With women across Africa still facing steep hurdles to export readiness, market access, and policy alignment, a new pan-African trade effort is setting out to close the gender gap by equipping one million women-led businesses to compete globally.
The initiative, known as Connecting One Million Women to Trade (C1WT), has developed the world’s first digital 8-Pillar Global Trade Accelerator (GTA), a step-by-step platform designed to support women entrepreneurs across Africa, the Caribbean, the Americas, and the global diaspora.
The GTA is a comprehensive digital ecosystem aimed at transforming women-led B2B commerce. It digitises business onboarding, broadens access to international markets, aligns trade policies, and provides training and technical support for women entrepreneurs. The platform has been estimated to have the potential to unlock up to $900 billion in new trade opportunities across 102 countries, making it one of the most ambitious initiatives for women-led enterprises worldwide.
The platform functions as a neutral trade clearinghouse, bringing together associations, service providers, and practitioners to exchange solutions, scale capacity, and collaborate on proven strategies. By uniting stakeholders across regions, the GTA is designed to overcome fragmentation and create a seamless ecosystem for women traders.
The initiative was first unveiled at the GUBA Trade & Investment Conference in Barbados in November 2025, attended by high-profile leaders including Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley of Barbados, President Dame Sandra Mason of Barbados, Grenada’s Prime Minister, Dickon Mitchell, and Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II of Ghana. Former Vice President of Costa Rica, H.E. Epsy Campbell Barr, described the GTA as a collaborative framework to accelerate women-led trade across the Atlantic corridors, highlighting its potential to connect African markets with global partners.
Following the Barbados debut, C1WT convened a multi-continental summit in Accra, Ghana, hosted by the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce & Industry (GNCCI). The forum brought together leaders from six countries, including representatives from the United States-based National Black Chamber of Commerce, FanMilk Nigeria Plc, the African Diaspora Forum, and the African First Ladies Peace Mission.
GNCCI President, Stéphane Abass Miezan, emphasised Ghana’s role as a critical bridge in global commerce, noting that the platform equips women to participate competitively in international markets.
The summit also saw the National Black Chamber of Commerce announce new tools to support access to capital, investor networks, and training for African and diaspora women entrepreneurs.
C1WT founder, Dr. Ky Dele, described the initiative as a shift from symbolism to structure, stressing the importance of a unified global system that allows women-led enterprises to scale beyond borders.
A live demonstration of the GTA highlighted features including multilingual onboarding, digital KYC verification, partner dashboards, training modules, and an integrated global marketplace. Stakeholders said these tools will reduce barriers and create sustainable pathways for women to expand their trade networks globally.
Nigerian leaders including Senator Ireti Kingibe and former Minister Otunba Niyi Adebayo commended the program, noting its historic significance in advancing women’s participation in global trade.
