APEC WOMEN AND THE ECONOMY 2015 FORAmddb.apec.org/Documents/2015/MM/HLPD-WE/15_hlpd-we_summary.… · The APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora was held on 15 to 18 September 2015

Page 2 of 108

Table of Contents APEC WOMEN AND THE ECONOMY 2015 FORA ...................................................................... 3

Key Results of the APEC WE 2015 Fora ............................................................................................... 4

Individual Summary Report .................................................................................................................... 7

Annex A: APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora Statement ........................................................ 8

Women as Prime Movers of Inclusive Growth ....................................................................................... 8

Annex A.2: APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora Statement .................................................... 14

Annex B: Policy Partnership on Women and the Economy 2 Meeting ............................................... 16

Annex C: Public Private Dialogue on Women and the Economy ....................................................... 25

Annex C.1: APEC WE 2015 Fora – Public Private Dialogue on Women and the Economy Program

of Activities ........................................................................................................................................... 50

Annex C.2: Profiles of Speakers and Moderators ................................................................................ 53

Annex D: High Level Policy Dialogue on Women and the Economy................................................. 61

Annex E: PPWE Management Council Meeting ................................................................................. 92

Annex F: APEC Multi-Year Project: Seminar on Empowering Women through ICT for Inclusive

Growth .................................................................................................................................................. 97

Annex G: APEC Women’s Business and Smart Technology Seminar: Including & Leveraging Smart

Technology for Empowering APEC Women Entrepreneurs .............................................................. 104

Page 3 of 108

APEC WOMEN AND THE ECONOMY 2015 FORA Summary Reports

The APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora was held on 15 to 18 September 2015 at the

Philippine International Convention Center. The overall chair of the event was the

Philippines’ Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Undersecretary Nora K. Terrado.

Nineteen APEC member economies were represented: Australia, Brunei Darussalam,

Canada, Chile, People’s Republic of China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Papua

New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Republic of Korea, Russia, Singapore, Chinese Taipei,

Thailand, United States, and Viet Nam. Each delegation was headed by Ministers, Deputy

Ministers, Ambassadors, and Senior Officials level.

About eighteen (18) official activities took place during the four-day events which are as

follows:

15 September 2015

1) WE-APEC Workshop: Setting the Agenda for Action

2) APEC Women and the Economy Dashboard: Developing an Implementation Plan

3) APEC Women’s Business and Smart Technology Seminar

4) Hosted dinner by Asia Pacific Women’s Information Network Center (APWINC)

16 September 2015

5) Seminar on Empowering Women through ICT for Inclusive Growth

6) Policy Partnership on Women and the Economy (PPWE) 2 Meeting

7) Launching of the Healthy Women, Healthy Economy Policy Toolkit

8) Opening Ceremonies of ICONOGRAPH and Luxe Philippines

9) Hosted dinner for Speakers by the Filipina Women CEOs Circle

10) Hosted dinner for Heads of Delegations by DTI

17 September 2015

11) APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora Opening Ceremony

12) Public Private Dialogue on Women and the Economy (PPDWE)

13) Launching of the WE-APEC Network Online Portal

14) Welcome Dinner for all

18 September 2015

15) High Level Policy Dialogue on Women and the Economy

16) Press Conference

17) PPWE Management Council Meeting

18) Hosted technical visit

The three major components of APEC WE 2015 Fora – PPWE (including PPWE MCM),

PPDWE, and HLPD on WE – were headed by the following:

1) The PPWE, the working group arm of APEC WE, as well as the PPWE MCM, was

chaired by the Philippine Commission on Women Executive Director Ms. Emmeline

L. Verzosa;

Page 4 of 108

2) The PPDWE, where private sector’s participation was heightened, was led by the

Women’s Business Council Philippines Chair Ms. Ma. Aurora “Boots” Geotina-

Garcia; and

3) The HLPD on WE, the culminating activity of APEC WE, was chaired by DTI

Undersecretary Terrado as well.

Key Results of the APEC WE 2015 Fora

APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora Statement

The Statement was adopted at the High Level Policy Dialogue which serves as a major

contribution to the APEC Economic Leaders Meeting in November. This outlines concrete

and actionable recommendations following the theme Women as Prime Movers of

Inclusive Growthand categorized along the three sub-themes: 1) Women and Inclusive

Business; 2) Women in the International Markets and Global Value Chains; and 3)

Women and Sustainable Development. Full copy of the APEC WE 2015 Fora Statement is

found at Annex A and is also available at the APEC website.

Finalization of the PPWE Strategic Plan 2015-2018

To further strengthen the mainstreaming efforts done on gender equality and women’s

economic empowerment in the APEC work stream, the PPWE collaborated with nine (9)

working groups, in varying degrees (as of 2015):

1) Emergency Preparedness Working Group;

2) Transportation Working Group;

3) Health Working Group;

4) Human Resource Development Working Group;

5) Small and Medium Enterprises Working Group;

6) Telecommunications Working Group;

7) Economic Committee;

8) Energy Working Group; and

9) Anti-Corruption Working Group;

Updated Guide on Gender Criteria for APEC Project Proposals

This document serves as a tool used to assess the gender-responsiveness or gender elements

of project proposals being submitted to the APEC Secretariat.

Out of a total of 42 project proposals assessed by the APEC Secretariat for Project Session 1

in 2015, 21 satisfactorily addressed the gender criteria in their first submission.

