Composite screenshot of African women entrepreneurs from YouTube video,’ Women Beyond Borders Docu-series‘ by Zuba Network. Fair use.
Africa is renowned for its highly entrepreneurial women, having the world's highest proportion of female entrepreneurs. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, more than a quarter of all businesses on the continent are either started or run by women.
In a documentary on YouTube entitled “Women Beyond Borders Docu-series,” Ugandan journalist Nila Yasmin Faisal (who goes by Nila Yasmin) interviewed several African women entrepreneurs across the continent. The documentary features five Ugandan entrepreneurs and one from Ethiopia.
In an interview with Global Voices, Yasmin shares her motivation for interviewing these remarkable women and explains why she believes African women entrepreneurs have the power to drive intra-African trade and unlock economic opportunities.
Nila Yasmin Faisal. Photo provided by Nila Yasmin Faisal, used with permission.
Zita Zage (ZZ): Tell us about yourself and what you do.
Nila Yasmin (NY): I am a Ugandan media entrepreneur, journalist, documentary producer and former radio news anchor. As a producer, I have worked on several projects for global media brands such as CNN and Euronews. Most notably, I have had the honor of producing over 90 documentaries stories for CNN in Uganda, Mauritius, Kenya, Rwanda, and Tanzania, showcasing the continent's innovations, entrepreneurship, culture, and sports. In 2019, I was awarded the APO Group African Women in Media Award and got a nomination for the 2021 Digital Equality Award.
ZZ: What led you to make this documentary about African women entrepreneurs?
NY: My inspiration for creating this documentary series stems from my work on productions related to intra-African trade, particularly around the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). While producing these documentaries, I noticed that the people we were mostly talking to were from large corporations because they were the ones actively taking part in exports. I began to wonder if this enormous opportunity is beneficial only to big corporations. And when you look at these corporations, they are predominantly owned by men.
In contrast, when you consider the statistics about the entrepreneurial spirit of African women, a gap becomes evident. Africa has been ranked as the region with the highest number of women entrepreneurs globally. Yet, many lack adequate support to grow their businesses.
Through my interactions with women entrepreneurs, I founded Zuba Network, which amplifies the voices and initiatives of women across Africa. I realised that oftentimes when we speak to these women, they hardly know what the AfCFTA is, how it benefits them and what they need to do to trade under it.
ZZ: What are some of the challenges the women entrepreneurs you interviewed face?
NY: The women pointed out quite a number of challenges that hinder their participation in cross-border trade. Chief among these is limited access to finance, which constrains their growth and sustainability. They also face restricted access to market information, inadequate skills, high internet and digitization costs, and insufficient awareness about the AfCFTA requirements. Infrastructure issues, such as high cost of transportation, high cost of warehouses, and also stiff competition from imported goods, particularly from countries like China, further negatively impact their competitiveness. But you notice that most of these are the usual challenges women entrepreneurs face daily, so the question is, how do we ensure they do not continue to carry through limiting women’s participation in AfCFTA?
I understand several strategies, protocols, and initiatives have been developed. For example, the Protocol on Women and Youth in Trade, Protocol on Trade in Goods and Services, and the Africa Commodity Strategy to support women in value addition and manufacturing — but swift implementation of these is essential to enable women entrepreneurs to equitably participate and thrive under this single market.
ZZ: Has your platform, Zuba Network, been effective in helping them find solutions to these challenges? Do you have a success story to share?
Zuba Network is supporting women entrepreneurs by giving them a platform to share their voices and showcase their initiatives. In so doing, we help bring them closer to opportunities for growth, including market expansion, developing brand authority, and strategic partnerships. Some women have successfully used this media content in applications for grants or investments. By amplifying the voices of women entrepreneurs, we hope to influence policy positively, pushing for supportive policies that empower women socially and economically. This, in turn, allows them to contribute meaningfully to Africa’s broader development.
ZZ: In the video, Shamirah Kimbugwe mentioned that the AfCFTA has some of the best objectives seen on any regional agreement on the continent. Do you agree? What are these objectives?
NY: I agree completely. When you compare the AfCFTA to other regional agreements like the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) or Southern African Development Community (SADC)'s Economic Partnership Agreement, it's clear that these agreements are often fragmented and limited to specific regions. The AfCFTA, however, offers a unified agreement, bringing together people across the continent. We are talking about a market potential of over 1.4 billion people, free movement of goods, services, investment, etc. This union definitely has the capacity to catapult the social, and economic growth of the continent as a whole. Also, different protocols, such as the rules of origin, have been put in place to facilitate seamless trade. For example, if a product satisfies the rules of origin in Kenya, it is automatically valid for all African countries. Streamlining these processes makes it easier for people to engage in cross-border trade. I agree with Shamirah, but we still need to see how all these will translate into actionable steps that drive the success of the agreement.
ZZ: What benefits does the AfCFTA offer African entrepreneurs, especially women entrepreneurs?
NY: The first is access to a market of over 1.4 billion people. This means that an entrepreneur in Uganda selling shea butter can reach customers across the 54 African countries that ratified the agreement, and with increased market exposure comes more revenue. I believe the agreement will also likely encourage innovation through positive competition because you are no longer just competing with a few businesses in your little corner; this will definitely push entrepreneurs out of their comfort zones to create products that can compete across diverse markets.
Additionally, the AfCFTA will create more supply value chain linkages, which will give women access to things like raw materials across the continent. For instance, an entrepreneur in Uganda will be able to source raw shea butter from South Africa, manufacture their products in Uganda, and sell them throughout Africa.
ZZ: Why do you believe African women entrepreneurs have the power to drive intra-African trade and unlock economic opportunities?
NY: Women dominate informal cross-border trade, they account for 70 percent of informal cross-border trade. This informal trade comes with its own challenges, such as loss of revenue, bribery, and sexual harassment at borders. Despite these issues, these women persist. The women featured in Women Beyond Borders exemplify the strength of African women entrepreneurs: they are strong, resilient, innovative, and aspirational. They don’t back down in the face of challenges; they push forward. What is needed now is to meet them halfway through better policies, particularly their implementation, and by providing affordable financial support, technological and digital support, market access, and information. The AfCFTA offers solutions to some of the challenges these women face.
A 2013 World Bank study revealed that women often lack access to essential trader networks and critical information, and they also face significant transportation challenges. As Nila mentioned, if the AfTCA effectively addresses these obstacles, women like Juliet Susime, Immy Julie Musoke Nakyeyune, Shamirah Kimbugwe, Aluma Betti, Lydia Nakayenze-Schubert, and Jennet Lemma could realise their full economic potential.
