Three hundred women entrepreneurs will develop their business skills at a Business Women Academy within an initiative promoted by the Organizations for the Development of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (ODIMM) with financial support from the European Union.

In the launch, ODIMM director Iulia Iabanji said the goal of the project is to create a continuous training system for women entrepreneurs and to promote their economic and social empowerment, IPN reports.

The Business Women Academy will support the women entrepreneurs who run businesses started about a year ago and who are now at the moment when stagnation is usually witnessed. Iulia Iabanji said the Academy will help women who want to increase turnover or want to find out why their business does not expand.

“All our polls show that in one-two years after the launch, a business reaches stagnation and the women are looking for solutions. The Business Women Academy will provide assistance by a special training program for these women. I think we will find solutions because the women entrepreneurs have a lot of potential,” stated the ODIMM director, noting that the Academy will also train women how to manage export-oriented businesses, while ten businesswomen will get by a grant in this regard.

EU Ambassador to Moldova Pirkka Tapiola said that working for a number of years in Moldova, he convinced himself that the women here are an incredible resource for developing the country and need luck in business because they have the necessary capacities to develop businesses. “I’m very optimistic about this country because I know that you are not here like audience only, while a large part of the women entrepreneurs present here already started interesting businesses with the help of grants provided by the EU. I’m glad that we support this project to create an Academy because women have very big creativity in business, but this is not sufficiently developed,” said the diplomat, adding the involvement of women in business in a developing world is important.