The Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) is happy to announce that the nomination process for the Western Balkans Women Entrepreneurs of the Year 2022 has begun! The RCC launched this initiative last year in the framework of the Common Regional Market Action Plan 2021-2024 and the Women Economic Empowerment Agenda to recognise women who have started and developed their own businesses and contributed to new and sustainable jobs for other women and men in our region.

With less than 22% of Western Balkans entrepreneurs being female, the importance of promoting stories of successful women entrepreneurs from the region stands high. Women’s economic empowerment is critical to building resilient recovery efforts and more significant economic growth, as the number of women in the labour market is deeply intertwined with the region’s development.

The RCC invites individuals, representatives of public and private institutions, organisations and everyone interested to nominate their woman entrepreneur of the year in one (or more) of the following six categories: Green Woman Entrepreneur, Creative Woman Entrepreneur, Travel and Hospitality Woman Entrepreneur; Roma Woman Entrepreneur; Start-up Woman Entrepreneur; Young Woman Entrepreneur.

The recognition process will be open until 28 February 2023, and eligible women entrepreneurs should have registered their businesses before February 2022.