023 is expected to be a unique and valuable platform for businesses to access an integrated African market of over 1.3 billion people with a GDP of over US3.5 trillion expected to be created under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

With the generous support secured from GIZ AU AfCFTA Support Office, eight CAWEE members ( Ande Mamma, Elilta Products, Entoto Beth Artisan,  Jerrocia Coffee,  Kedemt Coffee, Natural Leather, Samore Flower and Yewebdar Crafts) are taking part at the IATF2023.

During the first day of the event, November 9, 2023, H.E. Hassen Ebrahim, Ambassador of Ethiopia to Egypt and Libya visited the exhibition stand of CAWEE members. The Ambassador was impressed by the variety and quality of the products, where he appreciated the efforts of the companies and encouraged them all to work hard to benefit from the African trading opportunities. H.E. Ambassador Hassen appreciated CAWEE for all its efforts in bringing such a delegation of women exporters to exhibit their products in representing Ethiopia.

CAWEE’s Executive Director Met Ethiopian Ambassador in Egypt

 

The Executive Director of CAWEE, Nigest Haile (Dr.) met H. E. Hassen Ibrahim, Extraordinary & Plenipotentiary Ambassador to Egypt and Libya at the Ethiopian Embassy in Cairo, Egypt. During the meeting, the Executive Director briefed the Ambassador and his Team on what CAWEE is doing, with a focus to the facilitation of the intra-African trade and the Ethiopian delegation of women exporters, that are exhibiting their products at the Intra-African Trade Fair in Cairo, November 9-15, 2023. The delegation’s participation is generously sponsored by the GIZ AU AfCFTA Support Office, which CAWEE is very grateful on that.. 

Trade facilitation between Ethiopia, Egypt and Libya was also discussed, where the Embassy in Cairo has availed itself to facilitate Ethiopian trade with those countries where it is agreed to collaborate and jointly work on that in engaging other concerned potential partners like the Ministry of Trade & Regional Integration, Addis Ababa Chamber of Commerce & Sectoral Associations and others. 

CAWEE & Afreximbank Team Met in Cairo
Leading a delegation of Ethiopian women exporters to take part at the Intra-African Trade Fair, November 9-15, 2023, the Executive Director of CAWEE met with the MANSA/Afreximbank Team, led by Mrs. Maureen MBA,  Head, MANSA Digital Initiative Team on November 7, 2023 in Cairo, Egypt.
 
The meeting focused on reviewing the status of the partnership of those organizations, following the MoU that CAWEE signed with Afreximbank in registering its members at the MANSA platform (https://www.mansaafrica.com/), where currently 19 CAWEE member companies are registered. The meeting reviewed progress made in bringing more companies and organizations on board (currently 12,330 on board), in making the platform more user friendly.
 
Briefing was also provided on the Pan-African Payment & Settlement System (PAPSS),  a cross-border, financial market infrastructure enabling payment transactions across Africa, where 11 Central Banks from 11 countries are already on board, of which Ethiopia is not part. Through trial transactions made in those countries, the PAPSS, that is instant payment with local currency, has already proved working and the MANSA Team is aggressively working to bring on board all African countries.
 
Potential partnership areas were also discussed at the Continental Event that CAWEE planned to organize in 2024 in Addis Ababa, where the MANSA Team has shown interest to partner with CAWEE, with a focus to bring on board women owned companies at the MANSA platform.

 

CAWEE’s Executive Director Met Ambassador Tesfaye in NY
The Executive Director of the Center for Accelerated Women’s Economic Empowerment (CAWEE) Nigest Haile (Dr.) met H. E. Ambassador Tesfaye Yilma, Permanent Representative to the UN Permanent Mission of Ethiopia at his office in New York (NY), October 26, 2023.
The meeting discussed on exploring partnership areas with a focus to organizing side event for 2024 during the UN General Assembly in NY. The issue of the discussion underlined the partnership in the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement, with a focus on creating strong partnership among the main actors, i.e. the Government (Ethiopian Mission in NY, Ministry of Trade & Regional Integration, Ethiopian Airlines/Ethiopian Cargo, Ethio-post, Telecommunications, etc.), the Private Sector (Chambers of Commerce, Private Banks, like – Enat Bank, Hibret Bank, Associations of Women in Business/Trade Promotion Organizations, etc.).
H.E. Ambassador Tesfaye was informed on the coming soon CAWEE’s e-commerce platform – https://abyssinia4intraafricantrade.com/, expected to be operational in few months’ time, where trail sales is expected to be operational, currently Ethiopia, Kenya & Rwanda being on board, over 150 women owned companies registered within this platform.
Ambassador Tesfaye appreciated what CAWEE has started working in the preparation for the implementation of the AfCFTA and he underlined that, the Ethiopian Mission in NY is anytime available to provide support in this respect.