Finalization of APEC Women and the Economy Dashboard

This initiative seeks to provide a snapshot of the status of women in APEC, by looking at a

set of indicators to measure progress of women’s participation in economic-related activities

and women’s inclusion in several aspects of life.

With almost 80 indicators, these are classified along five pillars in advancing women’s

economic empowerment:

1) Access to capital and assets;

2) Access to markets;

Page 5 of 108

3) Skills, capacity building, and health;

4) Leadership, voice and agency; and

5) Innovation and technology.

The final version of the APEC WE Dashboard is available online at the APEC website.

Launching of the APEC Healthy Women, Healthy Economy Policy Toolkit

The toolkit offers a user-friendly one stop menu of policy options that can be used to pilot,

implement, and scale up actions appropriate to local economic and social conditions.It serves

as a guide to APEC member economies in implementing actions on a voluntary basis and

choosing actions appropriate for their economy. The Philippines has volunteered to apply the

toolkit in several of its companies within the export processing zones and other member

companies of the Management Association of the Philippines. Chile also expressed interest

in applying the toolkit.

Launching of Women’s Entrepreneurship in APEC (WE-APEC) Online

Platform

Accessible at www.we-apec.com, the platform provides a detailed view of the landscape for

women entrepreneurs in APEC region. It offers a dynamic directory of service providers for

women-owned businesses across APEC and provides a way for governments, the private

sector, business networks and entrepreneurs to connect to each other.

Heightened participation to APEC WE 2015 Fora events

One of the APEC WE 2015 Fora, the Public Private Dialogue on Women and the Economy,

gathered around 800 registered delegates and guests composed of:

o In total: 82% women, 19% men;

o Official delegates: 54% public, 44% private, 2% academe

o Guests (Non-Member Participants): 58% private, 37% public, 5% academe

o Private sector: majority are CEOs, Founders, and Managing Directors;

o Public sector: 2/3 are Ministers/Secretaries, Ambassadors, Deputy

Ministers/Undersecretaries, and Directors; and

o 30 student observers, majority from the Philippine Women’s University.

The PPDWE was honored by the presence of the APEC Leader, no less than the President of

the Republic of the Philippines H.E. Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III, who delivered the

Keynote Address. This further strengthened the call to continue advancing the focus on

gender equality and women’s economic empowerment in APEC discussions. It also

concretized our call for a sustained collaboration among the government, business sector, and

civil society in designing and implementing programs for women. The relevance of the

participation of the youth was also highlighted in PPDWE as well as harnessing their innate

potential for the future of inclusive growth.

Sixteen extraordinary Women Icons nominated at the ICONOGRAPH: APEC

Women Icons Exhibit

ICONOGRAPH, a special exhibition organized by DTI and its export promotions arm, the

Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM), recognized and

highlighted the stories of sixteen Women Icons from the 21 APEC economies. The

exhibition appeals to a contemporary sense of pride in leadership in sustainable growth and

http://www.we-apec.com/

Page 6 of 108

development of micro, small and medium scale enterprises (MSMEs). It also showcases how

women are vital contributors and prime movers for the attainment of inclusive growth of an

economy.

The following APEC Women Icons are:

1) Australia: Carol Margaret Hanlon

Founding Manager / Chief Executive Officer

Belmont Business Enterprise Centre Inc. (BEC)

BPW Business Incubator & BEC Global

Textile Clothing Footwear Resource Centre of WA Inc. (TCFWA)

2) Canada: Victoria Lennox

Chief Executive Officer

Start Up Canada

3) People’s Republic of China: Jie Shao

Founder, Lin’an City Tianyue Food Co. Ltd

Director, Bainiu Village Women’s Committee

4) Indonesia: Reny Feby

Founder

Reny Feby Jewelry and Indonesia Festival (INAfest)

5) Japan: Lin Kobayashi

Co-founder and Chair of the Board

International School of Asia, Karuizawa

6) Republic of Korea: Minjai Lee


M Son Co., Ltd.

Korean Women Entrepreneurs Association

Korea Trade Association

Korea Importers Association

7) New Zealand: Dame Wendy Pye

Managing Director

Wendy Pye Publishing Limited

8) Malaysia: Dato' Hazimah Zainuddin

Group Managing Director

Hyrax Oil Sdn. Bhd.

9) Philippines: Leonarda Capuyan

Founder

Narda's Handwoven Arts & Crafts

10) Papua New Guinea: Janet Sape

Founder & Executive Director

Papua New Guinea Women in Business Ltd.

11) Peru: Rosario Bazan de Aranguri

Foundress and General Manager

DANPER, Sustainable Agroindustry

12) Russia: Anna Vladimirovna Nesterova

Chief Executive Officer and Partner

Investment Company Center Capital

13) Chinese Taipei: Mei-Ping Hsiao

General Manager

Han-Chao Logistics Co., Ltd.

Page 7 of 108

14) Thailand: Suwana Jiwattanapaiboon

Managing Director

Xongdur Thai Organic Food Co., Ltd.

15) Chile: Andrea Pilar Irarrazaval

Founder and Chief Executive Officer

Clean Energy E.S.B. S.A.

