On the second day of Women’s Economic Empowerment Global Summit (WEEGS 2019), held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Mohamed Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, and Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammad Al Qasimi, wife of the Ruler of Sharjah and Chairperson of NAMA Women Advancement Establishment (NAMA) in Sharjah, a number of interesting workshops were delivered to support entrepreneurs and highlight more unconventional ways to empower women, socially and economically.

In the first workshop of the day titled How to Pitch for Impact Investment, Philip Harding, CEO of IMPACTJUNKIE, encouraged entrepreneurs and innovators to live their passion, purpose, and dream. During his session he offered valuable insights into unleashing the power of capital for good and how to drive businesses to be more impact-focused.

The Mind Hack

Maria Haggo, Founder & CEO, Found8, conducted this workshop to help attendees identify their belief systems and understand what holds them back in life and in business. The session underlined the importance of a transformative shift for creating an abundant mindset that stimulates growth.

“It is important to replace your existing belief systems with new ones and find a formula that works best for you. Also, re-train your brain with exercises like affirmation and writing down short- and long-term goals, to accelerate your journey to success and the life that you aspire,” she said.

The Feminine Economy and Social Media in Business

In The Feminine Economy workshop, Anna Roberts, Communications Educator and Award-Winning Broadcaster, explored how women can enable growth and create value in a globalised economy. She stressed the world needs to develop the concepts of partnership, which economic systems have not been able to translate into a reality that supports growth and development.

She said, “The workshop was about sharing with women participants a new way of doing business which focusses on creating value for the society beyond the traditional business metrics.”

Ahlam Albannai from Badiri, held an engaging discussion with participations on ways of using social media to bridge gaps between the organisation and its clients. In the discussion The Role of Social Media in Supporting Businesses she stressed on the importance of social media platforms in marketing products and raising brand awareness.

In the South Africa Advancing Preferential Procurement for Women-Owned Enterprises workshop, Ayanda Mvimbi from UN Women showcased the international organisation’s work in promoting gender-responsive procurement in South Africa. It also highlighted achievements, challenges, and lessons learnt in the process.

In another workshop, titled Making Merit Count for Women, Dr Savita Kumra from the American University of Sharjah, detailed the concept of merit – what it is, how it works, and what it is supposed to deliver, while during a workshop Women & Social Entrepreneurship, Aisha Hareb, Social Innovation Pioneer at Badiri explained how social entrepreneurship is shaping the global economy today and identified ways of making a meaningful impact by highlighting best practices of local and international social enterprises.

Women in cybersecurity, sports, and wellbeing

Sharjah E-government held a workshop titled ‘Cybersecurity’ during which the department raised awareness about the risks associated with virtual crime. Meanwhile, the ‘Opportunities for women in entrepreneurship’ workshop presented by Hamid Al Ali, Trainer & Business Consultant at Family Development Center, focused on the journey of an entrepreneur and identify the path that one must follow to avoid mistakes. He also shared tips on deciding the ways and opportune time to become self-employed and steps to write the first draft of the plan.

In an interesting workshop titled Women’s Economic Empowerment – Economics in the Sports Field, Dr Ahmad Al Sharif from Sharjah Women’s Sports, emphasised the need to adopt modern sports management concepts to achieve competitive advantage in business. During Healthy Working Women Panel and Sajaya Youth Panel, The Sajaya Young Ladies of Sharjah discussed the role of youth organisations as change-makers.

Local Government Championing Preferential Procurement: Lessons We are Learning – SAMCO government partner by Ayanda Mvimbi from UN Women used the case study of UN Women’s partnership with South Africa’s Amathole District Municipality and German-based GIZ to highlight achievements, lessons, and challenges in gender-responsive procurement.