The Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE)’s most recent state of the sector report on small and growing businesses identifies three key challenges: 1) a lack of talented managers in emerging markets, 2) a lag in very early-stage investing, and 3) an ongoing decline in international development support for entrepreneurship. On the positive side, however, it lauds the growth of women-owned enterprises and gender lens investing. This series demonstrates an example where some of these challenges and do-wells intersect: the VV GROW Fellowship, an intensive program for women-owned enterprises in emerging markets. What we learn from this program’s impact – on SMEs, the women who run them and their larger communities – informs activities across the wider SME sphere.

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Growth Support Services: Taking Women-Run SMEs to the Next Level