Projects:

Evaluation of the Catalyzing Women’s Entrepreneurship Programme

Sector: Economic Development, Trade, and Industry

Client: UNESCAP

Geography: East Asia and Pacific

Date: February, 2025

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DeftEdge helps ensure organizations meet ethical standards and objectives on a range of issues, such as economically empowering women and refugees through access to finance and markets and mitigating the impact of climate change on vulnerable communities. (WFP, FAO, Pact, ActionAid, UNHCR livelihoods partners)

The Catalyzing Women’s Entrepreneurship Programme:
 The Catalyzing Women’s Entrepreneurship (CWE) programme aimed to foster women’s economic empowerment and reduce poverty by supporting women’s entrepreneurship in Asia-Pacific through improved access to capital, gender-responsive policies, and ICT training.

Methodology:
The evaluation of the Catalyzing Women’s Entrepreneurship (CWE) programme utilized a mixed-methods approach, blending qualitative and quantitative data collection techniques. Key activities included in-depth desk reviews examining over 120 project documents, including progress reports, research papers, training materials, project deliverables, meeting records, partnership MOUs, and strategic documents.

The evaluation conducted extensive stakeholder consultations through field missions to Cambodia, Vietnam, and Nepal, while virtual data collection was conducted for Bangladesh, Fiji, and Samoa. The evaluation team conducted semi-structured interviews with 55 stakeholders (37 females, 18 males), spanning ESCAP management and staff, government representatives from the six target countries, implementation partners, development partners, and women entrepreneur beneficiaries. Focus group discussions complemented these interviews, while an online survey gathered inputs from 426 women entrepreneur beneficiaries.

The evaluation covered activities implemented from 2018 to 2024 across Bangladesh, Cambodia, Fiji, Nepal, Samoa, and Viet Nam, examining national and sub-regional workshops, training sessions, innovative financing mechanisms, and country-specific activities.