16) USA: Ms. Julie Hanna

Founder

Kiva

Copy of the brochure can be accessed at:

http://apec2015.ph/women/iconograph/Iconograph_Brochure_for_web.pdf

Individual Summary Report

Summary Reports on the following meetings are annexed in this document:

1) Policy Partnership on Women and the Economy 2 Meeting – Annex B;

2) Public Private Dialogue on Women and the Economy – Annex C;

3) High Level Policy Dialogue on Women and the Economy – Annex D;

4) PPWE Management Council Meeting – Annex E;

5) Seminar on Empowering Women through ICT for Inclusive Growth – Annex F;

and

6) APEC Women’s Business and Smart Technology Seminar – Annex G.

http://apec2015.ph/women/iconograph/Iconograph_Brochure_for_web.pdf

Page 8 of 108

Annex A: APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora Statement Women as Prime Movers of Inclusive Growth

1 We, APEC Ministers, Heads of Delegations, Senior Officials, private sector leaders, and

representatives from non-governmental organizations, met inManila, the Philippines, from15 to

18 September 2015 for the High-Level Policy Dialogue on Women and the Economy within the

APEC Women and the Economy (WE) 2015 Fora.

2 We acknowledge the APEC host theme of “Building Inclusive Economies, Building a Better

World” focusing on four priorities: 1) enhancing the regional economic integration agenda; 2)

fostering small and medium enterprises (SMEs) participation in regional and global markets; 3)

investing in human capital development; and 4) building resilient and sustainable communities.

3 This meeting builds on the foundation of the first APEC Ministerial Meeting on Women, also

held in Manila in 1998, which paved the way for the drafting of the Framework for the Integration

of Women in the APEC agenda. The Framework has guided all APEC fora in mainstreaming

women in APEC processes and activities.

4 We welcome the recognition by the APEC Leaders of the vital contribution of women to

economic development and prosperity of the Asia Pacific and beyond, as well as their

commitment to take forward concrete policies and innovative measures to further enhance

women’s economic empowerment, and greater inclusion of women in the regional economy, in

particular, through improved access to capital and assets; access to markets; skills, capacity

building, and health; women’s leadership, voice and agency; and innovation and technology. We

will work to ensure women’s equal opportunities, participation, and benefits in innovative

development, economic reform, and growth.

5 We recognize that 2015 is a landmark year as we celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Beijing

Declaration and Beijing Platform for Action (BPfA) agreed by 189 United Nations (UN) Member

States during the Fourth World Conference on Women in 1995, where investing in gender

equality and women’s empowerment was acknowledged. The BPfA recognizes that women make

significant contributions to the economy and calls for the promotion of women’s economic rights

and independence, including access to employment, appropriate working conditions and control

over economic resources, and equal pay for equal work and work of equal value.

6 We encourage APEC economies to take concrete steps towards addressing gender disparities

in women’s labor force participation. We recognize the commitments of G20 leaders in 2014 to

reduce the gender gap by 25 percent by 2025.

7 Recognizing that APEC presents an opportunity for international collaboration between policy

makers and industry leaders, including those in the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC),

the Policy Partnership on Women and the Economy (PPWE) will work closely with ABAC to

further advance women’s economic participation and develop programsthat will train and

promotediverse pipelines of women leaders.

8 We commend economy-led efforts under the PPWE to enhance women’s entrepreneurship,

including in disaster reconstruction, to encourage women’s participation in the economy using

smart technology and other ICT tools, and to empower women through leadership as described in

Annex A.

Women as Prime Movers of Inclusive Growth

9 The main theme of the APEC WE 2015 Fora, “Women as Prime Movers of Inclusive Growth,”

reaffirms women’s crucial role in achieving economic prosperity and women’s leadership roles as

Page 9 of 108

imperative for competitiveness and success in the private, and public sectors. Inclusive growth is

seen as growth that provides opportunities for all, including women as both drivers and

beneficiaries of this development, which in turn can promote greater gender equality.

10 The APEC WE 2015 Fora also tackled three sub-themes: Women and Inclusive Business, which

highlighted how women from the base-of-the-pyramid are empowered as producers, suppliers,

distributors, workers, and/or consumers; Women in the International Markets and Global

Value Chains, which discussed how women leaders use innovation as a means to breaking

barriers and effectively competing in global value chainsand regional economies; Women and

Sustainable Development, which highlighted success stories and case studies on women’s

resilience, including health and wellness linked to productivity, family management and human

capital development, and disaster preparedness and business continuity planning in the context of

the changing climate and environment.

11 We recognize that to address issues within these sub-themes more efficiently, Senior Officials

approved the holding of two PPWE meetings this year; the first of which was graciously hosted

by Papua New Guinea in Port Moresby from 03 to 05 May 2015. This is to provide ample time

for economies leading projects under the PPWE and across other APEC fora to ensure that gender

equality and women’s economic empowerment is being pushed forward for consideration by

Senior Officials, Ministers, and APEC Leaders.

12 We welcome the outcomes of the Public Private Dialogue on Women and the Economy

(PPDWE), which highlighted inspiring stories and the unique role of women as prime movers of

inclusive growth. It also provided an educational and interactive forum for sharing good practices

and insights into tapping women’s potential through, for example, leveraging technology and e-

commerce. It also emphasized that women are more than just a niche market but rather a driving

force for economic change. The PPDWE called on all stakeholders to continue pursuing a

women’s economic empowerment agenda to create new opportunities for women, highlighting in

particular the need for collaboration between the public and private sectors.

Empowered: Women and Inclusive Business

13 We remain committed to realizing the full potential of women as economic actors in the global

economy and will continue to promote access to education, training and capacity-building

programs, particularly for developing economies, and mentoring services to enable women to

widen their awareness and gain access to labor markets, quality employment, and business

opportunities. We commit to strengthen social protection as it impacts women’s ability to fully

participate in the economy.

14 We shall continue to foster the increase in the number of female entrepreneurs year by year by

developing policies and services to assist women’s business start-up and business development.

