Women entrepreneurs - The Times Of Central Asia

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BBC Women of the Year List Includes Two Nominees From Central Asia

The BBC has unveiled its annual list of the world’s most inspiring women. The introduction to the list says that the “BBC 100 Women Project highlights women who have shown remarkable determination to drive change in a year marked by global upheaval.” Alongside figures such as Nobel laureate Nadia Murad, actress Sharon Stone, Olympians Rebeca Andrade and Allyson Felix, singer Ray, artist Tracey Emin, climate activist Adenike Oladosu, and writer Cristina Rivera Garza, the list of nominees includes two women from Central Asia. They are: Dilorom Yuldasheva (Uzbekistan) [caption id="attachment_26251" align="aligncenter" width="300"] @BBC| Dilorom Yuldosheva, Uzbekistan[/caption] A seamstress and entrepreneur, two years ago Dilorom Yuldasheva lost both legs in an accident. Undeterred, she pursued her dream of empowering young women in Uzbekistan to earn livelihoods and develop new skills. Yuldasheva established a tailoring business after studying entrepreneurship and resource management. In a short time, she trained over 40 students, offering free classes as her business grew. She secured contracts to produce clothing for workers and schoolchildren, creating income opportunities for herself and dozens of other women. Zhanylsynzat Turganbayeva (Kyrgyzstan) [caption id="attachment_26252" align="aligncenter" width="300"] @BBC| Zhanylsynzat Turganbaeva, Kyrgyzstan[/caption] Zhanylsynzat Turganbayeva is devoted to preserving and restoring Kyrgyz cultural heritage. She runs an ethnology museum in Bishkek, showcasing unique national artifacts. Her charitable efforts focus on safeguarding Kyrgyz literature, including the epic Manas. This UNESCO-recognized work spans approximately 500,000 lines—20 times the length of Homer’s Odyssey—and recounts the story of a hero who unites 40 Kyrgyz tribes. Turganbayeva creates resources and opportunities for “manaschi,” the traditional performers of the epic. These women exemplify courage and perseverance, inspiring others to bring positive change to their communities.

Digitalization MSMEs Regional integration small and medium businesses Turkic Investment Fund Women entrepreneurs Organization of Turkic States

Empowering Trade and Women Entrepreneurs: Kazakhstan’s Digital Leap for the Turkic States

The head of the Presidium of the National Association of Women Entrepreneurs of Kazakhstan (ASMAR), Lazzat Ramazanova, who currently chairs the Council of Women Entrepreneurs of Turkic States, has reported on the development of a single digital ecosystem for business in the five countries which form the Organization of Turkic States (OTS). This platform is expected to expand international trade with countries outside of the Organization. This year, Kazakhstan chairs the Council of Women Entrepreneurs of Turkic States, which operates under the OTS and includes five member countries: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan, Turkey, and Uzbekistan. Three more countries - Hungary, Northern Cyprus, and Turkmenistan - are represented in the Organization with the status of observer states. One of the goals of Kazakhstan's chairing of the OTS was to strengthen business ties between Turkic states. To this end, the Turkic Business Hub initiative was implemented, an online platform that will become an important element of integration and cooperation in the region. Speaking at the close of the meeting in Astana, Lazzat Ramazanova told those in attendance: “Today, within the framework of the General Assembly of Women Entrepreneurs of the Turkic World, an ambitious initiative was put forward to create a unified digital platform for business. Kazakhstan was the initiator and implementer of this idea, as our country is now among the top 25 most digitized countries. The platform has already been developed, and in Kazakhstan, we are already working with our ministries on the integration of info-systems. Now, we will work with the governments of Turkic states so that the same integration takes place with their info-systems. In other words, the software has been created, and we are working to bring other countries into it.” The main advantage of a Turkic Business Hub is it ensures business security when choosing a partner in a given country. This is because when a user of the platform registers as a potential participant in trade relations, all information about them as a business entity is collected. Artificial intelligence automatically scans the fiscal (tax and customs) authorities and runs the business' credit history through the hub's integration with the databases of banks. The banks have their own interest in this system, since using it they can find clients and borrowers who have passed strict compliance checks. AI can also monitor the presence or absence of lawsuits from former partners of the entity that is attempting to register. “In the case of detection of negative information, the entity is denied registration, i.e., from there start, there will be no 'scam' companies or unscrupulous counter-parties on the platform," Ramazanova explained. "They will immediately be 'canceled' by the artificial intelligence based on the data from tax, customs, and other state services. But the most important thing is that in case of rejection, AI will send such the rejectee a complete summary of the reasons why they were denied registration, so the business will know what they need to correct to join the system. Once business entities that have no...

