ILALA District Commissioner Edward Mpogolo has encouraged women traders in Dar es Salaam to utilise free education provided by the College of Business Education (CBE) to enhance their businesses and access international markets.

He made the call in Dar es Salaam on Thursday during the closure of a three-day training session for over 600 women traders from the district.

Mpogolo emphasized the need for a shift from traditional business practices to more informed and strategic approaches.

“It has become common for many women traders to operate without the necessary skills and knowledge. This training has opened their eyes to new ways of accessing markets,” he said.

Mpogolo highlighted the productive nature of the training, which covered crucial topics such as financial management, loan handling and effective repayment strategies to avoid conflicts with lenders.

“The Ilala District is grateful for the CBE programme. We believe that with this kind of education, our traders will see significant growth in their businesses,” he said.

In a bid to extend benefits of the education, Mpogolo said that he held discussions with CBE Rector Prof. Edda Lwoga about bringing training to peripheral areas, enabling more women to participate.

“I am very happy to see that they have been given education on how to handle loans because in Ilala we have set aside 11bn/- for loans to traders; so, the education they received gives us confidence that they will do business and repay their loans without conflict,” he said.

Mpogolo explained that the loan programme is categorized into three tiers: the first group will receive loans ranging from 500,000 to 10m/-; the second group will have access to loans from 10m/-  to 50m/- and the third group will cater to those borrowing between 50m/- and 150m/-.

“We recognize the need to emphasize the first group, particularly for women who have been taking small, high-interest loans,” he said, noting that many have relied on loans as low as 20,000/-.

Prof. Lwoga highlighted the institution's commitment to providing entrepreneurship training to women and youth to strengthen their business capabilities.

“By building their capacity, we stimulate the economy for individuals, families, and the nation. Today, we have taken the first step by empowering 600 traders from Ilala with skills on business initiation, market identification, financial management and loan repayment,” she said.