15 Bearing in mind the importance of enhancing women’s participation in the economy particularly

focusing on leadership, decision-making and management, we encourage each economy to

establish and pursue measurable and aspirational voluntary goals, includingwomen’s

representation in leadership and decision-making roles.

16 We also encourage companies, employers, and entrepreneurs, along with governments, to invest

in human capital to ensure the physical and mental health, safety, and well-being of all workers,

including working to address the unique health and safety challenges faced by women in the

workplace.

17 We recognize the importance of inclusive growth and the contribution of vulnerable groups to the

growth and stability of the global economy. Youth, persons with disabilities and indigenous

Page 10 of 108

peoples experience increased levels of poverty and social exclusion, with women and girls in each

of these categories experiencing even greater challenges.

18 We call on public and private sector stakeholders to promote and respect gender diversity at all

levels of employment, and encourage both sectors to develop mechanisms to collect sex-

disaggregated data, formulate policies to ensure the achievement of gender equality and women’s

empowerment, and provide public transparency regarding actions taken.

19 We acknowledge that building a gender-responsive world requires a social transformation of all

members of society. We encourage women and girls and men and boys to take an active stand in

promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment and advocating for mutual respect and

shared responsibility. We recognize that promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment

will bring benefits not only for women and girls but also men and boys through inclusive growth.

20 We encourage exploring the possibility of promoting fair trade programs to support more women

in rural-based economies to participate in cross-border trading. We recognize that this will

provide more women with access to markets for their products and generate income to sustain

their livelihood.

Innovative: Women in the International Market and Global Value Chains

21 We emphasize that gender is an important aspect in international markets and global value chains.

Therefore, it is important to integrate gender into the overall business operations and analytical

frameworks, including production, sourcing, marketing, and consumption, to ensure gender is

accounted for. Taking proactive measures will enable women as employees, leaders, and

entrepreneurs to become more competitive and improve their ability to participate in global value

chains. This will facilitate the development of competitive advantage for women’s enterprises and

improve their functional position in the value chain as well as coordinate the support of various

enablers and service providers.

22 We listened to success stories of role models who exemplified the transformation of women and

provided a mentoring and networking opportunity for dynamic women trailblazers. These

provided lessons and recommendations for women to take ownership and propel the development

process by harnessing their motivation, leadership, and decision-making skills.

23 We recognize the importance of innovation for women and economic development and, therefore,

encourage APEC economies to work towards creating an enabling environment for women to

fully and equally get access to economic resources and equal opportunities to participate in

business in the global markets.

Resilient: Women and Sustainable Development

24 We acknowledge the strength and exceptional spirit of resilience of women and girls in the Asia

Pacific and emphasize their important role in adapting to climate change, reducing and managing

disaster risks, spurring economic development, and further strengthening the ties of communities.

25 We recognize the “Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030” adopted at the

Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in March 2015, which stipulated

“Women and their participation are critical to effectively managing disaster risk and designing,

resourcing and implementing gender-sensitive disaster risk reduction policies, plans and

programmes; and adequate capacity building measures need to be taken to empower women for

preparedness as well as build their capacity for alternate livelihood means in post-disaster

situations.”

Page 11 of 108

26 We encourage economies to provide women with equal opportunities to participate in decision-

making roles at all levels of disaster risk reduction, response, and recovery and to enhance

women’s leadership capabilities and representation across the board. We also encourage women

as integral members of our community, company workers, and entrepreneurs to be equipped in

disaster risk mitigation and climate change adaption. During times of disasters, women have been

known to take on tasks related to survival, such as administering provisions for their families and

seeing to their safety and good health. Empowering women such as through entrepreneurship

reinforces their roles as champions of community resilience in the face of disaster.

27 Women entrepreneurs should also be provided with capacity building, technical support, and

access to capital to enable them to run resilient enterprises. This will ensure that devastations

brought about by disasters will not permanently rob them of their income and livelihood.

28 We encourage efforts towards promoting business continuity programmes to support women-

owned enterprises to get up on their feet after disasters and carry on re-building their lives and

businesses.Reducing barriers to accessing financial capital and technical assistance as part

ofbusiness continuity planning would help to ensure recovery of loss of businesses.

29 We welcome industries and sectors’ efforts to promote sustainable development as they embrace

inclusive growth and support the livelihoods of many women, in particular in those sectors where

the proportion of women is increasing.

30 We advocate for public and private investments on “green infrastructure” and for women to be

consulted on gender-inclusive spatial designs. Disaster recovery centers should also set up

women-friendly spaces to ensure the safety and specific needs of women.

Integration of Gender Perspectives across APEC

31 We commend efforts by APEC sub-fora to integrate gender in their work, including ongoing

collaborations with the PPWE (See Annex B). We call on all APEC sub-fora to continue

integrating gender equality and women’s empowerment in their work planning and annual

reports.

32 We recognizethe updated Guide on Gender Criteria and the APEC Women and the Economy

Dashboard as useful tools to ensure mainstreaming of gender perspectives across APEC.

Assessing projects using the Gender Criteria enables a conscious effort in engaging women in all

aspects of APEC’s work and in increasing women’s participation in the region. The APEC

Women and the Economy Dashboard is a tool to track, measure, and communicate progress in

reducing barriers to women’s economic participation across our five key priorities. We call on

APEC economies to leverage the Dashboard as a tool to inform policymaking and capacity

building across all APEC work streams, and to improve and expand data collection to strengthen

the utility of the Dashboard.