Only 3 weeks left for the Intra-African Trade Fair 2023!

The Intra African Trade Fair 2023 will be held in Cairo, Egypt in just three weeks with the theme of 'Connecting African Markets' and it provides a unique platform for participating countries to draw the attention of international buyers and investors to their country's treasures. CAWEE will be represented by eight women-led exporting companies, which are AndE Mamma, Ellilta Products, Entoto Beth Artisan, Jeroccia Coffee, Kedemt Coffee, Natural Leather, Samore Flower, and Yobdar crafts.

For a more comprehensive understanding of the participant companies, please visit our social media channels where we feature one of the 8 companies every week!

Stay tuned for more updates!

Ethiopian Women in Coffee (WiC)/International Women’s Coffee Alliance (IWCA) Ethiopia Chapter hosted the 1st of its kind IWCA Convention 2023,  October 16-22, 2023 at Skylight Hotel, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
The Convention was officially opened by H.E. Dr. Ergoge Tesfaye, Minister, Ministry of Women & Social Affairs. Invited by WiC, the Executive Director of CAWEE took part at the opening of the Convention.
33 countries from all over the world are taking part at the Convention, where panel discussions, exhibition & origin trips are expected to take place.
Four CAWEE members (Dehab from Dehab Speciality Farm, Dagmawit from Kedemet Coffee, Heleanna from Moplaco & Mahalet from Jeroccia Coffee) that are also WiC members are taking part at this Convention.
At the planned Origin Trips, CAWEE’s two members, Dehab Speciality Farm & Moplaco are hosting trips to their farms, where about 15-20 international participants, in each of the farm visits, are expected to take part.

CAWEE Organized Appreciation/Networking Event

Being part of the Mesirat Project, CAWEE organized appreciation/networking event for GPMs & potential GPMs to connect them with successful women entrepreneurs to learn from their business journey, their experiences & challenges, on Tuesday, October 3, 2023, at Radisson Blu Hotel, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia where 42 participants (38 women & 4 men) took part.

Participants of the event were welcomed by Dr. Nigest Haile, Executive Director of CAWEE and Mrs. Helen Mulugeta, Projects Coordinator, provided general overview on the Mesirat project. Participants of the event had the opportunity to introduce themselves, their companies & their expectations.

At the event, panel discussion was organized where, Mrs. Dagmawit Abebe, Founder of Kedemt Coffee, Mrs. Dehab Mesfin, Founder of Diamond Coffee & Dehab Honey, Mrs. Samrawit Moges, Founder of Travel Ethiopia & Samore Flower and Ms. Samrawit Tarekegn, Founder of Mogzit were panelists. The panelists shared their business journey, the challenges they faced & how they were able to overcome those challenges in providing tips and advice to participants. During the brief plenary session, participants were able to ask questions, provide their opinions and refections.

The event was concluded with a closing remark delivered by Mr. Dawit Anbesu, Mesirat Project Lead Team member, where he appreciated & congratulated CAWEE in organising such a productive networking event and encouraged the GPMs to benefit most out of such events.

CAWEE wishes you all a blessed Meskel. Melkam Meskel!

CAWEE wishes you all a blessed Mawlid. Eid Mubarak!

CAWEE Took Part at UNGA Side Event in NY

The Executive Director of CAWEE Dr. Nigest Haile took part at a side event of the UN General Assembly in New York (NY), September 21, 2023, high-level call to action meeting, hosted by the Permanent Mission of Ethiopia to the United Nations, in collaboration with the UN Better Than Cash Alliance, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Generation Equality Forum, UN Capital Development Fund, Office of the UN Secretary-General’s Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development, UN Women, Women’s World Banking, Women’s Digital Financial Inclusion Advocacy Hub and the World Bank Group. 

This UNGA side event discussed the theme: Reaching Financial Equality for Women: Actions to Advance the SDGs, Leveraging Digital Finance Technologies. The event was officially opened with a keynote address delivered by H.E. Mr. Demeke Mekonnen, Deputy Prime Minister & Foreign Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE), where he highlighted the different efforts made so far & the Government’s continued initiatives, where he mentioned the establishment of Enat Bank and its services as one core component.

The panel discussion was moderated by Dr. Ruth Groen-Goodwin, Managing Director, United Nations Better Than Cash Alliance. Panelists were: Dr. Belete Molla, Minister of Innovation & Technology of the FDRE; Ms. Paula Ingabire, Minister of Information & Communications Technology & Innovation, Rwanda; Dr. Neil Cabiles, Assistant Secretary of the Department of Finance, Republic of the Philippines; Ms. Alicia Buenrostro, Permanent Representative of Mexico to the United Nations; Dr. Raden Siliwanti, Director for Multilateral Funding, Republic of Indonesia; Professor Ratna Sahay, National Council of Applied Economic Research, India  and Ms. Edem Wosornu, Director, Operations and Advocacy, UN OCHA.

