Dubai, UAE – United Arab Emirates on Sunday allocated $5 million to a $50 million fund launched Sunday ahead of the conference to help female entrepreneurs in developing countries to export more using the opportunities offered by the digital economy.
The allocation was announced by Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade and Chair of the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference 2024 which begins in Dubai on February 26.
“The WTO’s Women Exporters In Digital Economy Fund allows us to celebrate the invaluable contribution of women entrepreneurs and women-led businesses around the world and to recognize the critical role they play in driving economic growth,” the minister said.
Ahead of the conference, Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala unveiled $50 million initiative to empower female entrepreneurs in developing countries.
The new fund aims to unlock the power of the digital economy, helping women exporters overcome financing hurdles and capture untapped opportunities.
“This initiative embodies our collective commitment to empowering women,” Okonjo-Iweala declared. “It’s a crucial step towards addressing the financing gap faced by women entrepreneurs, who are key drivers of economic growth and development.”
It’s noteworthy that H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs, yesterday announced that the UAE will provide a US$10 million grant to support a number of key initiatives of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), whose 13th Ministerial Conference is being hosted and chaired by the UAE in Abu Dhabi from 26th-29th February.
Sheikh Abdullah said that the grant to be provided by the UAE will be allocated to the Fisheries Funding Mechanism, the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF), and the Women Exporters in the Digital Economy (WEIDE) Fund that will be launched during MC13.
Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed expressed his pride that the UAE is hosting the WTO’s MC13, the organization’s highest decision-making body, and welcomed all leaders, ministers and representatives of the 166 Member States to Abu Dhabi for crucial negotiations on key trade issues and discussions on how to enhance and modernize the rules of the global trading system.