The ‘Beyond Borders – Bez Granic’ programme for women refugees from Ukraine

The club took advantage of support offered by The Rotary Foundation for refugees in Poland and developed the ‘Beyond Borders – Bez Granic’ programme, a series of educational and motivational meetings for women refugees from Ukraine. The project aimed to support Ukrainian women refugees in Warsaw through workshops and lectures. On the one hand, these were intended to help women from Ukraine find work suited to their skills, knowledge and education. On the other, they provided support for entrepreneurship by sharing the knowledge needed to start a business in Poland.

The club’s partner in organising the project and its programme coordinator was Ms Nadiya Bedrychuk, a non-governmental organisation activist and President of the Żółto-Niebieska Siła Foundation. Nadiya provides comprehensive support for women who had to leave Ukraine after the war began.

The sessions covered a wide range of topics, including:

– The particular features of remote working online. An overview of different online sales platforms.

– Starting your own company and finding a good business idea: participants learned how to prepare effectively to launch their own business.

– Mastering the art of pitching. How to present ideas confidently to potential investors or employers using basic self-marketing techniques.

– Building cohesive teams and partnerships, and techniques and tools for motivating employees. Understanding the importance of teamwork and leadership in business, highlighting their role in successful entrepreneurship.

– Finding customers and effective advertising: exploring strategies for finding customers and promoting businesses, including the use of artificial intelligence on social media.

– Personal branding and generating income: the project explored how personal image can influence income generation, emphasising the importance of a strong personal brand.

– Exploring franchise opportunities: participants gained insight into the potential of franchising in both Ukraine and Poland, enabling informed decisions.

– Access to European and Polish funds for start-ups in Poland. Information about available funding opportunities for start-ups and women-owned businesses in Poland.

– Understanding the legal aspects of business: self-employment, employees and accounting.

– Understanding consumer rights: participants were introduced to the importance of understanding consumer rights when starting a business, ensuring ethical and lawful practices.

– An important aspect of the project, greatly appreciated by participants, was the carefully organised practical meetings with successful business owners, presenting their companies and offering opportunities for in-depth discussions about entrepreneurship. These meetings covered various sectors, including a beauty salon, a restaurant and hotel, a private medical clinic and public relations agencies.

Women refugees wishing to develop their careers received comprehensive training in key areas such as CV writing, interview techniques and effective job searching, tailored to their individual competences and skills.

Forty-two women took part in the comprehensive training and received support in developing their careers.

In addition, 73 women actively participated in separate sessions and meetings within the project. As a result, they came together to form a thriving community in the Telegram group ‘Women’s Business in Poland’. This dynamic group is moderated by the Beyond Borders initiative and is intended to provide the foundation for a strong businesswomen’s club.

The project attracted considerable interest: 267 women registered and expressed a wish to take part in future projects of this kind. This demonstrates the project’s substantial impact on growing interest in empowering women in their professional endeavours.

According to earlier research, 79% of women who moved to Poland following the outbreak of war are dissatisfied with their work. Twenty-five per cent dream of having their own business. Forty-eight per cent would like an additional income that they could combine with their main job, studies or raising a child.

The Rotary project proved a transformative opportunity for Ukrainian refugees, enabling them to explore new economic avenues and unlock their potential in a country where they had initially had no long-term plans to settle. The project’s distinctive feature was its welcoming atmosphere and the meetings with ‘role models’: successful immigrant entrepreneurs already working in Poland.

The women participating were enthusiastic about the project’s impact, as reflected in their comments:

‘I consider it a great success that I joined your group. Excellent speakers, very inspiring and creative women.’ (Olena, aged 36)

‘The organisers are open and genuinely willing to help.’ (Olga, aged 55)

‘We were able to negotiate and agree on joint projects.’ (Sabina, aged 41)

‘As an accountant, I have already found five clients in the group for my new company, which I have just registered.’ (Viktoria, aged 45)

In a survey conducted immediately after the project ended, 100% of participants expressed satisfaction with the results and a willingness to recommend the project to friends. Everyone also said they would be willing to attend future sessions if projects of this kind continued.

The project also gave rise to many innovative business ideas developed by the women during the programme. These included creating paintings for interiors, opening an accountancy firm, selling hot dogs in tourist areas, selling macramé and handmade products online, opening a premium knitwear shop, starting furniture production, developing souvenir products featuring their own paintings, establishing a travel agency and creating a drawing studio for children and adults.

The Rotary project empowered Ukrainian women refugees by providing the tools, inspiration and contacts to pursue their entrepreneurial ambitions, building hope and optimism about their future in Poland. Rotarians played a key role in the project’s success, not only by providing funding but also by actively taking part in additional sessions devoted to empowering women refugees.

Hung Tran Trong, Past President of the club, shared his experience in catering and hospitality, discussing the challenges of starting a new company, the nuances of doing business in Poland, effective staff recruitment and quality control measures.

Olena Shpak, Club Secretary and a lawyer, offered invaluable advice on starting a business, including guidance on choosing the right management structure, opening accounts and drawing up agreements with landlords.

Andrzej Ludek, Past Governor, led an engaging session on the importance of marketing research in business, explaining how gathering and using market research can identify target audiences, customers for services and buyers of products. Participants then put their knowledge into practice, developing a questionnaire and focus group discussion guide to investigate demand for knitwear. They also conducted a survey within the group, engaging in detailed discussions about the motivations of different customer groups.

Participants also learned about the work of Rotary clubs around the world and RC Warszawa City’s activities for Ukraine, including all the club’s projects in this area. A moving moment came when the participants thanked Rotarians and the whole Polish community for their commitment.

The Rotarians’ commitment and the knowledge of the invited speakers made a lasting impact on the women’s progress towards their goals in Poland. The project proved exceptionally well designed and responsive to the needs of refugees staying in Poland. It took place in Warsaw from 14 to 30 July 2023.