African Women Entrepreneurship Cooperative

What African Women Entrepreneurship Cooperative does

African Women Entrepreneurship Cooperative (AWEC) is a nonprofit leadership and management training program operated through The Center for Global Enterprise, a 501(c)(3) research institution headquartered at 745 5th Avenue, New York. AWEC was created in summer 2017 (with the first cohort launching in May 2018) and runs a 12-month, high-touch applied learning program that enrolls approximately 200 women business owners annually from a pool of roughly 2,500+ applicants — an acceptance rate near 8% — drawing participants from 53 African countries and the diaspora. Eligibility requires an operating business of at least two years with at least two employees.

The product portfolio centers on the AWEC Core Program (curriculum co-developed with instructors from Google, Lagos Business School, Facebook, Ogilvy, and CRE Venture Capital), the private Alumnae Network of nearly 1,000 graduates, the Community Champions Initiative for alumnae-led local workshops, and the free self-paced Entrepreneur Essentials 2.0 mini-course. Supporting assets include the 'Me, We, Us: The Story of AWEC' documentary, the She Makes Africa podcast, AWEC TV, and the AWEC White Paper. Program delivery uses a blended learning platform combining live virtual sessions with asynchronous coursework.

AWEC is 100% donor-supported, with no fees charged to participants; funding comes from grants and gifts from foundations and corporations including Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Rockefeller Foundation, the Goldman Sachs Foundation, Google, Ernst & Young, Ogilvy, the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, and The Inglesea Charitable Trust. Reach has scaled to 1,400+ directly impacted entrepreneurs across 53 countries, with AWEC reporting that combined revenue generated by its entrepreneurs exceeds $77M; this figure represents alumnae business output rather than AWEC's own operating budget. Headcount is reported in the 11–50 range.

Name

African Women Entrepreneurship Cooperative

Legal name

The African Women Entrepreneurship Cooperative

Website

https://weareawec.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

African Women Entrepreneurship Cooperative (AWEC) is a nonprofit that operates a free 12-month leadership and management training program for women business owners across 53 African countries and the diaspora, enrolling roughly 200 fellows annually from over 2,500 applicants through donor-funded operations of The Center for Global Enterprise.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Entrepreneurship Training and Leadership Education

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (61143), Business Schools and Computer and Management Training (6114)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Leadership, Management & Teamwork for Business (EDAMAHAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Entrepreneurship, Startup Incubation & Pitch Programs (EDAMAKAK), Financial Literacy, Budgeting & Personal Finance (EDAMAHAE), Career Exploration & Industry Exposure (Guest Speakers, Company Visits) (EDAMAHAJ)

Keywords

• Entrepreneurship training programs
• Leadership development education
• Nonprofit capacity building
• Business mentorship services
• Professional coaching programs

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donor Funding and Grants: AWEC is a 100% donor-supported program operated through The Center for Global Enterprise. Operations are funded by grants and gifts from global foundations, corporations, and individual donors worldwide. No fees are charged to program participants.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

AWEC operates a free 12-month, high-touch leadership and business management capacity-building program that trains approximately 200 African women entrepreneurs annually from a competitive pool of 2,500+ applicants, using applied and collaborative learning models. The core program is complemented by the AWEC Alumnae Network for ongoing peer support, the Community Champions Initiative for alumnae-led community impact, and AWEC Entrepreneur Essentials as a free self-paced online mini-course. The offering is delivered through a blended digital learning platform with one-on-one mentorship, and targets women founders whose businesses have been operating for at least two years with at least two employees across 53 African countries and the diaspora.

Product overview

The African Women Entrepreneurship Cooperative (AWEC) offers a portfolio of programs centered around its flagship 12-month Core Program for women entrepreneurs, complemented by the Alumnae Network for ongoing community support. Key products include AWEC Entrepreneur Essentials (a free self-paced online mini-course), the Community Champions Initiative for alumnae-led community impact, the Business Clinic Pro for expert consultations, and the Me We Us documentary. AWEC also produces thought leadership content through its White Paper Report, Annual Reports, the She Makes Africa Podcast, and AWEC TV YouTube channel. The organization operates as a program of the Center for Global Enterprise (CGE), a US-based nonprofit.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Entrepreneur Essentials: A free, self-paced online mini-course designed to help small to medium-sized businesses understand their business at a deeper level.
• Me, We, Us: The Story of AWEC
• AWEC Alumnae Network (AAN)
• Community Champions Initiative (CCI)

