Dilip Barua, industries minister, said yesterday women entrepreneurs should have easy access to information and finance -- the tools that can equip them to avoid corruption in every sector.

“The government is relentlessly working to ensure a corruption-free public sector, where entrepreneurs will be able to receive services from all government offices and organisations without bribe or donation,” Barua said.

“Women entrepreneurs, the worst victims of corruption in every sector, are facing adversities in obtaining bank loans and licences."

“So women entrepreneurs should concentrate on achieving better access to information about financial institutions and licence-providing organisations,” the minister said.

Barua was speaking at an advocacy workshop on 'Anti-Corruption Reforms for Women Entrepreneurs', organised by the Bangladesh Women Chamber of Commerce and industry (BWCCI) in cooperation with USAID PROGATI at the National Press Club in Dhaka.

He also stressed the need to educate women entrepreneurs on their respective business sectors and ensure IT literacy, to keep away from ill practices. “If you have proper knowledge on any certain office, they cannot force you to bribe them.”

Aftab-ul Islam, chairman of Small and Medium Enterprise Foundation (SMEF), said women's participation in banking and non-bank financial institutions can resolve the problems with low access to capital.

He said SMEF is set to include women entrepreneurs in its board of directors soon.

Selima Ahmed, president of BWCCI, said the main objective of the workshop is to provide women entrepreneurs with the tools and information necessary to avoid corruption and advocate new policies required to prevent corruption.

She demanded the government to instruct all banks to set up branches for women, to further develop entrepreneurship.

“If all banks set up branches and separate cells for women, there is no need to set up a separate women's bank."

Ahmed Ali Shah, deputy general manager of SMEF, and Taleya Rehman, chairperson of Democracywatch, were also present at the workshop.