UNDP Turkey maintains its activities to respond in a quick and inclusive manner to the negativities that result from the pandemic with the help of COVID-19 Resilience and Response Project funded by the Government of Japan. On “Power of Hope” Demo Day which was held in the framework of activities of Digitalization of Syrian SMEs implemented under the project, Syrian and Turkish women entrepreneurs came together and had an opportunity to promote their enterprises to participants in entrepreneurship ecosystems.

During this period when digitalization and teleworking have become increasingly important due to COVID-19 pandemic, specific needs of enterprises towards improving the opportunities of digital livelihoods are also becoming crucial. While many enterprises face economic challenges in this period, especially Syrian-owned small and medium enterprises are the leading ones which are hardest hit by the pandemic. Funded by the Government of Japan and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), COVID-19 Resilience and Response Project also takes into account the development of digital skills of Syrian-owned enterprises as a complement to the existing support that UNDP Turkey provides within the scope of the Syria Crisis Response and Resilience Programme. The digitalization process of Syrian SMEs which is implemented in collaboration with Human Development Foundation (INGEV) under this project aims to support the digitalization of Syrian-owned enterprises through training, mentoring programmes and financial support packages in order to combat challenges which result from COVID-19 pandemic.

As part of the efforts focusing on business development, grant support and consultancy services in digitalization, the "Power of Hope" Demo Day was organized on March 31, 2021 and it brought together businesses and cooperatives run by Syrian and Turkish women entrepreneurs with the entrepreneurship ecosystem. 9 businesses run by Syrian women entrepreneurs and 2 women's cooperatives led by Turkish women entrepreneurs, including Syrian members, introduced their enterprises to participants from the entrepreneurship ecosystem. At the Demo Day, organized with the aim of making women entrepreneurs’ business visible and helping them to reach financial support, entrepreneurs presented their business videos, presentations, product catalogues, needs and road maps they prepared under the consultancy of İNGEV.

The Digitalization of Syrian SMEs has five main components consisting of Online Trainings, Digital Infrastructure Grants, Mini Recovery Grants, Digital Marketing Supports and Financial Consultancy. The activities under these components include trainings on digital communications toolkit, digital marketing practices, digital outlets and the management of social media channels; digital infrastructure grant for cloud-based internet management tools and unlimited internet access; mini recovery grant to finance maintenance and renovation activities; the support for designing digital marketing campaign to increase brand recognition and reach a wider client network and relevant financial consultancy services related to government incentives and schemes.

Within the scope of Digitalization of Syrian SMEs, to date, 193 enterprises run by women benefited from this support. Under the project where the balance between women and men was also taken into account during the selection of beneficiaries, 276 Syrian SMEs, including 100 women-owned and 176 men-owned, participated in capacity building training on digital outlets; 181 Syrian enterprises, including 18 women-owned and 163 men-owned, drew on digital infrastructure grant; 30 Syrian enterprises, including 15 women-owned and 15 men-owned, drew on digital marketing support; and 50 Syrian enterprises, including 10 women-owned and 40 men-owned, drew on financial consultancy service. 70 Syrian business owners, 50 women and 20 men, benefited from the mini rescue grant prioritizing Syrian women entrepreneurs.

While Digitalization of Syrian SMEs activities support their integration into digitalization process, which is one of critical needs for Syrian SMEs during COVID-19, through training, mentoring programmes and financial support packages, these services also aim to strengthen their resilience and sustainability against the challenges experienced during the pandemic.