A PACKAGE of measures to tackle the gender gap in business and support female entrepreneurs has been announced by the Scottish Government.

Investment of £50,000 will be handed over to support the Investing Women network, while £35,000 will help enlist five enterprise ambassadors to act as role models and mentors for female entrepreneurs. They include Dr Margaret Anne Craig, chief executive officer of Clyde Biosciences, and fashion and textiles designer Kirsteen Stewart.

Finance Secretary John Swinney said: "Scotland is a nation that is rich in talent with a great reputation in innovation and enterprise.

"Today's investments will help women entrepreneurs to grow their businesses, benefit from the advice from other successful business women and ultimately grow our economy."

Margaret Gibson, chief executive of Women's Enterprise Scotland, said: "More women than ever are exploring the opportunity to start their own businesses. We all need to be mindful of providing the training, guidance and support they require, and this work enables us to begin to deliver on this."