Advocacy

As a registered international not-for-profit foundation, the main purpose of the WBII is to support women to start and run their own businesses. Our tagline ‘Work-Meet-Succeed’ includes the idea that by getting together and supporting each other, we will be able to have a prosperous business. Because many of us are internationals, we realize that entrepreneurship is often one of the best ways we have to use our knowledge and skills, while earning a living and contributing to society in a foreign country. For many women in less prosperous countries, however, entrepreneurship is often the only way they have to put bread on the table.

Over the past few years, our initial purpose has been expanded to include advocacy for women entrepreneurship. Even though many women may want to have a business of their own, we recognized they are not always able to get started, and that there are still many areas that are holding them back from having their own business. These areas may include: Access to education and training; access to networks and finance; traditions, laws and policies; and work-life balance, among others. By coming together to recognize these issues, and by speaking out, including with other organizations, more women will have the ability and resources necessary to start and run a successful business, new ideas and products will be brought to the market, and our society will prosper.

Through our memberships in the Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) and the Nederlandse Vrouwenraad (NVR), WBII is connected with advocacy organizations at the Dutch, European, and international levels. Thanks to these connections, we are able to keep in touch with others about what is happening on this topic, and how we can contribute. In this section, and in solidarity with women entrepreneurs around the world, we highlight our advocacy activities, which we consider to be a fundamental part of our programme.

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