The Centre for Local Business Development (CLBD), supported by the Greater Guyana Initiative (GGI), has introduced a business model that actively promotes gender equality in Guyana’s oil and gas industry.
Traditionally, women-owned businesses in Guyana have primarily operated in sectors like agriculture and tourism, leaving a gap in the oil and gas industry. To address this, the CLBD launched the AccelerateHer program in 2021, which aims to enhance the leadership and business skills of women entrepreneurs.
AccelerateHer focuses on helping small businesses grow through customized workshops, personalized business advisory services, mentoring, and pitch development. The program fosters a supportive peer-learning environment and seeks out motivated women who value collaboration and interactive learning to improve their business skills.
Since its launch, AccelerateHer has drawn women from diverse industries. Participants have not only refined their business strategies but also learned the importance of creating efficient systems, planning for the future, seizing available opportunities, and understanding their markets—key practices that help them advance their businesses.
“We can now pitch our business in any room because of the powerful business model that we’ve learnt. The concept here at the Centre was impactful and it’s now for us to go out there and make the world a better place,” said Sophia Dolphin, founder of Glo-See Marketing and Public Relations and 2024 AccelerateHer graduate.
Collina Johnson, founder of CollieBlack Hair Designs, said, “There are a lot of things I really did not know, like the business canvas. I had no particular structure to which my business was executed. After the program everything is much more structured, I understand my market and I know how to do market research. The capacity building as well as the networking, those were my key takeaways from this AccelerateHer training.”
Since its launch, the program has grown significantly, with a total of 67 graduates to date. Its impact has been profound, contributing to numerous success stories among women-owned businesses.