KYANKWANZI, August 27, 2026 — A group of 100 women selected to benefit from the World Bank-funded Generating Growth and Opportunities for Women Enterprises [GROW] project in Kyankwanzi district have been equipped with business and vocational skills.
The women were commissioned last week after completing a three-week training programme at Rwebisiliza Hall in Butemba Town Council, Kyankwanzi district.
The training covered business management, record keeping, business registration and marketing, among other topics. The women were also trained in tailoring and fashion design.
The training was organised by the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development [MGLSD] in partnership with the Private Sector Foundation Uganda [PSFU], which are implementing the US$217 million project [roughly Shs 795-850 billion].
Speaking at the commissioning ceremony, Fred Nabimba, a Skills Development Specialist, said the GROW project complements other government programmes aimed at improving household incomes and economic opportunities.
He cited the Uganda Women Entrepreneurship Programme [UWEP], Youth Livelihood Programme [YLP], Emyooga and Parish Development Model [PDM] as some of the other government initiatives supporting Ugandans to improve their livelihoods.
“GROW Project complements other government programmes that have been initiated to empower Ugandans economically,” Nabimba said.
He said the project was different because it specifically targets women entrepreneurs and seeks to help businesses transition from micro to small enterprises and from small to medium-sized enterprises.
“The project is special because it targets women entrepreneurs and is aimed at boosting their businesses from micro to small and from small to medium enterprises,” he said.
Nabimba said the project was initiated after it was established that Uganda has a large number of women entrepreneurs who require financial and technical support to expand their businesses.
“Uganda has many women entrepreneurs, but these women need to be supported financially and with the necessary skills to grow their businesses,” he said.
He said many women were capable of running successful businesses but lacked some of the skills required to sustain them.
“Women are good at doing business, but they lack some of the skills needed to sustain their businesses. With this training, we hope the beneficiaries will be able to grow their enterprises,” Nabimba said.
He also said lack of collateral remains one of the major barriers preventing women entrepreneurs from accessing credit from financial institutions.
“It is always difficult for most women entrepreneurs to access financial support from financial institutions because they do not have land titles to use as collateral,” he said.
Nabimba urged women in the central region to take advantage of government programmes designed to strengthen their businesses and improve their socio-economic well-being.
“I challenge women to embrace government projects such as GROW so that they can expand their businesses and improve their socio-economic status,” he said.
The Deputy Resident District Commissioner of Kyankwanzi, Peruth Kabale, described the GROW project as a major opportunity for women seeking to expand their businesses and improve their livelihoods.
“GROW Project is a magic bullet that will help women to grow their businesses and move out of poverty,” Kabale said.
She said the training had come at an appropriate time as the government rolls out the project across the country.
“The training in business skills has come at the right time when the government is implementing the project across the country,” she said.
Kabale said the skills acquired by the beneficiaries would help them manage their enterprises more effectively and increase their financial independence.
“I am optimistic that the skills acquired by these women will help them to run and grow their businesses, become economically independent and reduce domestic violence caused by financial challenges,” she said.
The Kyankwanzi District LCV Chairperson, Samuel Ssemugaba, urged the beneficiaries to use any financial support they receive under the project for the intended business activities.
“The beneficiaries should properly utilise the funds so that the GROW project can serve its intended purpose of helping women struggling in business,” Ssemugaba said.
He said misuse of funds remained a challenge across some government livelihood programmes, despite the substantial resources committed to supporting Ugandans to improve their incomes.
“The government has disbursed a lot of money through different programmes to help Ugandans move out of poverty, but mismanagement of funds by beneficiaries is always a challenge,” he said.
Florence Nalubanga, one of the women who underwent the training, welcomed the project, saying it could help beneficiaries expand their enterprises.
“We are excited about the project because it is going to help us move our businesses to another level,” Nalubanga said.
She said many women had started businesses but struggled to keep them operating because of inadequate capital.
“Many women have started businesses, but the businesses end up collapsing due to lack of financial support to boost them,” she said.
The beneficiaries are expected to apply the business and vocational skills acquired during the training as they pursue opportunities under the GROW project.
GROW project in Uganda was officially launched in March 2023 by President Yoweri Museveni, with subsequent high-level rollout events occurring in August 2024.
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