Towards achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women

33 We, APEC ministers, heads of delegations, senior officials, representatives of non-governmental

organizations and private sector leaders, affirm Women as Prime Movers for Inclusive Growth

and commit to work towards achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women, and

building a better world.

APEC Women and the Economy Fora 2016

34 We look forward to our next meeting in Peru for the APEC Women and the Economy Fora and

other related activities in 2016.

Page 12 of 108

Toward APEC Philippines 2015 Economic Leaders’ Meeting in Manila

35 We agree to present this APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora Statement as our

contribution to the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting in November in Manila, the Philippines.

Page 13 of 108

Annex A.1: APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora Statement Annex A: Current PPWE Initiatives

Women’s Entrepreneurship

1 The Women's Entrepreneurship in APEC (WE-APEC) initiative, which was launched in 2014,

examined each economy's efforts across government, private sector, and business network

services to promote and support women's entrepreneurship. The findings of the WE-APEC gap

analysis under this initiative offered a detailed view of the landscape for women entrepreneurs in

the APEC region. The economy assessments can be utilized to strengthen eco-systems that

support women's entrepreneurship. The WE-APEC online platform, www.we-apec.com offers a

dynamic directory of service providers for women-owned businesses across APEC and provides a

way for governments, the private sector, business networks and entrepreneurs to connect to each

other.

2 The survey on “Good Practices of Women’s Entrepreneurship in Local Communities in the

Process of Disaster Reconstruction” as well as the workshop held in March 2015 in Sendai, Japan,

on the occasion of the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction highlighted the

important perspectives for women’s economic empowerment. These include the need for

technical skills and knowledge support; the provision of gender-sensitive services to meet

individual needs; the importance of strategic partnership, access to finance and local ownership;

fostering management skills including human resource management; and increasing profits,

innovation and access to the market.

Women’s Leadership

3 The “50 Leading Companies for Women in APEC” project aimed to demonstrate practices in

improving women’s leadership by showcasing efforts of about 50 companies in the APEC region

to empower women in their workplaces. The project can inspire other companies to learn and

enhance women’s leadership and representation in their own respective workplaces.

4 The “Individual Action Plan (IAP) for the Enhancement of the Ratio of Women’s Representation

in Leadership” project was launched to promote women's participation in the economy at all

levels, particularly on leadership, decision-making and management. The IAPs will serve as

mechanisms for measurable and aspirational voluntary goals which economies could work toward

by the end of 2020, with a view to assessing progress of ratio of women's representation in

leadership.

Women and Innovation and Technology

5 The PPWE Multi-year Project “Innovation for Women and Economic Development: Facilitating

Women’s Livelihood Development and Resilience with ICTs” provides women entrepreneurs an

opportunity to exchange views on policies and practices of using information and

communications technology (ICT) tools and assist them in establishing and expanding their

enterprises.

6 The Women’s Business Smart Technology Seminar reaffirmed the potential and importance of

women’s active participation in the economy through smart technology and promoted the building

of knowledge partnerships and formulating regional strategies on the use of smart technology.

http://www.we-apec.com/

Page 14 of 108

Annex A.2: APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora Statement Annex B: Partnerships with other APEC Working Groups

1 The PPWE has partnered with other APEC working groups to incorporate gender equality and

women’s empowerment into their sector-specific public-private dialogues, ministerial meetings,

and projects and programs to ensure that barriers to women’s economic empowerment are

addressed across sectors.

Human Resource Development Working Group (HRDWG)

2 The PPWE is collaborating with the HRDWG to implement training programs for developing the

skills of women, fostering an enabling environment to create better quality jobs for women, and

establishing capacity building centers to help women achieve competencies to meet the demands

of industry, as well as enhance educational opportunities for women and girls.

HRDWG and Health Working Group (HWG)

3 Full participation of women in the economy is essential to achieve inclusive economic growth;

however, women’s ability to access economic opportunities is sometimes hindered by health

concerns. Thus, the PPWE is collaborating with the HRDWG and HWG on the “Healthy

Women, Healthy Economies” initiative. A Policy Toolkit was developed to address health-related

barriers specific to women so they can join, remain and rise in the work force. The Policy Toolkit

includes policy recommendations and practices on: workplace health and safety; health access and

awareness; gender-based violence, sexual and reproductive health; and work/life balance. The

Policy Toolkit can serve as a guide to APEC member economies in implementing actions on a

voluntary basis and choosing actions appropriate for their economy.

Transportation Working Group (TPTWG)

4 Women’s inclusion in transportation, both as employees and users, is crucial to achieving full

economic potential. In line with the directive of the Transportation Ministers, we will work with

the Transportation Working Group (TPTWG) to develop and implement a framework for the

collection of data and implementation of best practices that will enhance opportunities and

measure progress for women in transportation. The Women in Transportation (WiT) Task Force

will work with the PPWE to establish a “network of champions” from each economy to shape,

coordinate, plan, and execute the proposed framework across its five pillars: education,

recruitment, retention, leadership and safe use, and access to transportation systems.

Emergency Preparedness Working Group (EPWG)

5 Recognizing that the Asia-Pacific is the most natural disaster-affected region, the PPWE

collaborated with the EPWG to identify and address the needs and concerns of women and girls in

emergency preparedness and post-disaster recovery and resilience.

6 The outcome of the PPWE project “Good Practices of Women Entrepreneurship in Local

Communities in the Process of Local Reconstruction” has been shared with the EPWG as a

valuable reference for achieving inclusive and sustainable recovery in the post-disaster phase,

which can also contribute to the enhanced linkage between the two working groups.

