MANY women in rural communities struggle to grow their small businesses because of limited access to digital systems and services, says Minister for Social Protection Sashi Kiran.
Ms Kiran said many of the requirements for business support and funding looked simple in theory but were difficult for women in villages to complete in practice.
Speaking during a talanoa session, she said tasks such as travelling to towns to obtain quotations, printing documents or accessing online platforms were challenging for many women.
“It is not easy for you to travel to town to obtain quotations, and it is also not easy to print documents or access online systems.”
She said the ministry was working on several solutions to make it easier for women to run their businesses and access support services.
“Literacy training would also be introduced to help women better understand how to use technology for business.
Later this year, the ministry plans to roll out training programs village by village to teach women how to use their mobile phones to manage and promote their businesses.
“These pilot programs will help communities learn how to operate online and manage their businesses digitally.”
She said the ministry was also considering the creation of an emporium or central buying place to support women producers.
Under this system, women, who produce good quality products, can sell directly through the program and receive immediate payment.
“If you produce good quality products, we can purchase them directly. This means you can receive payment immediately while we continue working on larger systems like branding and marketing.”
She said the long-term goal was to create stronger branding for products made in villages.
“For example, when a product comes from a particular village, we can develop a standard tag or branding label for it.”
She said ideally every producer would eventually have their own branding and registered business, but the ministry understood that many communities were not ready for that step.
“Many villages do not have internet access, cannot print labels and cannot easily access supplies, so we need to work step by step.”
She said the central buying system could help women start earning income while gradually building their businesses and digital skills.
“As you earn more income, you will gradually be able to access internet services such as Starlink, improve your production and expand your business.”
She said while Government continued to support the goals of organisations working to promote local crafts, it was equally important to provide practical support for women.