Women entrepreneurs life and culture Gender Equality Women's rights Legislation

Social Researcher: Serious Effort Required for Women’s Representation in Kazakh Politics

According to Gulmira Ileuova, a sociologist and the head of the Strategy Centre for Social and Political Research, gender equality in Kazakhstan has severely deteriorated. In an interview with TCA, she explains how social regression and a depletion of human resources are making it difficult for women to participate in political parties, social movements, and public services. TCA: Sources illustrate that after the 2023 parliamentary elections, the representation of women deputies in the Mazhilis fell from 27% to 18%. In addition, Kazakhstan's performance in the Global Gender Gap Index (GGGI) has deteriorated. This year, the country fell from 62nd to 76th place. This index, which can be used to judge the economy's stability and legal security, has a serious impact on investors. What, in your opinion, is the reason for this deterioration? First of all, I would like to point out that until 2021, the Labor Code had restrictions on where women could work based on concerns about their health. Now that the restrictions have been lifted, progress is steadily being made in involving women in areas previously inaccessible to them. Some companies have already published data that women have begun operating heavy machinery, such as big trucks, which was not the case before. As for politics and the civil service, it appears that under the spread of influence from the south, the country is reinstating traditional social relations. Independent Kazakhstan has entered a new period where traditional and non-traditional forms of Islam thrive, and hyper-masculine and patriarchal attitudes are on the rise. I emphasize the patriarchal division of life through reinforced gender roles because it is gaining strength and spreading across all regions of the country. Furthermore, this trend is moving into the sphere of politics and civil services. Let's take a look at what preceded these trends. In many regions, primarily in the south, there is a huge number of women who wishing to undertake the important work of reproduction, were receiving TSA (targeted social assistance). According to statistics in 2019, there were 2 million and 221 thousand recipients of TSA (about 12% of the population). Today, their number has decreased six fold to about 350 thousand. These numbers include women who thought they would bypass employment through state support systems. And now these women are in trouble. The state is revising its social policy, but the paternalistic trend has long been developing and a large number of people have abused it. TCA: Are you saying that women, in receipt of child allowances, prefer to stay at home as opposed to actively entering economic relations or aspiring to participate in civil services or politics? Yes, and I am afraid that this trend cannot be overcome by quick measures or be alleviated by even quotas for women. In a 'strategy' study conducted by the Center for Social and Political Research in the Turkestan region, an official working in gender policy said that at some point, the political representation of women fell to 5%. There were actually no women in senior...

Women entrepreneurs Loans & Grants ADB Economy Agriculture

ADB Gives Grant to Support Women in Tajikistan

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved $17.5 million in grant assistance to improve women's agricultural skills and food security in Tajikistan. The project, which aims to support women farmers, will cover six districts in Khatlon province (Bokhtar, Farkhor, Kulyab, Panj, Shahritus, and Vose), the country's largest agricultural region. ADB's Director General for Central and West Asia, Eugene Zhukov, said the bank views women as critical agents of change, and the project aims to increase their role in agriculture. The project will provide women access to modern resources, including drying plants, greenhouses, water-saving technologies, and training in financial management and production technologies. Particular emphasis is placed on climate-resilient farming practices to reduce vulnerability to climate change impacts such as drought and heat stress. The project will also establish small-scale crop processing and storage centers to increase the value of crops in the market. In addition, the project will create digital platforms for the training and trading of agricultural products. It is also expected to address social problems faced by women, such as gender-based violence. Under the guidance of the Women and Family Committee, a shelter offering counseling, a referral system, and training and entrepreneurship opportunities will be opened. ADB has supported Tajikistan for 26 years, serving as the country's largest donor. During this time, Tajikistan has received over $2.6 billion from ADB, of which more than $2 billion was provided through grants. Since 2018, the country has received the bank's financial assistance exclusively on a grant basis.

