Jinja ready to host PSFU Women’s Day Katale starting Friday.
Hundreds of businesses are set to showcase their trade and hustle at the 2024 Private Sector Foundation Uganda (PSFU) Women’s Day Katale, to be held at the Dam Waters Rugby Ground in Jinja from Friday, March 15th to Sunday, March 17th.
Speaking at the pre-Katale press briefing held in Jinja on Wednesday morning, Mr Apollo Muyanja Mbazzira, the PSFU Lead Firms Structure (LFS) project director said that this year’s Katale has seen an over subscription with more than 250 businesses already shortlisted to exhibit.
Muyanja tied these numbers to the tangible business benefits that past participants achieved from the previous Katale editions.
“The Women’s Day Katale aims to give an opportunity to women to learn, grow and prosper in business. The first Katale was in Luweero in 2022 and had over 100 exhibitors while the second one was hosted in Kampala in 2023 and attracted more than 250 participants. In both editions, participants went home with good revenues from sales in addition to meaningful connections with other accomplished women entrepreneurs, mentors, and industry experts. All these fostered collaboration and professional development for participants,” Muyanja explained.
Aligned with International Women’s Day celebrations, the Katale is an annual event that acknowledges the significant contributions and potential of women and girls as entrepreneurs. It serves as a platform for young individuals to network, connect with potential customers, and expand their customer base.
During the Katale, women and girl entrepreneurs exhibit their products and services at no cost, engage in networking activities, acquire marketing skills, and have the chance to sell their products directly to the audience during the exhibition.
Ms. Fazila Kawuma, the Deputy Mayor of Jinja City, noted that they are ready to host the event and urged women to seize the opportunity to boost their businesses.
“I urge women to actively engage in economic activities. This is crucial for our economic development, considering our region has had persistent challenges of poverty,” she said.
“As women, we possess the capacity to engage in various economic endeavors and improve our financial status. Leveraging our planning abilities and innovative ideas, we can form groups to benefit from such programs,” she said.
On her part, Katali Loy, District Women Representative of Jinja District expressed optimism that Katale would be a springboard to help cure ills such as difficulty to access finance, unfair taxation and limited business management skills that bedevil Women Entrepreneurs.