Small and Medium Enterprises Working Group (SMEWG)

7 The case for increased participation of women-led SMEs in export and global markets is

compelling from both a developmental and economic perspective. Recognizing that APEC

economies can grow and create jobs by offering gender-responsive trade promotion services, the

project “Promoting SME Development: Assisting Women-Owned SMEs Access the Global

Markets” focused on strengthening trade promotion agencies to better serve women-led SMEs.

Page 15 of 108

Economic Committee (EC)

8 The project “Capacity Building for the Reduction of Educational Gender Gaps through Structural

Reforms” was launched to enhance education with equal opportunities for women in APEC

economies. With this purpose, the project focuses on improving the capacity of civil servants to

adapt, design, implement and evaluate gender gap reduction policies. The project is directly

related to the APEC New Strategy for Structural Reform (ANSSR), as well as the SME and

Women Development pillar, which has driven the recent activities of the Economic Committee.

Page 16 of 108

Annex B: Policy Partnership on Women and the Economy 2 Meeting

Summary Report Policy Partnership on Women and the Economy (PPWE) 2 Meeting

16 September 2015 | 08:30 AM – 04:30 PM

Summit Halls C and D, Philippine International Convention Center

Metro Manila, Philippines

As approved by the APEC SOM Steering Committee on ECOTECH (SCE), the Policy

Partnership on Women and the Economy or PPWE held two meetings this year (as

necessary). Both meetings were chaired by Ms. Emmeline L. Verzosa of the Philippine

Commission on Women. Ten member economies were represented in the first meeting held

in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea (PNG). PPWE 1 provided an avenue for economies to

report on the completed and on-going projects and initiatives; to discuss the 2015 PPWE

Work Plan; and to update the PPWE Terms of Reference and Guide on Gender Criteria for

APEC Project Proposals. Members approved the PPWE Strategic Plan 2015-2018 in

principle and also came up with the draft APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora

Statement.

The PPWE met for the second time in the Philippines. Eighteen member economies from

Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, People’s Republic of China, Indonesia, Japan,

Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Republic of Korea, Russia, Singapore,

Chinese Taipei, Thailand, United States, and Viet Nam participated actively in the meeting.

Welcome Remarks and Opening Message

Department of Trade and Industry Undersecretary Nora K. Terrado, Chair of the APEC

Women and the Economy 2015 Fora, warmly welcomed the delegates to the Philippines.

Having hosted APEC for the second time since 1996, she shared how the women’s agenda

has always been vital for the Philippines. In 1996, the Women Leaders’ Network was

founded. Though this network was an informal one and not event part of the official APEC

structure, it has called on the attention of APEC officials to discuss women’s issues in the

Asia Pacific region. Hence in 1998, the first APEC Ministerial Meeting on Women was held

in Makati, Philippines which led to the publication of the Framework for the Integration of

Women in APEC. As time went by, the APEC WE Chair stated that the focus shifted on

concretizing and strategizing on how to advance women’s economic empowerment.

The APEC WE Chair congratulated PPWE for its initiative to hold two PPWE Meetings

annually, if necessary, as it has demonstrated strong will to sustain meaningful efforts in

pushing forward the women’s economic agenda. As she concluded her speech, the APEC

WE Chair laid out the objectives of the PPWE, which aims to draw up a cutting-edge policy

Statement on Women and the Economy and highlight the possible avenues for women and

development by considering the five (5) key pillars impacting women’s economic

empowerment — 1) access to capital and assets; 2) access to markets; 3) skills, capacity

building, and health; 4) leadership, voice and agency; and 5) innovation and technology.

Adoption of the PPWE 1 Meeting Summary

Upon the call of the PPWE Chair Ms. Verzosa, member economies formally adopted the

Summary of the PPWE 1 Meeting, which was held in Port Moresby, PNG on 3-5 May 2015.

Page 17 of 108

Adoption of the Agenda

The Agenda is outlined as follows:

1) Update on the utilization of the Guide on Gender Criteria for APEC Project Proposal;

2) Update on the use of the Women and the Economy Dashboard;

3) Discussion on the implementation of the PPWE Strategic Plan 2015-2018;

4) Report on the projects of other APEC fora with PPWE participation or infusion of

gender equality and women’s economic empowerment provisions; and

5) Finalize the Statement of the Women and the Economy 2015 Fora.

The PPWE Chair invited the Economies to endorse the Agenda, which was done accordingly.

Update on the Utilization of Guide on Gender Criteria for APEC Project

Proposals

The Guide on Gender Criteria for APEC Project Proposals is a tool used to assess the gender-

responsiveness or gender elements of project proposals being submitted to the APEC

Secretariat. It provides a range of approaches to addressing gender issues, from basic to more

complex, depending on the type of project.

Following the abolition of the Project Assessment Steering Committee (PASC), a Gender

Focal Point has been appointed in the APEC Secretariat in the person of Ms. Penelope

Howarth. Ms. Howarth reviews concept notes and project proposals submitted to the APEC

Secretariat to determine if this complies with the Guide on Gender Criteria for APEC Project

Proposals.

On behalf of Ms. Howarth and the Project Management Unit, the PPWE Program Director

Ms. Romy Tincopa delivered the report. Recognizing gender as a cross cutting issue, Ms.

Tincopa updated the body that the APEC Secretariat undertook two different activities to

support gender mainstreaming.

