UK Government Support for Women in Trade
Access support from the UK Government to grow your business.
We know that women are crucial to the UK economy but continue to face unique barriers when entering global markets, including access to information, networks and finance.
Supporting women to trade internationally is crucial for fostering economic growth and promoting gender equality. By providing targeted support, we can help women overcome barriers and thrive in international trade, building a more inclusive and prosperous global economy where women have equal opportunities to succeed.
The UK Government is committed to supporting everyone in their trading journey – use the links below to discover what programmes are available to support you to start up and scale up your business.
Business Academy
Build your business with confidence. Whether you’re getting started, scaling up, developing digital skills or exploring international markets, the Business Academy provides the training you need.
More than 30,000 UK businesses are already benefiting from the free courses and resources. Joining takes only a few minutes.
Learn more about the Business Academy.
Wherever you are on your business journey, there’s an event to support your next step.
UK Export Finance
UK Export Finance is the UK’s export credit agency. In the last five years we’ve provided £14 billion of support for exports and international trade. You can get finance and insurance from the UK government.
Learn more: UK Export Finance
Events and Visits
Events are one of the most effective ways to support companies looking for trade opportunities. Department for Business and Trade's calendar of events is updated regularly with both UK and overseas events as well as overseas missions.
Learn more: Events Homeopens www.events.great.gov.uk in a new tab
Digital Exporting Programme
The Digital Exporting Programme supports goods and services exporters at every stage of your exporting journey with tailored support to help you reach customers around the world.
Learn more: Join the Digital Exporting Programme
Global Entrepreneurs Programme
The Global Entrepreneurs Programme (GEP) is the Department for Business and Trade'sopens www.gov.uk in a new tab flagship programme. We enable ambitious, internationally mobile entrepreneurs and their innovation-rich businesses to scale and grow from a UK global headquarters.
Once a GEP-backed business establishes its global headquarters in the UK, it gets focused and tailored support as part of the GEP Alumni Academy.
Learn more: Powering global success for entrepreneurs
Invest in Women Taskforce
The Invest in Women Taskforce is an industry-led and government-backed initiative that launched a £255 million fund for women-led businesses and seeks to make the UK the best place in the world to be a female founder.
Learn moreopens www.investinwomentaskforce.org in a new tab
Invest in Women Hub
The Invest in Women Hub is a website for women-led businesses on their finance journey, featuring case studies, targeted resources, a database of finance providers, and free mentoring.
Learn moreopens iiwhub.com in a new tab
Investing in Women Code
The Investing in Women Code is a commitment signed up to by finance providers seeking to improve access to finance, resources and networks for female entrepreneurs.
Learn moreopens www.british-business-bank.co.uk in a new tab
UKTP Programme
The UK Trade Partnerships (UKTP) programme is designed to enhance the export capabilities of small and medium enterprises in Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA) and Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS) countries.
Implemented by the International Trade Centre (ITC) and funded by the FCDO, UKTP provides trade promotion assistance through sector networks, providing advisory support and facilitating companies’ participation in trade events.
Learn moreopens www.intracen.org in a new tab
The SheTrades Commonwealth+ Programme
The SheTrades Commonwealth+ Programme is a trade and gender programme designed to remove structural barriers to women's participation in trade by working with governments, the private sector, and women entrepreneurs to build capacity and promote inclusive trade policies and data collection through SheTrades Outlook policy tool. Launched in 2018, it is implemented by the International Trade Centre (ITC), a joint agency of the WTO and the United Nations.
It provides women entrepreneurs with access to key knowledge, resources, and networks, and works with policymakers on inclusive policy reforms, leveraging public and private partnerships to amplify the impact of the work.
Learn moreopens www.intracen.org in a new tab
The International Trade Centre (ITC) have published a new report that highlights the UK’s progress on trade and gender, while identifying areas for deeper impact. It draws upon data collected from 12 private- and public-sector organisations as part of the SheTrades Outlook policy tool.
Work and Opportunities for Women (WoW) Programme
Work and Opportunities for Women (WOW) was the FCDO-funded women’s economic empowerment programme from 2017 to 2025. WoW produced research into global women’s economic empowerment. Toolkits and resources are still accessible.
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