Products and services

• AWEC Core Program A 12-month, high-touch leadership and business management capacity-building program that empowers 200 female entrepreneurs annually from across Africa and the diaspora through applied and collaborative learning, world-class curriculum, one-on-one mentorship, and a pan-African peer network. Free to participants, with approximately 4-6 hours per week commitment.
• AWEC Alumnae Network (AAN) A private online community for AWEC program graduates, serving nearly 1,000 women entrepreneurs through alumnae-led masterclasses, collaboration, partnership-building, leadership workshops, and community initiatives.
• Community Champions Initiative (CCI) A program empowering AWEC alumnae to uplift their communities through mentorship and training workshops, enabling alumnae to lead impactful workshops across Africa.
• AWEC Entrepreneur Essentials A free, self-paced online mini-course (version 2.0) designed to help small to medium-sized businesses understand their business at a deeper level, with interactive modules, quizzes, community engagement, leaderboard, and an AWEC digital badge upon completion. Open to any African woman entrepreneur regardless of business stage.
• AWEC Business Clinic Pro A program that custom-matches business leaders and industry experts with AWEC alumnae seeking solutions to business challenges, featuring expert consultations on funding strategies, time management, inflation response, and business operations.
• AWEC General Assembly An annual in-person event bringing together over 200 AWEC women entrepreneurs to celebrate achievements, network, and engage in workshops.
• Me, We, Us: The Story of AWEC Documentary A documentary miniseries showcasing the inspiring journey of AWEC, filmed on location in Gaborone, Botswana in collaboration with Creative Chase BW, covering AWEC's virtual learning model and stories of women entrepreneurs.
• She Makes Africa Podcast A podcast providing AWEC alumnae a venue to share their stories, discuss their work, the challenges they face, and the impact they are creating in their countries and communities.
• AWEC TV YouTube Channel AWEC's YouTube channel featuring video content including Alumna One-On-One and Fellow One-On-One interview programs showcasing AWEC community members.

Named customers8 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Lagos Business SchoolminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic institution contributing instructors and thought leadership to AWEC's curriculum and live sessions.
• CRE Venture CapitalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVenture capital firm providing expertise and instruction for AWEC's entrepreneurship curriculum.
• FacebookminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorporate contributor providing instructors and expertise for live session content.
• The Center for Global EnterprisecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe nonprofit research institution that operates and hosts the AWEC program. CGE is devoted to studying global management best practices.
• Creative Chase BWminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProduction company that collaborated with AWEC to film the documentary miniseries 'Me, We, Us: The Story of AWEC' on location in Gaborone, Botswana.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Acumen: Global organization investing in and building leadership capacity for social entrepreneurs tackling poverty in Africa, South Asia, and Latin America. Comparable to AWEC in providing business and leadership training to mission-driven entrepreneurs in emerging markets with a philanthropy-supported model.
• African Leadership Academy: Pan-African institution developing leadership capacity among young Africans through selective cohort-based programs. Comparable to AWEC in selective Africa-wide cohort model and leadership development mission, though ALA primarily serves a younger pre-university demographic.
• Cherie Blair Foundation for Women: Foundation dedicated to supporting women entrepreneurs in Africa and other emerging markets through training, mentoring, and network access. Directly comparable to AWEC as a women-focused entrepreneurship capacity-building program targeting African business owners.
• Tony Elumelu Foundation: One of the largest African entrepreneurship programs, providing training, mentoring, and seed capital to African entrepreneurs across the continent. Comparable to AWEC in pan-African reach, cohort-based training structure, and donor-funded delivery model.
• Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women: A global Goldman Sachs initiative providing business education, mentoring, and peer networks to women entrepreneurs, with significant Africa presence. Directly comparable to AWEC as a multi-month cohort-based management training program for women founders, delivered through a corporate/foundation-supported model.

Emerging players

• WEConnect International: Global nonprofit connecting women-owned businesses to qualified buyers, with a presence across Africa. Comparable to AWEC in mission to advance women business owners through capacity-building and network access, though with a stronger corporate-buyer matching focus.
• Anzisha Prize: Pan-African prize program recognizing and supporting young African entrepreneurs, run by African Leadership Academy in partnership with Mastercard Foundation. Comparable to AWEC as an Africa-wide entrepreneurship recognition and capacity-building program.
• Endeavor: Global high-impact entrepreneur support organization that selects, mentors, and accelerates founders, with significant Africa operations. Comparable to AWEC as a selective entrepreneurship support program with strong mentor networks, though operating globally and at later founder stages.
• Westerwelle Foundation: German foundation supporting entrepreneurship in emerging markets with programs across Africa including Tunisia, Rwanda, and other markets. Comparable to AWEC as an emerging-market entrepreneurship training program for founders, with similar cohort-based mentoring approach.

Others

• VC4Africa: Pan-African entrepreneur support platform connecting founders with investors, talent, and resources. Comparable to AWEC as an ecosystem-enabling organization serving African entrepreneurs, though focused more on capital access and community than on structured training programs.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@weareawec
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/african-women-entrepreneurship-cooperative
• Instagraminstagram.com/weareawec
• Xx.com/WeAreAWEC
• Facebookfacebook.com/WeareAWEC

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about African Women Entrepreneurship Cooperative