𝐁𝐄 𝐑𝐄𝐄𝐋 𝐆𝐚𝐦𝐛𝐢𝐚 𝐄𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝟗𝟎 𝐖𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧 𝐄𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐮𝐫𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐆𝐮𝐧𝐣𝐮𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐦𝐛𝐚𝐚

Gunjur, The Gambia – BE REEL Gambia has successfully concluded a four-day foundational micro-business training programme for women entrepreneurs from Central Gunjur and the remote community of Santambaa under its lower training initiative known as Julaya-silo.

Women entrepreneurs receive their certificates from BE REEL

The training brought together more than 90 women entrepreneurs and focused on equipping participants with practical business skills designed to strengthen their enterprises and improve their financial independence. Topics covered included separating personal and business finances, product and service pricing, cultivating a savings culture, and effective money management to enhance earning capacity.

The Julaya-silo programme is part of BE REEL Gambia’s commitment to providing free and accessible micro-business education to members of the community who may not have had the opportunity to receive formal education. The initiative aims to remove barriers that often prevent women with little or no formal schooling from accessing business training and economic opportunities.

According to BE REEL Gambia, the programme’s training manual has been continuously refined to ensure it is suitable and accessible for participants regardless of their educational background or age.

Speaking on the importance of the initiative, BE REEL Gambia Programme Director, Buba K. Touray, highlighted a key lesson learned from previous programmes.

“Previously, excluding participants, particularly women with little or no formal education, was registered as a challenge. A lesson learned from this is that many potential participants who are undertaking micro-businesses but could not read or write English were excluded from the programme,” he said.

The organisation believes that business education should not be limited to individuals who can read or write English, but should be available to everyone, including those who were unable to attend school. By removing such barriers, BE REEL Gambia is creating opportunities for more women, including those in their middle ages, to acquire business knowledge and improve their livelihoods.

BE REEL Gambia has renewed its commitment to expanding the programme and reaching even more women across communities in the future. The training was facilitated by Ms. Mansey Jabang, Programme Officer, with support from Mr. Lamin Ba Touray, Senior Programme Officer.

BE REEL Gambia works to reduce poverty and promote self-sufficiency through entrepreneurship and micro-business development, particularly among underserved and vulnerable groups in rural communities. The organisation has increasingly focused on ensuring that women, regardless of educational background, have access to the skills and knowledge needed to build sustainable businesses and contribute to local economic development.