The Unilever Ghana Foundation has empowered 60 women with entrepreneurial skills to help enhance their livelihoods in Sekondi.

A statement issued in Accra on Monday and signed by Mr. Gabriel Opoku-Asare, Head of Corporate Affairs said, the training brings the total number of women trained in Ghana to over 1,000.

The statement reads that it was also in support of Unilever's commitment to empower five million women across the globe by 2020.

The statement said the training for women micro-entrepreneurs, provided them with behavioral approach and attitudinal change skills, bookkeeping procedures, cash and working capital management; using the 10 personal entrepreneurial competencies.

It said the women were also taken through persuasion, networking, persistence and demand for efficiency and quality, as well as, seeking opportunities, commitment to work and risk taking among others.

Mr. Andrew Evans Quayson, Chairman of the Unilever Ghana Foundation, said, the programme has provided the women with opportunities to better livelihoods for themselves and their families.

He said this would also afford them the opportunity to contribute to the socio-economic development of their communities.

"More than 1,000 women entrepreneurs in Greater-Accra, Ashanti, Brong Ahafo, Volta, Western, Northern and Upper East Regions have so far been trained and they have successfully grown their businesses," he added.

He also emphasized the importance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in job creation and economies of both developed and developing countries.

Mr. Gabriel Opoku-Asare, Head of Corporate Affairs at Unilever Ghana, said “We are delighted to assist this group of women, and to provide them with the necessary skills they need to keep moving forward with their businesses.

He said women played such an important role in sustaining local communities, "so we hope that the participants in this workshop will be part of efforts to bring improvement and transformation to Sekondi and Western Region.”