The Resilience & Gender Inclusive Enterprise System (RIES) Project is strengthen the enabling environment for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). It is creating a more inclusive value chain (VC) ecosystem for handloom (Eastern Province – Ampara and Batticaloa), fruits, vegetables (Northern Province – Mullaitivu and Vavuniya), cinnamon, pepper (Sabaragamuwa Province – Kegalle and Rathnapura, Uva Province – Badulla), cocoa (Uva Province – Monaragala), dairy (Uva Province – Badulla, Monaragala, Central Province – Nuwara Eliya) and seed potato Central Province – Nuwara Eliya). The project is focusing on women’s economic empowerment and climate resilience, while working with 5,000 farmers, and over 500 value chain actors. Of the 683
The project’s objectives are to increase the income, profitability, and resilience of MSMEs, focusing on women-led MSMEs in the targeted value chains. This is being achieved by improving access to domestic and international markets, tapping into supply chains of medium and large enterprises and corporates, and bringing changes in the system which involves formal and informal domains of policies and practices. MSMEs it works with, 270 are led by women.
The training program, held in Kegalle on 26th June 2024, attracted a diverse group of participants from the spice industry. Led by industry experts and seasoned practitioners, the sessions delved into various facets of effective marketing, encompassing digital marketing trends, market research methodologies, branding essentials, and customer engagement strategies tailored for the spice sector.