The first one was through information sharing by reporting on the outcomes of PPWE 1

Meeting, APEC Women and the Economy Dashboard, and Guide on Gender Criteria for

APEC Project Proposals. For instance in the last SOM 3 in Cebu, Ms. Tincopa shared that

several Program Directors integrated gender presentations in their respective fora.

On the other hand, out of a total of forty two (42) project proposals assessed by the APEC

Secretariat for Project Session 1 this year, twenty one (21) satisfactorily addressed the

gender criteria in their first submission. Proposals that did not satisfactorily address the

gender criteria were returned with feedback and constructive suggestions about how the

project could be improved and become gender responsive. Through this iterative process

between the APEC Secretariat and the project overseers, all project proposals in Project

Session 1 were ultimately assessed as satisfactorily addressing the gender criteria, although in

most cases there was not a high level of ambition to go beyond the basic level. For

comments and suggestions, member economies could send this to the APEC Secretariat

Program Director.

Ms. Tincopa also shared a draft Cross-cutting Issues Map prepared by the APEC Secretariat

which maps the structure of various APEC fora that are undertaking work on gender-related

issues.

Page 18 of 108

Update on the use of the APEC Women and the Economy Dashboard

To further mainstream gender perspective across APEC fora and to track its progress, Mr.

Carlos Kuriyama of the APEC Secretariat Policy Support Unit (PSU) reported that the APEC

Women and the Economy Dashboard has been finalized and will soon be available online.

The APEC WE Dashboard is an initiative that seeks to provide a snapshot of the status of

women in APEC, by looking at a set of indicators to measure progress of women’s

participation in economicrelated activities and women’s inclusion in several aspects of life.

The Dashboard has almost eighty (80) indicators, classified along the five PPWE pillars.

Mr. Kuriyama thanked economies for sending through additional inputs and data for the

APEC WE Dashboard. Although he noted that the new data did not change the conclusions

or any trend based on the report presented in May 2015.

In the recently conducted APEC WE Dashboard Workshop on 15 September 2015,

participating economies were able to develop a short list of indicators on health and safety,

financial services, literacy, outreach and learning, competitive access for entrepreneurs,

among others. The active participation of member economies and the national data they have

provided made the Dashboard a robust tool for tracking, measuring, and communicating

progress in reducing barriers to women’s economic participation. Economies were

encouraged to implement elements of the Dashboard.

Discussion on the Implementation of the PPWE Strategic Plan 2015-2018

The PPWE Strategic Plan 2015-2018 was approved in principle by the Economies based on

the agreements made during the PPWE 1 Meeting in PNG.

The Strategic Plan envisions a “Strong sustainable, balanced economic growth in the APEC

region that is more inclusive and enabling for women to succeed and advance.” The PPWE

mission is to mainstream, elevate and integrate gender responsive policies and programs

focused on women’s economic empowerment into APEC activities to advance gender

equality. It has three objectives:

1) Strengthen the integration of gender responsive policies and program across APEC

fora;

2) Advance women’s economic participation through the five priority pillars –access to

capital and assets; access to markets; skills, capacity building and health; leadership,

voice and agency; and innovation and technology; and

3) Strengthen the foundation and operating structures of the PPWE and the Women and

the Economy Forum.

During the discussion on how to move forward the implementation of the Strategic Plan,

economies suggested to develop Guidelines on gender mainstreaming into the APEC fora in

2017. The PPWE Chair commented that this might be timely to update the 1998 Framework

for the Integration of Women in the APEC agenda. This is to ensure that gender

mainstreaming really works. However, the discussion was not able to define who among the

Economies will work on developing the Guidelines.

The PPWE being part of the APEC SOM Steering Committee on ECOTECH (SCE), the

PPWE Chair shared that she personally reported on the completed, on-going, and proposed

Page 19 of 108

projects under the PPWE as well as provided updates on the upcoming APEC WE 2015 Fora

on 4 September 2015 in Cebu, Philippines.

Completed On-going Proposed

APEC Women's Business

and Smart Technology

Seminar – Empowering

APEC Women's Economic

Performance using Smart

Technology: Supporting

Policies and Training

(Republic of Korea)

The Individual Action Plan

for the Enhancement of the

Ratio of Women’s

Representation in

Leadership (Japan)

Successful Cases of

Women-Owned SMEs in

Foreign Trade (Chile)

50 Leading Companies for

Women in APEC (Japan)

Innovation for Women and

Economic Development –

Facilitating Women’s

Livelihood Development

and Resilience with ICTs

(Chinese Taipei)

Women’s Business and

Smart Technology

Seminar and Smart Start-

up Support System –

Leveraging Smart

Technologies & Global

Best Practices for APEC

Women Entrepreneurs

(Republic of Korea)

Good Practices of

Women’s

Entrepreneurship in the

Process of Disaster

Reconstruction (Japan)

Healthy Women, Healthy

Economies (USA)

Guidelines for Women’s

Involvement in Science,

Technology and

Innovations (Russia)

Women’s

Entrepreneurship in APEC

(WE-APEC) Network

(USA)

Women’s Access to

Financial Services Data in

the APEC Region (Papua

New Guinea)

Minor revisions made on the PPWE Strategic Plan were the following:

1) The first two paragraphs under Objective 1 was moved to the beginning of the

document to act as an Introduction; and

2) The Economies agreed to change the title “Key Performance Indicators” to “Targets.”

