Busoga women entrepreneurs to showcase at PSFU Katale

Women entrepreneurs from across Busoga will have a chance to showcase their enterprise competence, innovativeness and products quality at this year’s Women’s Day Katale slated for March 15 to 17 at Dam Waters Rugby Grounds, Jinja.

Aligned with International Women’s Day celebrations, the Katale is an annual event that acknowledges the significant contributions and potential of women and girls as entrepreneurs. It serves as a platform for young individuals to network, connect with potential customers, and expand their customer base.

This women empowerment initiative is spearheaded by Private Sector Foundation Uganda (PSFU) supported by Young Africa Works (YAW) Lead Firm Structure program that is implemented in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation.

“The full meaning of Katale in our view is a marketplace of innovation., of networking, of digitization, and of crosscutting demand and supply opportunities. We held the first PSFU Katale in Luwero in 2022. It was very successful; a big hit with innovation at its highest, drawing over 100 women-founded and women-led businesses. We saw women creating unique recipes such as Samosa with Enkejje, Rolex with Nsenene, crafts among others. It was really fantastic,” Stephen Asiimwe the PSFU CEO said.

“The second year - 2023, we held it here in Kampala at UMA show grounds and again, it was very successful. The second edition, hosted in Kampala in 2023, witnessed the participation of more than 250 women enterprises who showcased their products and services. The Kampala edition gave women from all walks of life a chance to show case their skills including creatives such as women DJs and musicians.”

Asiimwe highlighted that the success of the first two editions came with a lot of positives but importantly, participants called for the expansion of the Katale so that it would benefit the entire country. This he noted informed their decision to take this year’s edition to Eastern Uganda with plans to traverse the entire country being discussed.

“As part of our strategic rollout of footprints across the country, we decided to send it far away from Kampala and the first place was to go to the east. There was no better place than Jinja. And coincidentally, we were blessed with the new queen – the IneBantu, who is going to grace this occasion and obviously encourage Women in the Busoga region to be part and parcel of this initiative and all other Economic Transformation activities. So, in a brief, that is what PSFU Women’s Day Katale is and how we intend to use it to uplift Women Entrepreneurs,” he said, calling upon the people of Jinja, Kamuli, Iganga, Luuka and the entire Busoga sub region to seize the opportunity and use it to showcase their products and innovativeness.

He noted that the Katale will have a place for the Busoga chapati, rolex, and all the other tourists attractions.

“While there are several theories around the origin of Rolex, the proprietor of Rolex is a Jinja person and a woman to be specific. She was once Miss Tourism and has contributed greatly to popularizing it as a Ugandan delicacy. I agree that the people of Jinja must showcase their Chapati and Rolex making skills as this is a sub-sector that employees so many young people. But it doesn’t end at Rolex. Jinja has so much more to offer. What we are telling the people of Jinja is very simple; use the PSFU Katale to showcase your products, services and innovations. Use the Katale to catapult your business to higher heights,” Asiimwe said.