On July 03, 2025, International Labour Organization (ILO) and Bangladesh Business and Disability Network (BBDN), hosted a workshop at SME Foundation, Agargaon, Dhaka, to explore how entrepreneurship can serve as a powerful tool for empowering persons with disabilities-particularly women-in selected districts under the ProGRESS project.
This half-day workshop brought together 16 representatives from national-level Organizations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs) to examine the current entrepreneurial landscape, identify the challenges entrepreneurs with disabilities face, and uncover opportunities for capacity building, business development, and digital inclusion. Participants engaged in interactive sessions designed to map out diverse entrepreneurial initiatives, understand market access barriers, and assess digital readiness for integration into e-commerce platforms.
The workshop aimed to build a foundation for inclusive economic empowerment by identifying divisions with high potential for scalable impact and developing a roadmap for targeted interventions, including skills training, access to business support services, and digital literacy programs.
This initiative marks a significant step toward ensuring that persons with disabilities have the opportunity to pursue entrepreneurial ventures.