Identification of Economic Opportunities for Women’s Groups and Communities

Foreword

This Guide was developed as part of the ILO Gender Promotion Programme (GENPROM) “tool kit” on gender and employment. The main target audience of the Guide is development and community organizations, both governmental and non-governmental, and workers’ and employers’ organizations working with local women’s groups to identify and to realize opportunities for more and better jobs. It is also intended to assist ILO staff, in particular national project staff, who are responsible for supporting these organizations and groups in their efforts.

Efforts to assist vulnerable groups of women workers to go into self employment, set up micro and small enterprises or increase their income earning potentials can be sustainable and can enable women to get out of poverty if linked to and supported by a number of other measures. Firstly, there must be a proper identification of economic potentials and opportunities based on a realistic assessment of the available resources and constraints in a community. The identification of economic opportunities should be through a participatory process, involving the intended target beneficiaries themselves and a wide range of community stakeholders – for example, the local development authorities, financial institutions, employment services, private sector businesses, trade unions, support organizations – so as to build consensus and commitment and to help mobilize the necessary resources. A second and complementary set of measures is to empower the women so that they are able to translate the opportunities into more and better jobs for themselves, improved welfare for their families especially their children and enhanced status for the group and for the individual woman. The Guide describes these different measures and sets out practical steps for carrying them out.

The Guide draws upon the available ILO knowledge base and tools relating, for example, to the identification of business ideas, local economic development and community approaches and group mobilization and women’s empowerment. Many of these tools, such as “Start and Improve Your Business” and how to conduct gender analysis and planning have been well tested. But the uniqueness of the Guide is its focus on groups and communities and its participatory approach.

The Guide was written by Ms. Gerda Heyde who has had substantial practical experience working with women’s groups and communities in conducting economic opportunity identification exercises. Technical supervision was provided by Ms. Naoko Otobe, Senior Employment and Gender Specialist (GENPROM), who was also responsible for finalizing the Guide.

Contents

Foreword
Introduction
Background
How to use this Guide
Definitions

Part 1 Advantages of business development through groups
1.1 Starting point
1.2 The role of women’s groups and communities
1.3 Specific constraints facing women entrepreneurs
1.4 The importance of empowerment
1.5 Some ideas regarding the group's structure and legal status

Part 2 Analysing the environment
2.1 The role of stakeholders in women’s economic empowerment
2.2 Basic characteristics of our community

Part 3 SWOT analysis of the women's group or community
3.1 Strengths and weaknesses
3.2 Opportunities and threats

Part 4 Sources of business ideas
4.1 Introduction to creative thinking
4.2 Different techniques for finding new ideas
4.3 Sources of information and ideas

Part 5 Critical analysis of the ideas
5.1 Rapid screening of ideas
5.2 Market opportunities survey (MOS)
5.3 Feasibility study

Part 6 Export and fair trade
6.1 Why go for export?
6.2. Fair trade
6.3 Market information
6.4. Practical issues

Part 7 Analysis of the macroeconomic context (Economic literacy)
7.1 How does “economic change” affect our lives and businesses?
7.2. Different types of economy
7.3 Inflation, devaluation and government policies