TIRANA, Oct 30 /ATA/ Minister of Economy and Innovation Delina Ibrahimaj took part in the 4th edition of the Regional Conference on Women Entrepreneurs and B2B Meetings, entitled “SHE RISES”, held in Pristina.
The event was also attended by Kosovo President Justina Shiroka-Pula.
Alongside Minister Ibrahimaj, the ministerial panel on “Women’s Entrepreneurship in Regional Economic Cooperation” featured Mimoza Kusari-Lila, Kosovo’s Minister of Industry, Entrepreneurship, Trade and Innovation, and Besar Durmishi, North Macedonia’s Minister of Economy and Labour.
Discussions focused on policies to support women in entrepreneurship, the role of technology in creating new economic opportunities and the importance of cooperation among countries across the region.
Referring to Albania’s policies to support women and girls in entrepreneurship, Ibrahimaj highlighted the start-up funding scheme, under which applications submitted by women and girls receive additional points during the evaluation process. According to the minister, this measure has helped increase the share of funding awarded to women-led businesses.
“Last year, 42% of the funding allocated to start-ups went to businesses led by women and girls, up from around 28–30% in the scheme’s early years,” the minister said.
The minister said Albania ranks first in the region in terms of the proportion of women participating in the labour market, at 62%. However, she noted that women account for 31–31.5% of business administrators, a figure broadly in line with the EU average but one that has remained unchanged for several years. Ibrahimaj stressed that this highlighted the need for further measures to encourage women to establish and manage businesses.
According to Ibrahimaj, technology and innovation can play an important role in this process by enabling women to develop their economic activities beyond the main economic centres.
Ibrahimaj proposed establishing a regional forum for women entrepreneurs to strengthen cross-border cooperation, build on the Regional Common Market initiatives and develop a concrete action plan to support women-led businesses within the next two months.
Ibrahimaj highlighted the importance of data and technology in identifying business opportunities, facilitating information exchange and strengthening trade ties among women entrepreneurs across the region. The “SHE RISES” conference aims to connect women entrepreneurs, encourage the sharing of experiences and foster new business partnerships.
/sm/
