It has been proven the economic empowerment of women benefits the whole nation and this is the motive behind a project jointly undertaken by the Samoa Victim Support Group and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific (UNESCAP).

The aim is to strengthen the business skills of nofotane women entrepreneurs.

The SVSG/ESCAP Nofotane Business Development Training will economically empower 100 current or aspiring Nofotane woman entrepreneurs from remote or rural areas of Samoa, by providing them with critical skills for business sustainability.

The Project is supported by ESCAP’s Catalysing Women’s Entrepreneurship (CWE) programme, funded by Global Affairs Canada, as part of the programme’s efforts to enhance the economic empowerment of rural and remote indigenous women entrepreneurs.

The Project began in November 2023 and will go on for six months.

To achieve this goal, the Project will develop and pilot three business modules in the priority areas critical to Nofotane women operating micro-businesses which includes financial literacy, accessing finance, marketing and quality control.

There will be a two-day workshop for 20 women in Savaii and 80 women in Upolu to deliver the modules.

Six women will be given seed funding of US$500 each to expand their existing small businesses or open up a new small business making Nofotane products.

The six awardees of the seed funding will also get mentorship and coaching.

According to a statement by SVSG, the progress of the nofotane women highlights the organisation’s commitment to the prevention of violence through economic empowerment.  

“The Project also supports ESCAP’s work to break down barriers experienced by women entrepreneurs in establishing, managing and developing an enterprise,” said SVSG.

“Furthermore, the Project is aligned with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals of No Poverty, Gender Equality, Quality Education, Decent Work and Economic Growth, and Reduced Inequalities.”

According to SVSG President Siliniu Lina Chang, the initiation of the partnership with ESCAP to support the provision of business skills training to economically empower women under the Nofotane Program, is timely and relevant and will sustain the small businesses established by women survivors of violence in remote areas of Samoa.