Rwanda joins the rest of the world to celebrate International Women's Day which is marked every March 8th worldwide. This year's edition will be held under the theme, ‘Women in leadership: Achieving an Equal Future in a COVID-19 World’.

Although a lot needs to be done to bridge the gender gap in the private sector, women entrepreneurs in Rwanda continue to show resilience, courage, and a commitment to thrive in the business sector and make a difference in what they do.

The Business Professionals Network (BPN) Rwanda has been a leader in supporting Rwanda’s entrepreneurs, including women-led businesses, through training at their Business Academy and by offering opportunities for growth through various partnerships.

As Rwanda celebrates International Women’s Day, we caught up with three women entrepreneurs who have taken part in BPN’s Business Academy. Here they share inspiring stories of their journey to building successful businesses in a private sector dominated by men.

Lise Humura, Head of Dove International Montessori School

The fact that Dove International Montessori School is ranked among the best performing schools in the country did not come by luck.

It is instead due to the outstanding efforts and resilience of the school’s headteacher and founder, Lise Humura who started from scratch when she established the school in 2012 as a small daycare.

Located in Kimihurura, Rugando, the private school serves families with children from two years through 6th grade using the Montessori Method and philosophy.

As a startup, Humura thought the biggest dream and vision she ever realized is founding Dove International Montessori School.

But she hadn’t stopped dreaming. She thought ‘money’ was the only missing factor and the sole solution to her problems to successfully run her school.

But when she joined BPN in 2014, she realized that money cannot solve all the problems her school was facing.

"I was wrong! The first thing I was given when I joined BPN was a huge template to write a business plan. It wasn't the kind of business plan you do when you are looking for funding but rather one that helps you dissect your business and helps navigate and analyse your big dream,” she adds.

A team of BPN experts used their coaching program to train Humura in business management before she was also given a financial loan that helped her buy the first set of Montessori materials. She applied the skills acquired from BPN and now her school has grown into one of the best private schools in the country.

Humura says, "I learnt to do business in a professional way and this has made the school grow into one of the best private schools in the country. I was equipped with business principles that helped me to grow professionally but also personally.”

Sonia Ingabire, interior designer

In 2018 Sonia Ingabire launched her interior design company, Bracha Interiors Ltd, whose workshop operates in Nyamirambo, Nyarugenge District.

According to Ingabire, the journey in interior design business has not been a smooth one but patience paid off in the end.

"I have had many challenges but I considered every challenge I encountered as a blessing because I learnt from them and I believe there is no growth without them,” she said.

A year after establishing her company, Ingabire joined BPN through a conference where she met the institution’s Country Director Alice Nkulikiyinka who caught her attention with not only her simplicity but also her passion to see entrepreneurs growing.

"Joining BPN has helped me a lot but, most importantly, to understand the business world because passion in business is not enough. You need some business skills to help you do better what you love,” she added.

"The training I acquired from BPN boosted my confidence to stick to my values as long as it’s the right thing. Now I am the kind of person who doesn't like to compromise to please the majority,” she said. 

Ingabire is happy where her company stands. She also celebrates the ‘small’ contribution that she plays to the country’s development.

Catherine Mukantabana, banana wine maker

A decade ago, Catherine Mukantabana started Agashinguracumu Limited, a banana wine processing factory in Muyumbu Sector, Rwamagana District in Eastern Province. Her business initially struggled due to challenges in planning, management and proper marketing. In 2013 Mukantabana joined the BPN Business Academy, and the training she received quickly made an impact on her business growth, especially by helping her wine reach so many parts of the country.

She believes that once she started applying her newly acquired skills through BPN, her business started booming in terms of income and volumes of distribution. "Before BPN came, we were so down, with so few clients. Our distribution was boosted thanks to powerful marketing in different parts of the country,” Mukantabana said.

 "They gave us quality training thanks to which we were able to overcome challenges that our business had been facing. BPN has played a big part in what we have achieved so far in our business. We hope more Rwandan entrepreneurs benefit from its training to succeed in their businesses,” she added.                                           

Mukantabana now employs more than 100 workers, and 70 per cent of all her employees are women.

Despite the financial setbacks caused by the covid-19 pandemic, Mukantabana believes things will be back to normal soon and she only sees her factory getting better and better.  "As a woman, I celebrate what my company has achieved but the journey is not done and I hope the best is yet to come,” she said.

BPN and women empowerment

BPN Rwanda supports entrepreneurs understand who they are and what their potential is.

The institution, which originates in Switzerland, embarks on a journey with entrepreneurs to increase their potential and grow their businesses in a sustainable manner.

BPN sees itself as the country's partner in growing a vibrant private sector, and entrepreneurship is one of the key contributors to that.

"We empower entrepreneurs with a value-based approach, where the focus is on growing a company that is not only good for the owner but that is good for the community and for the country as a whole,” said BPN Country Director, Alice Nkulikiyinka.

As Rwanda celebrates International Women’s Day, Nkulikiyinka hailed the resilience of Rwanda’s businesswomen and their vision to lead in various business sectors, "Women have always been initiators of change. In terms of business, we see more and more women coming to the forefront of domains that are male-dominated such as carpentry, ICT, mechanical engineering, etc. The potential of women especially in Rwanda is huge and we are here to contribute to unlocking it”.

Nkulikiyinka assured all women and all entrepreneurs that BPN is committed to supporting the establishment and the growth of sound entrepreneurship in the country and that doors are open to the business community. "We are here to stay. We see ourselves as the trusted partner for growth,” she said.