WOMEX – Empowering Women, Strengthening SMEs
WOMEX is an Interreg EU project launched in May 2025, running for four years. Its goal is to boost the competitiveness and sustainable growth of exporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in participating EU regions – with a strong focus on promoting equal opportunities for women.
Why WOMEX?
In countries such as Spain, Poland, Lithuania, Hungary, Austria, and EU candidate country Serbia, women often face additional barriers in international trade. They are less likely to benefit from export opportunities and are underrepresented in economic policy-making. Many regions lack targeted measures to combat gender-based discrimination, and gender perspectives are frequently missing in business strategies.
What Does WOMEX Do?
WOMEX aims to change this through targeted action at the regional level:
- Promoting gender equality in economic and regional policies
- Supporting women entrepreneurs – including access to funding, training, and digital tools
- Integrating gender mainstreaming into SME support programs
- Strengthening inclusive business ecosystems
Regions play a key role in shaping policies that foster diversity, innovation, and economic resilience.
Looking Ahead: Working Together for Change
WOMEX is developing a catalogue of good practices, based on regional studies and practical tools to support women in export-oriented businesses. The aim is to improve structural conditions in the long term and advance gender equality in international trade.
Through this, WOMEX contributes to a broader EU goal: fostering greater cohesion, equal opportunities, and a competitive, future-ready European economy.
