EUDEL kicks off gender equality and inclusive society campaign

The EU Delegation to Turkmenistan is kicking off an online campaign to promote gender equality and social inclusion.

The purpose of the campaign is to tell readers about people who promote gender equality and fight against social stereotypes by their own example.

This campaign presents stories of 15 people with different background and perspectives on gender equality and social inclusion that will give you confidence and inspire you to do well. Our heroes are athletes, bloggers, students, teenagers, entrepreneurs, housewives and social workers. All those who do not stand out in ordinary life, but who can talk about the lessons they have learned from their lives and how to make our society inclusive.

Meet Gozel Akeeva who has shared her story about what it means to be a woman in business in Turkmenistan. 

"A woman in business is not a man"

I joined business in 2000.

At first I exported aluminum wires, then cotton, and later oil products. I exported oil products to Uzbekistan, Tashkent airport, i.e. aviation kerosene; diesel and gasoline to Tajikistan. We supplied Turkmen gasoline to Gazprom gas stations.

At that time, there were about 150 brokers on the State Commodity and Raw Materials Exchange of Turkmenistan, mostly men and about 5% women.

Today in 2022, I am mainly engaged in consulting of international and local companies in the export of petroleum products and marketing. There are more female brokers on the exchange, but the heads of companies are still predominantly men.

This is largely due to stereotypical thinking that big business should be run by men rather than women.

During my work, I have identified three main aspects of working in business.

Business is full of stereotypes. They say "be like a man" if you want to do big and serious business. In fact, it means be strong and stress-resistant, be proactive. If you want to be in business, don't expect to receive advantages for being a girl, woman, or mother. You must be in equal positions so that you can compete with men.

Competition will make you strong or it will kick you out of business. But it will also make the quality of your work much better, increase the pace of your work. Do not be afraid of competition; do not be offended by people if they compete with you. Competition will either make you better or take you out of business.

Finally, I want to talk about risks in business. Be prepared for the fact that people will let you down, that partners will not fulfill their obligations, that promises are not be kept. Probably the most common risk in business is financial risk.

Several times I was in a situation where partners did not fulfill their obligations, and I had to fill investment gaps at my own expense.

Sometimes a protracted economic and financial crisis hits. This is part of business no businessmen will tell you about. But this is the hardest time. Many businessmen cannot manage risks. It's easier to run away from debt than to be in contact with people who pressure you to meet your financial obligations.

I would advise you not to avoid, but to be in contact with people. With losses of millions, try to return at least a hundred dollars so that they can see that you are not running away, and that you plan to move on and get out of this situation.

If you do not avoid people, you will definitely succeed, because everything is temporary, crises are also temporary and there will definitely be gaps in business.

In conclusion, I want to say that business has no gender. Whether you are a man or a woman, assess your risks and your weaknesses, look up to stronger people. Try to reach your goal.

Do not think that people are silly and do not try to deceive them. If you ask for something, be prepared to give something in return. Whether it's information or some kind of service.

Dare and be bold.