Celebrating the creativity and determination of women entrepreneurs, National Women’s Small Business Month, held annually in October, spotlights the incredible achievements of women in entrepreneurship. This dedicated month is a testament to the ever-expanding horizons for women in business, showcasing their vital contributions to innovation, economic growth, and workplace diversity.
According to a 2023 report, women in the United States were starting more than 1,200 new businesses every day, averaging about 1,821 in 2022. By the end of 2022, women-owned businesses, including 42% of small ones, made about $1.8–1.9 trillion in revenue.
The gender gap in entrepreneurship is gradually closing as there is a lot of female representation, improved access to funding, and a supportive ecosystem leading to women’s entrepreneurial success. Even though there are more women entrepreneurs aiming for growth on a global scale, a recent report from the Global Entrepreneur Monitor (GEM) highlights that women entrepreneurs continue to encounter obstacles when it comes to establishing and expanding their startup businesses.
Whether you’re new to entrepreneurship or seeking a little extra funding to cover business expenses, let’s celebrate National Women’s Small Business Month together. In this article, we will list women-centric initiative programs that encourage women entrepreneurs by offering funding support.
The Tory Burch Foundation is a non-profit group that focuses on supporting women. Previously, they have offered up to $2 million in grants for women of color founders and supported 600,000 small businesses through online resources. They also connect women with successful entrepreneurs who can offer guidance and advice. To qualify, a business must be for-profit, women-owned, and have a social impact component.
The Tory Burch Foundation empowers women and women entrepreneurs by providing access to capital, education, and digital resources.
Find out more about the Tory Burch Foundation
The Cartier Women’s Initiative is a yearly program that helps women entrepreneurs worldwide who want to make a positive difference through their businesses. The aim is to support women and their creative work to make a better future. Each year, 21 finalists representing 7 regions (Latin America & the Caribbean, North America, Europe, Sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East & North Africa, East Asia, and South Asia & Oceania) are selected during the first round of the competition.
The finalist receives prize money, financial coaching, business workshops as well and media visibility.
Find out more about the Cartier Women’s Initiative
The Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Consulate General in Chennai (PAS Chennai) seeks proposals for a project titled Indian Women Social Entrepreneurs Network (IWSEN). Nearly 25 percent of all social enterprises in India are led by women, compared to less than 10 percent of commercial small and medium enterprises that have a woman at the helm. The project aims to highlight the benefit of creating networks of support, knowledge, and resource sharing through localized frameworks, rather than just scaling single business ventures.
40 women social entrepreneurs from India will be invited to provide them with tools through which change-makers visions and goals are affirmed, supported, promoted, and propelled to the next level.
Open for Indian women
Find out more about IWSEN
In 1998 Amber Grants was established to honor the memory of a young entrepreneurial woman —Amber Wigdahl. The purpose of the Amber Grant is to help other women achieve the dreams that Amber could not achieve in her short time.
The grant is hosted by WomensNet which was created to help women achieve their dreams. They also offer free tips on how to get a grant, offer your own monthly grant, and discuss encouraging stories of women entrepreneurs just like you.
An interesting part of this grant you can apply every month. Each month an Amber Grant of $2,000, is awarded and one of their 12 monthly recipients receives an additional $25,000 Amber Grant.
Businesses operating in the US or Canada are eligible for our grants
Find out more about Amber Grants
The African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF) is a Pan-African grant-making organization that supports the realization and fulfillment of African women’s rights through the funding of autonomous women’s organizations on the continent.
AWDF works towards the creation of healthy, just, and inclusive societies framed by equality, peace, and respect for women’s rights.
Since its inception in the year 2000, AWDF has awarded grants of US$41.7 million to over 1,300 women’s organizations in 46 countries in Africa and the Middle East.
Find out more about AWDF
In 2006, Access Bank started an initiative for women and Banking on Women. The program evolved into a robust plan to provide women with banking solutions that meet their diverse career and lifestyle requirements named The ‘W’ Initiative.
Through this initiative, they launched Womenpreneur PITCH-A-TON. This is a wonderful opportunity provided by Access Bank. The aim of Access Bank is to inspire female Entrepreneurs and empower them. They help women find grants to expand their business and also provide training to help grow their business.
Open for the 10 African countries where Access Bank’s W initiative has its presence.
Find out more about Access bank
Urgent Action Fund – Africa (UAF – Africa) is calling for proposals to provide financial support to women’s rights organizations and collectives in order to catalyze women’s active participation towards economic empowerment through initiatives tailored at addressing the specific economic challenges faced by women running small and medium-sized (informal and formal) businesses in the rural, peri-urban and urban areas of Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania
Find out more about Urgent Action Fund Africa
The VV Visionaries Program to Support Women Leaders is a special program. It helps women with big dreams who want to change the future by showing them what it means to be a leader and how to become one in their own unique way. The VV Visionaries program, in collaboration with the Estée Lauder Emerging Leaders Fund (ELELF), helps the upcoming leaders who are changing the way we think about leadership in their daily lives. At the completion of the cohort, participants will join the Vital Voices community of over 20,000 changemakers across 185 countries, each of whom is daring to reimagine a more equitable world for all.
Three cohorts of 50 women visionaries over the age of 18 will participate in a 7-week immersive virtual experience built on the proven leadership model of Vital Voices, incorporating lessons in leadership from Estée Lauder executives and Vital Voices Global Network leaders.
Find more about the VV Visionaries Program to Support Women Leaders
Women Innovators Programme in the Arab by 4YFN is the program that helps and motivates women in innovation. 4YFN is working with the UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) to help women in the Arab region who use technology to make the world better. In 2023 they are helping 30 creative people from 13 countries. These creative people got great advice from 40 friends from 4YFN.
Find more about the 4YFN – Women Innovators Programme
The Bayer Foundation Women Empowerment Award aims to support female entrepreneurs. Through its last editions, ten women with Africa-based businesses have won the award, and many more gained the Bayer Foundation’s support. From this program, 15 winners of the award will gain the support of the Bayer Foundation and will be elevated in their role to drive sustainability and social impact through their innovative solutions.
This award grants 15 female entrepreneurs from the Global South a €25,000 cash prize, tailored coaching as well as a global event and networking opportunities.
Find more about the Influential Businesswomen Awards
There are many more competitions and accelerator programs given by the government and private where you can showcase your idea, product, or service. Each opportunity comes with its own set of pros and cons. Depending on what you are looking for and what stage your start-up is at, evaluate which option is best for you and go for it.
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Sharmistha is an enthusiastic Public health graduate with years of experience in the field of research, data analysis, and report writing. She is a Hanyang University social change maker award winner. She also facilitates sessions for entrepreneurs and youth organizations.
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[…] There are various funding programs that fund aspiring female entrepreneurs. These are the women-centric initiative programs that encourage women entrepreneurs by offering funding support. Check National Women’s Small Business Month […]