Women's Entrepreneurship

The Goldman Sachs Entrepreneurship Certificate Program is designed for women across Rwanda who are interested in growing their small business or starting a business. Over the course of the program, participants will create a detailed, actionable business plan. Sessions will be held in the areas of: business planning, marketing, finance, accounting, and management. At the end of the program, participants will present their business plans to the group and program faculty. Awards in the amount of $2,500 will be given to the four women with the best business plans. There are two six-month programs. The first starts September 2, 2008 and the second will start in February 2009. There is no fee for participants to attend. The program sponsor is Goldman Sachs, through its 10,000 Women initiative.

  View Program Brochure - English

  View Program Brochure - Kinyarwanda

Thirty women from across Rwanda have been selected to participate in the Fall 2008 program. The women represent a range of industries, including: wine making, furniture making, restaurants, food production, selling poultry and eggs, computer training, and lawn maintenance.

For more information on the participants, including short bios, please click here.

Program Schedule - Fall 2008 Program

Session Title	Session Length	Session Dates (Fall 2008)
Introduction to Entrepreneurship & Business Strategy	4 days	Sept 2-5, 2008
Developing a Successful Business Plan	3 days	Sept 22-24, 2008
Starting & Operating a Business in Rwanda	2 days	Oct 6-7, 2008
Budgeting/Management Accounting	4 days	Oct 27-30, 2008
HR/Management	3 days	Nov 24-26, 2008
Marketing & Public Relations	3 days	Dec 22-24, 2008
Financial Accounting & Loans	4 days	Jan 12-15, 2009
Cohort Consulting	5 days	Jan 22-27, 2009
Business Plan Presentations	3 days	Feb 9-11, 2009

  All sessions will be held in Kigali.
   
*The Spring Program will start in February 2009

Applicants

The application is now closed. Check back in February 2009 for application information for fall 2009/spring 2010 sessions.

Who should apply? Rwandan women who would like to improve their small business or who want to start their own business.

Applicants must be able to attend all nine modules in Kigali, Rwanda. (Spring 2009 schedule to be announced.)
 
All participants will receive a full scholarship from Goldman Sachs if admitted to the program. Lodging and meals will be provided for the participants living outside of Kigali. 

All applicants must demonstrate a financial need to attend this program. On the application, you will be asked about your financial status.

Program Faculty

The program draws its 10 faculty members from Rwanda as well as the USA and India. 

Faculty include:

Dr. Kopparthi Murty is Associate Professor of Marketing and Director of the dual MBA program at the School of Finance & Banking in Rwanda. Dr. Murty's research focuses on women entrepreneurship development. For the Goldman Sachs Entrepreneurship Certificate Program, he is the Program Faculty Coordinator and will teach sessions on Business Strategy and Developing a Successful Business Plan.

Dr. Etienne Musonera is a William Davidson Institute Faculty Affiliate and an Assistant Professor of Marketing & Management at Eastern New Mexico University. His consulting work has focused on Global Optimal Solutions, Marketing Strategies, Foreign Direct Investment, Decision Risk Analysis, Business Process Management, Quality Management, and World Class Manufacturing (WCM) Strategies and Best Practices. For the Goldman Sachs Entrepreneurship Certificate Program, he will teach the Marketing session.

Dr. Julie Dziekan is a William Davidson Institute Faculty Affiliate and is on the faculty of the School of Management at the University of Michigan at Dearborn. As a consultant to the William Davidson Institute, she has provided technical assistance to business schools in emerging economies in Africa and Central Asia. She has worked with the School of Finance and Banking in Kigali, advising leaders about academic governance, organizational structure, and international accreditation. For the Goldman Sachs Entrepreneurship Certificate Program, she will teach HR & Organizational Management.

Brigitte Gafaranga is an Assistant Lecturer in HR Management at the School of Finance and Banking, Rwanda. Previously, she worked at the Kigali Institute of of Science, Technology and Management in the HR Management Department. Her latest research looks at Microfinance and Microinsurance partnerships as a means of poverty reduction in Rwanda. For the Goldman Sachs Entrepreneurship Certificate Program, she will teach Financial Accounting & Loans.