DCO Expands WE-Elevate Program to All Member States at UNGA80

• The DCO took its WE-Elevate program to all Member States at UNGA80 in New York
• DCO strives to advance inclusive and sustainable digital economies
• WE-Elevate empower women-owned small and medium enterprises

The Digital Cooperation Organization (DCO), the first standalone international intergovernmental organization focusing exclusively on the creation of inclusive and sustainable digital economies, has announced the launch of its WE-Elevate program in all Member States, in conjunction with the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA80) in New York.

WE-Elevate, developed to support women-owned micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), is an initiative for capacity development that is designed to ensure entrepreneurs can utilize fully the assets of the digital economy.

A pilot initiative was implemented in Rwanda and was assessed which showed that women-owned MSME had improved their digital capabilities, formally registered their business, and expanded to new markets.

The initiative offers a blended approach with online learning modules, mentoring and exposure to international e-commerce platforms that seek to enhance entrepreneurs' skills around digital readiness, finance, and business skills by providers of e-commerce capacity building programs.

The pilot takes MSMEs from an offline mode to on-line, a basic level of digital readiness to cross-border e-commerce using a step-by-step approach as outlined below. In short, this approach enables MSMEs to scale and grow their customer base and formalize their operations, and create sustainable jobs.

Deemah AlYahya, Secretary-General of the DCO, explained that WE-Elevate is a new digital inclusion model, indicating that the program enables women to take opportunities that have a positive effect on their families, communities, and nations.

By taking the program to all Member States, the DCO aims to make digital inclusion a central pillar of economic development.

The WE-Elevate initiative further strengthens DCO's support for the UN Sustainable Development Goals SDG 5 (Gender Equality) and SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth).

Registration is now open to eligible MSMEs across all DCO Member States, allowing entrepreneurs to register and start their digital-first business learning journey.