The WEgate Community Council members met on April 12, 2021, to discuss the advocacy and representation milestones for 2021, updates on WEgate activities for 2021, and consultation on the launch of the first WEgate Thematic groups.

The Council is the steering group of the WEgate Community, established by and relating to the WEgate initiative and joined by the key stakeholders operating in different fields of women entrepreneurship support. The WEgate Community council will increase the impact of the WEgate community by brining together the different actors in co-creating a refreshed, more dynamic and vibrant community of women entrepreneurs.

Brief update on the WEgate activities for 2021 was made, providing WEgate – in a nutshell as one-stop shop for Women entrepreneurship with main focus on following activities for 2021: WEgate Annual summit, Peer-learning activities: webinar on networking practiced (19th May), WED webinar (19th November), access to finance webinars and WEgate CSO empowerment academy (10th &11th   June). The members discussed an advocacy and representation plan, with a potential focus on the 2021 milestones.

Within the community, thematic groups will be formed soon to work on developing recommendations for improving conditions in specific WE areas. The first working thematic group will focus on WE policy, which will provide information for gender-lens policymaking and budgeting for economic growth, levers, and mechanics.

Meet the Council members, WEgate’s co-creators and collaborators, representing reputed organisations from the women entrepreneurship ecosystem and women empowerment champions in their own right: