The Biden administration has invested about $70 million in the nation’s Women’s Business Centers, making it the largest network yet.

BY MELISSA ANGELL, POLICY CORRESPONDENT@MELISSAJOURNO

For Inc.

Photo: Getty Images

The Small Business Administration is rolling out more resources for women-owned small businesses to help address obstacles faced by female entrepreneurs.

The SBA expects to open 15 new Women’s Business Centers by September of this year, expanding the total network to 160 centers operating nationwide, according to an announcement that the Biden administration is poised to make Monday afternoon.

Women’s Business Centers work with female entrepreneurs to help them start and grow small businesses. These centers supply resources, such as free or inexpensive business training and counseling, federal contract support, and access to financing opportunities.

Expanding the WBC network arrives after 10.5 million Americans submitted new small-business applications in the past two years, making 2021 and 2022 the most popular years on record for new startups. Female entrepreneurs own 12 million businesses around the country–and they also created almost half of the new businesses started in 2021, according to the White House.

“We’re seeing a small-business boom–with a record 10.5 million new small-business filings in 2021 and 2022,” White House deputy communications director Herbie Ziskend told Inc. “Today’s event is about lifting up this small-business boom, and the success of entrepreneurs and women-led small businesses.”

The Biden administration has invested around $70 million into the WBC network, the White House says. The new centers will triple the number of WBCs housed at minority-serving institutions, such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and expand WBCs to every state, plus the nation’s capital and Puerto Rico.

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