Empretec Annual Report 2011 - Unctad XI

The Empretec Women in Business AwardUNCTAD’s Empretec Women in Business Award (E-WBA) has been granted every two years since 2008 to women trainedby national Empretec centres:The first Empretec Women in Business Award was launched on the occasion of UNCTAD XII in Accra, Ghana in 2008. Thesecond Empretec Women in Business Award was presented in April 2010 at the annual session of UNCTAD’s Investment,Enterprise and Development Commission in Geneva, Switzerland. The awarded women have excelled in developing innovativebusiness ideas, providing jobs, and increasing income in their communities.BEATRICE AYURU BYARUHANGA,1ST PRIZE WINNER 2010Beatrice from Uganda won the 1st prize of the E-WBA in 2010and was awarded with a study tour to the US where she hadthe chance to visit several universities. During this tour, severaluniversities were so impressed by the amazing story of Beatrice,who opened a school in Northern Uganda in 2000, that theydecided to support her school. Texas Tech University, for instance,donated sports equipment and sent a coach who trained teachersin sports education. Abilene Christian University sent a team inDecember 2011, which helped to build a swimming pool.The Spring Field College in Massachusetts had fundraised andcollected money that will be used to construct basketball courts forthe students. The University of Minnesota and a team of volunteerscame to Lira to give training to the teachers. Beatrice also receivedsupport from the UK’s Department for International Developmentand the World Bank with which she can expand the school’s fisheryfarm that enables students to learn more about fishery and at thesame time helps the community. Beatrice’s success story has alsoimpressed the World Entrepreneurship Forum of EMLyon BusinessSchool and she became a member of their Think Tank in 2010.Beatrice’s experience has given her the courage to go even astep further and she will open a university in Lira in September201218EMPRETEC ANNUAL REPORT 2011