Global trade experts enlighten, empower 50m women through BTN initiative

By Zainab Iwayemi

• Partners with global firms as a White House Initiative

With the commencement of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), trade experts around the globe have converged to chart ways on how to dominate the trading industry globally through a network of borderless traders.

The Borderless Trade Network has trained women on the business and emotional needs required in the business transition during its two-day virtual edition of the Borderless Trade salon series tagged, “Women in business breakfast meeting”, which is designed for women to progress in the international business world.

The event saw women across the world empowered with various skills required to enable them excel in their various careers in relation to the international market. Furthermore, women in attendant from all across the world were enlightened on the skills needed in the trading industry; the AfCFTA establishment protocols; application of the business models to their businesses and all important factors to become a modern day business woman as well as also up-scaling their businesses to global levels.

Olori Boye-Ajayi, president of the Borderless Trade Network (BTN), and a global trading expert, noted that it is important more women are encouraged into the trade industry, adding that partnership with other organisations who share similar objectives was pertinent for the success of the initiative.

“Research has shown us that there is only 1 in 4 women in the export industry and that is the gap we are trying to bridge. We want women to be at equal competitive levels and we have to help ourselves. The partnership with The Academy of Women Entrepreneurs (AWE) was very paramount due to the fact that it is a White House initiative with the main aim of empowering 50 million women both financially and economically by year 2025,” she said.

Olori Boye-Ajayi further revealed that the programme will run for a period of six months with thoughtfully organized activities that will impact every woman in business or transition inside the borderless trade network.

Furthermore, she revealed that the group has in store, other projects that focus on emancipating women, The “Zero to Trade” initiative which is a transformative training to drastically improve lives of women in the Export Community Agency (ECA),” She said.

The virtual assembly also saw speakers such as Kola Awe, Shade Bembatoum-Young, Dorothy Ogbutor and Babajide Sodipo in attendance.