Welcome to the first learning burst of the Advancing Women's Empowerment (AWE) Virtual Learning Series! In this learning burst, you will find articles and resources on Getting to Shared Value: Creating Alignment with the Private Sector to Achieve Inclusive Development Results, along with information on how to engage with the first of three virtual learning bursts. If you missed the kickoff webinar introducing the AWE Virtual Learning Series and learning bursts, you can find a recap of the webinar and recording here.

Creating alignment and shared value for inclusion and empowerment in private sector partnerships is critical to set the stage for effectively working with private sector and implementing partners to achieve positive business and development results.

Throughout this learning burst, you can find learning from our conversations with missions and the original AWE Mission Learning Series, which was first implemented in the Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) region. We will also engage all of you to share your experiences on how you find alignment with the private sector through:

• Identifying inclusive agriculture systems goals and results;
• Working with private sector partners and implementing partners to co-define shared value, additionality and economic incentives for inclusion and empowerment; and
• Reviewing and articulating how alignment supports and achieves both mission and private sector goals.

We’re excited to launch this first learning burst and hope you will join us to share and learn from collective best practices and challenges.

For more information on the LAC Learning Series, please see the learning briefs for Learning Seminar 1, Learning Seminar 2, and Learning Seminar 3.

Experience has shown that the private sector is not always interested in or does not prioritize the same results or development impacts USAID aims to achieve through its partnerships, including those around gender equality and women’s empowerment. While it may not always be easy, finding common ground is an essential part of creating alignment and shared value. In this article, you'll find three ideas on how to identify and align private sector and development interests for inclusion and empowerment.

We also have a learning challenge for you! We want to hear from you about your tips and tricks for maintaining positive relationships with the private sector for inclusive development. To participate in the challenge, go to this Padlet page and share your tips and tricks in response to the learning question. The question we'd like you to answer is: What actions have you taken to develop or maintain a positive relationship with the private sector that includes common goals and outcomes for inclusive development?

And finally, an invitation:

Join us for an open conversation with four experts on gender, social inclusion and private sector engagement from January 25 to February 3, 2023! Using a virtual chat format, representatives from USAID/Colombia, USAID/Ghana, WeConnect and ACDI/VOCA will be online to respond to your questions and share lessons learned and experiences around engaging the private sector in co-creation and getting to shared value for greater gender equity, inclusion and women’s empowerment. Join our conversation by becoming a member of the AWE Virtual Learning Series Google Group! If you participated in the AWE Virtual Learning Series kickoff webinar, you will automatically be added to the group. If you do not see the invitation, be sure to check your spam folder. See more information on how to engage using the Google Groups Guide and Community Guidelines.