Visa, in partnership with the Business Federation “Women for Tomorrow” and the USAID Economic Security Program, announced the launch of the Pitch Contest for Women Business Ideas within the She’s Next, Empowered by Visa in Georgia.

As part of the fourth wave of the initiative, the joint contest offers masterclasses for the distinguished 10 participants and 10,000 GEL as monetary prize for the best business ideas. The selection committee will choose the three winners of the pitch contest. Any Georgian adult woman with a business idea and willingness to validate it is encouraged to participate.

The competition aims to empower and uplift women entrepreneurs in Georgia by providing them with an opportunity to showcase their innovative business ideas and secure funding.

The terms and stages of the contest are as follows:

• Online application submission - an independent jury will assess the eligibility of each submitted application and choose the TOP 10 female applicants with the most promising and engaging business ideas to receive free training and consulting sessions.  
• Consulting sessions - the TOP 10 selected female applicants will participate in five-day consulting sessions led by subject matter experts and specialists in branding, digital technologies, bank products, sales, marketing, communication, and investment. During this stage participants will develop their business ideas into comprehensive business plans and, ultimately, create effective presentation to attract potential investors.
• Pitch Contest Day and Award Ceremony - after the educational sessions, the TOP 10 participants will be expected to pitch their business ideas within 3 minutes in front of the five-member jury. Following the presentations, the professional jury will select three winners of the contest, each of whom will be awarded business mentoring sessions and 10,000 GEL.
• Business mentoring session for three winners - as the final stage of the project, three prize-winning participants will receive a mentoring session to help them successfully launch their businesses.

Candidates who are interested in participating should thoroughly review the contest guidelines, including contest rules and selection criteria, fill out the application form, and submit it through the link by December 17, 2023.

Per the competition guidelines, each participant is allowed to submit just one business concept for registration.

About Visa

Visa (NYSE: V) is a world leader in digital payments, facilitating payments transactions between consumers, merchants, financial institutions and government entities across more than 200 countries and territories. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, convenient, reliable and secure payments network, enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. We believe that economies that include everyone everywhere, uplift everyone everywhere and see access as foundational to the future of money movement. Learn more at visa.com.ge

About USAID in Georgia

USAID is the world’s premier international development agency and a catalytic actor driving development results. Over 30 years of partnership with Georgia, USAID has supported the country’s transformation into a developing democracy that is increasingly integrated into Western political, security, and economic institutions. For more information, please visit: https://www.usaid.gov/georgia.

About USAID Economic Security Program

The USAID Economic Security Program is a five-year, $23 million program funded by USAID and implemented by DAI Global. The Program accelerates broad-based growth of sectors - outside of agriculture - that demonstrate a strong potential to create jobs, generate investment and increase micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) revenues. https://www.facebook.com/EconSecProgram

About Women for Tomorrow

Business association „Women for Tomorrow“ strives to strengthen the role of women in the process of formulating and carrying out a policy of economic development by creating an empowering network of women business leaders and employing the synergy of a collaboration of its members. The Federation contributes to fostering business startups, connects women business leaders according to their interests and assists participation in international business exhibitions and other events. Women for Tomorrow creates a wide and efficient union, which consists of all successful female business leaders, entrepreneurs, senior managers and companies that federation actively mediates between public agencies and other representative bodies. https://w4t.ge/