Zubčević: BiH has 1000 majority women company owners

The Association of Women Entrepreneurs "One" became a member of the International Association of Women Entrepreneurs (FCEM) at a conference held in Dubrovnik last weekend.

The Association "One" was founded in 2012 under the auspices of the United States Embassy. Aida Zubčević, president of the Association "One", told the BH news agency Patria that the association's primary goal is to promote women's entrepreneurship, as well as to encourage women to start their own businesses.

- The economic situation is bad. The number of women at employment bureaus is increasing. Supply is greater than demand, and employers more often decide on men than on women. Simply put, employers view it from the perspective that a woman will go on maternity leave, incur costs, and therefore opt for male labor, regardless of quality – says Zubčević.

Women are dedicated to their work but lack time for promotion. Statistics show that fewer women are involved in production, and more in service industries. Therefore, the upcoming conference in May, "Days of Women's Entrepreneurship," is a good opportunity for this.

- In this way, our members are given the chance to network with women entrepreneurs worldwide. We will provide assistance to our women entrepreneurs. We want to show women that anything is possible. I produce natural cosmetics and manage to export them to markets outside of BiH and to Turkey, Qatar, and we are in negotiations with the Emirates – Zubčević states for NAP.

The Association "One" has 300 members. To meet the conditions of the European Union and FCEM, a woman must own 51% of the capital.

- This is not often the case in BiH. Women are either directors of family firms or co-owners of a smaller share below 51%. Research by GTF (Gender Task Force) from Croatia shows that there are about 1000 women entrepreneurs in BiH who own more than 51% of the capital. Our goal is to reach them, talk to them, and see how we can help them – says Zubčević.

At the "Days of Women's Entrepreneurship" conference, women entrepreneurs will be presented, and the Platform 2020, which aims to involve women's entrepreneurship at the level of Southeast Europe, will be discussed. This is also significant due to European Union funds that will be planned for women's entrepreneurship.