The Ethiopian Women Exporter’s Association (EWEA) is a membership organization of export-oriented business women in Addis Ababa with the chief aim of strengthening their selling capacity. Currently the association has 41 active members from five different sectors: coffee, flowers, textile, leather and handicraft jewelry. A future objective is to expand the number of companies within these sectors, but also to add new sectors such as food and spices.

EWEA member companies include small and middle-sized enterprises, which usually function on Fair Trade and social principles. EWEA cooperates both with government as well as civil society bodies such as ministries, grassroots organizations and development agencies.

Interns will aim to enhance EWEA’s business and strengthen their export capacities. Another task of them will be to improve EWEA’s financial situation so that the organisation is able to offer more trainings and participate in international trade fairs. Interns will write proposals together with the Program Officer and take on fundraising activities. In this regard, interns will also organise events such as bus tours of member shops for embassy workers in order to establish important networks. They can also directly work with member companies to improve their business by means of various marketing activities and web design, depending on the needs of the companies. Other tasks for interns include doing market research on export standards, maintaining the EWEA website, setting up a database, preparing promotional materials, and providing general IT support.

Interns should have a background in business administration or related fields. Experience in project management, event organization, marketing and fundraising is desirable. One of the participants should have a background in web design or IT and SEO/ SMO. It would also be helpful if interns brought their own laptop with them.

The scheduled time for the internship is July/August to September/October 2012. Training and preparation seminars prior to the internship will be held in English. The tandem will be formed by a Estonian participant and a German/Swiss participant.