Legislation Women entrepreneurs Women-owned Enterprises Economy Culture

Kyrgyzstan to Support Female Entrepreneurship

A group of Kyrgyz parliamentary deputies have initiated amendments to the draft law "On the Protection of Entrepreneurs' Rights," which will bow be supplemented with the words "women's entrepreneurship." The amendment states that women make up half of Kyrgyzstan's population, but their contribution to the economy is far less significant. Citing IMF data, the authors of the amendment stated that female entrepreneurship can contribute up to 27% to the republic's GDP. "As experience shows, the level of income from small businesses does not exceed the officially established subsistence minimum, which, unfortunately, does not leave additional funds available for further business development. The data also shows that women entrepreneurs who have better access to assets and can make independent decisions can help reduce poverty," the bill states. Representatives of the women's forum "Kurak," who contributed to drafting the amendments, proposed introducing the term "woman entrepreneur" into the law and defining this as a legal entity wherein a woman owns at least 51% of the shares. They believe this will enable women to receive preferential financing and access state support. "Women entrepreneurs often need more time to run a business. After all, they often raise children and run a household in parallel. It is also tough for a woman to get a loan from a bank because the collateral property belongs to men. Moral support from our patriarchal society and the state is also lacking," human rights activist Ainura Sarynbayeva told The Times of Central Asia. The legislative introduction of the word "woman" and "women's entrepreneurship" will help further develop women's businesses, believes Sarynbayeva, adding that commercial banks and international development institutions are already prepared to provide preferential lending. "Today, there are no countries in Central Asia where the concept of "women's entrepreneurship" is enshrined in the law. The draft law being promoted in Kyrgyzstan is largely similar to the Azerbaijani law. The authorities there support women businessmen at the state level," said Sarynbayeva. According to the latest census, Kyrgyzstan is home to 3.3 million women - half of the country's population. However, despite various training sessions and courses, only a small percentage of Kyrgyz women participate in economic activities. Human rights activists attribute this state of affairs to the haphazard nature of government support. The average Kyrgyz businesswoman is 40-50 years old, has a secondary education, is an individual entrepreneur or manages a small or medium-sized business, and has a family and children.

Women entrepreneurs Hospitality USAID Local Economy Education Tourism

USAID Supports Central Asian Women Working in Hospitality

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the International Association of Businesswomen “Tadbirkor Ayol” last week hosted a Central Asian Conference on “Women of Central Asia in the Hospitality Business: Current Challenges and Opportunities”. The event in Tashkent attracted some 200 women entrepreneurs, professionals, and industry experts from Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan to discuss achievements, trends, and challenges in the region’s hospitality sector. As reported by the U.S. Embassy in Uzbekistan, the conference focused on service quality, digitalization, and modern standards in tourism, culminating in recommendations to enhance regional cooperation in tourism and hospitality. Praising the resilience and creativity of women in the hospitality industry and emphasizing their role in the sector’s future, Edward Michalski, USAID Deputy Mission Director in Uzbekistan, commented: “Investing in women and girls is essential to transforming communities. When women do better, families do better, communities do better, and countries do better.” Gulnora Makhmudova, Chairwoman of “Tadbirkor Ayol,” noted that the growing importance of the region’s hotel business and the increasing involvement of women, had spurred the association into launching “Women in the Hotel Business: Hospitality from the Future;” a project aimed to introduce innovation and digitalization in the hospitality sector. Since its launch in April 2024, with support from USAID, the project has provided training for 115 women in modern hotel management in Tashkent, Andijan, and Samarkand.