The high-level call meeting highlighted core issue areas of concern to take the agenda of women’s digital financial inclusion to the next level, with commitments highlighted by the panelists. The event was closed with remarks delivered by Mary Ellen, Women’s World Banking President and CEO  and H.E. Tesfaye Yilma, Permanent Representative of the FDREto the United Nations.

CAWEE wishes you a blessed new year 2016. With gratitude for the good cooperation, we confidently start the New Year and look forward to working with you, as strong and supportive partners. Happy New Year!

Facilitating Logistics - Boosting Intra African Trade: African Women Taking the Lead


CAWEE in partnership with Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) organizes a series of breakfast meetings, where the 4th breakfast meeting took place on Saturday September 9, 2023 at Ramada Hotel, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The meeting had 4 panelist (Dagmawit Abebe, Founder & General Manager of Kedemt Coffee, Evance Rabare, Senior Program Manager at Africa 118, Tewodros Ayalew, Manager, Ecommerce Logistics Services at Ethiopian Airlines & Yontan Shiferaw, Head, Logistics & Transportation at Ethio-post), moderated by CAWEE’s Executive Director Dr. Nigest Haile. 

Present at the meeting were CAWEE members, representatives fromGIZ AU AfCFTA office, Hibret Bank, UNCDF, Itochu Corporation Ethiopia Office, Ethiopian Airlines and virtual participants from 8 African countries (Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe)where 39 participants (7 men and 32 women) took part.
The breakfast meeting focused on discussing the theme “Facilitating Logistics- Boosting Intra African Trade: African Women’s Taking the Lead”. Mr. Lukas Kupfernagel, Country Director, KAS Office Ethiopia/AU delivered his welcoming remarks to participants. Panelists discussed their respective organizations preparations and readiness in facilitating intra-African trade, where CAWEE demonstrated its coming soon Abyssinia E-commerce platform (https://abyssinia4intraafricantrade.com/).

AWE 3rd Cohort Experience Sharing Event

 

CAWEE organised the 3rd experience sharing event for the Academy for Women Entrepreneurs (AWE) program on September 1, 2023, at Radisson Blu Hotel, Addis Ababa. The AWE program is financially and technically supported by the Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs of the US Department of State and the US Embassy Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.


During this event, 47 participants (44 women and 3 men) took part. At this event, present from the US Embassy were: Mr. Stewart Davis, Cultural Affairs Officer, Jennifer Barstad, Cultural Affairs Officer & Mrs. Mihret Wube, Emerging Voices Coordinator, responsible for the AWE program.
 
At this event, a mini-exhibition was organized. where some of the AWE graduates were able to showcase their sample products and services. During the visit of the sample products, the Team from the US Embassy provided valuable advice and guidance to the exhibitors on how best they need to work in penetrating markets.

During the event, panel discussion was organised where Dagmawit Abebe from Kedemt Coffee, Dr. Bethel Dereje from Wecare Digital Health, Nejat Ahmed from Qela Coffee and Dr. Blen Fekade from Lifeline Addis, all of them AWE training graduates,  were speakers, they shared their amazing business journey, how they benefited from the AWE program and recommended areas of capacity building where CAWEE can be of continued help.


The event was concluded with a closing remark delivered by Mr. Stewart Davis, where he appreciated and encouraged each and every once that were AWE graduates.

CAWEE's High Level Meeting with Former PM of Ethiopia

CAWEE organized a high level dinner meeting, August 26, 2023 at Radisson Blu Hotel, Addis Ababa, where its Champion in implementing the AfCFTA, Excellency Hallemariam Desalegn, former Prime Minister of Ethiopia, was the Chief Guest. Present as panelists were Mme. Awa Ndiaye - UN Women Representative in Ethiopia, Liaison for the AUC & ECA and Dr. Giuseppe Scuto - Program Manager, GIZ AU AfCFTA Support Office. 

Present at the high level meeting were Members of Parliament, from the Trade, Tourism & Investment Standing Committee, former First Lady of Ethiopia, Ambassadors of Japan & Ireland, representatives from the Embassy of Canada & UK, UN Women Country Director and other dignitaries.  

The theme of the high level meeting focused on "Boosting Intra-African Trade: African Women Taking the Lead",  where through a panel and discussion, the event explored the challenges that women exporters face, recommendations on how best women exporters need to be supported and the need for joint partnerships among the concerned ones to facilitate intra-African Trade, African women taking the lead.