Overview
In collaboration with the Inter-American Development Bank, Thunderbird School of Global Management will develop and implement an ambitious three-year initiative that aims to change the mindset and conception of women entrepreneurship, activate the women-owned small business sector and accelerate the growth of established women-owned businesses in seven countries in Latin America. The new initiative is part of the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi), a collaborative partnership of 14 governments, eight multilateral development banks and other Public-Private stakeholders, hosted by the World Bank Group.
The three-component program will help women entrepreneurs from Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Ecuador and Guyana enter value chains of larger businesses. In the Aspire phase, storytelling will be used to create the enabling environment for women entrepreneurs in nascent ecosystems. In Activate, webinars and workshops will help the women build resiliency and become more digitally-savvy to adapt to a post-pandemic market. A new DreamBuilder module will also be developed. In Accelerate, high potential growth venters will complete a six-month accelerator experience designed and led by Thunderbird faculty.