The following were discussed during the rundown of programs and activities indicated in the

Strategic Plan Implementation Schedule:

1) The trade facilitation under the GREAT Women Project was moved to 2016 as the

Philippine Government has to continue the consultation with the private sector for this

project;

2) New Zealand proposed that the project with the working title “Women and

Renewable Energy” be removed from the document;

3) “Women in Corporate Boards,” which was proposed by the Philippines, is still subject

to discussion with Japan. It was pointed out that the Women’s Business Council

Philippines (WBCP) and the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) are also

involved in this project;

4) The Healthy Women, Healthy Economies toolkit was launched on September 16,

2015 in Manila. The toolkit contains “strategies and practices that Economies may

pursue to unleash the economic power of women through better health;”

Page 20 of 108

5) The project called “Innovation for Women and Economic Development – Facilitating

Women’s Livelihood Development and Resilience with ICTs” by Chinese Taipei was

noted as an ongoing project;

6) Chile clarified that its project on capacity building for the reduction of education

gender gaps through structural reform is under the outcome on capacity building and

not on ICT; and

7) It was clarified that the implementation of the annual private sector forum/meeting to

incorporate private sector, academia, entrepreneurs, and civil society’s voice and

expertise into policy discussion is on a voluntary basis.

The Economies proceeded to report on their Individual Action Plan (IAP) aligned to the

Strategic Plan and 5 Priority Pillars, on a voluntary basis:

JAPAN

Japan reported that it already received fourteen (14) IAPs for its project on the “Individual

Action Plan for the Enhancement of the Ratio of Women’s Representation in Leadership”

and that those IAPs have already been uploaded at the APEC website. Other Economies that

have not yet submitted their IAPs were encouraged to do so. The delegation also reported

about the project on “Good Practices of Women’s Entrepreneurship in Local Communities in

the Process of Disaster Reconstruction.”

A presentation was also made by the President of the Colabolabo Company, Ms. Kyoko

Yokota, on “Female Entrepreneurs and Support for Market Access in Japan.” Her company

provides business support for female entrepreneurs and manages a website called

womanpresident.net, which is a platform for networking, marketing, and sales opportunities.

More detailed report shall be presented by the Head of Delegation to the High Level Policy

Dialogue on Women and the Economy (HLPD on WE).

PAPUA NEW GUINEA

The delegation from Papua New Guinea thanked the Host Economy for its compliments for

PNG’s hosting of the PPWE 1 Meeting in May 2015. The delegation also shared that it plans

to formulate policies and legislations in relation to the PPWE Strategic Plan 2015-2018 and

to address gender equality and women’s empowerment in PNG. A full report on these plans

will be presented during the HLPD on WE on 18 September 2015.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (USA)

The USA delegation gave an update on the project “Women’s Entrepreneurship in APEC

(WE-APEC) Network”, which identifies existing networks of women-owned businesses in

the APEC economies.A workshop was held in June 2015 in Singapore to share information

on a minimum of six hundred fifty (650) women entrepreneurs’ network in the region and

talk about the next steps, which include:

1) Creating a platform / tool for women entrepreneurs to connect in the region;

2) Bringing women entrepreneurs in the PPWE; and

3) Establishing a steering committee with a representative from each Economy.

Page 21 of 108

The delegation reported that the Women’s Entrepreneurship Portal will be launched on 17

September 2015.

The USA delegation also reported the launch of the initiative called “Women’s

Entrepreneurial Centers of Resources, Education, Access, and Training for Economic

Empowerment (WECREATE),” which is a safe place for women to access information

services, childcare services, programs to minimize the risk of exposure of women to gender-

based violence, and other services.

There is also the Spark Global Coalition, which is a call for action to generate investments

from private sector for emerging entrepreneurs. A public private partnership competition

called “InnovateHER,” where entrepreneurs pitch products and services to empower women

and their families.The Alliance for Artisan Enterprise was also launched to support artisan

products. The US government is also encouraging more states to pass state-wide family

leave programs to increase labor force participation of women and participation of women in

non-traditional occupations. An Executive Order to federal contractors on pay transparency

was released, which encourages workers to discuss their pays without discrimination.

CHINESE TAIPEI

The Chinese Taipei delegation reported on its multi-year project called “Innovation for

Women and Economic Development – Facilitating Women’s Livelihood Development and

Resilience with ICTs,” which illustrates how women use ICT for business in the digital area.

The delegations from Australia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Russia, and Singapore also

reported on their initiatives to advance women’s economic empowerment.

AUSTRALIA

The delegation from Australia shared updates on the following:

1) Women’s increased financial literacy;

2) Raising women’s representation in the Board room;

3) Reducing gender participation gap;

4) Providing affordable childcare system, a tax system for working women and families,

and economic security and retirement benefits for women;

5) Encouraging female force participation in non-traditional fields;

6) Addressing discrimination related to pregnancy; and

7) Availability of a website catering to working parents.

INDONESIA

The delegation from Indonesia provided updates on the following:

1) Gender mainstreaming in planning, budgeting, etc.;

2) Capacitating women in SMEs through training and financing;

3) Establishment of the Academy of Entrepreneurship for capacity and skills building on

marketing, product packaging, financial literacy, business mentoring, and others; and

4) Statistics on women in decision-making positions.

Page 22 of 108

PHILIPPINES

The Philippine delegation reported that the GREAT Women Project (GWP) has now become

its own brand and platform. With funding from the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade

and Development Canada, a second phase of the GWP will run from 2015 to 2021, which

will continue to strengthen convergence between economic agencies and assist twelve

thousand (12,000) women Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) to be more

competitive and sustainable.It was also shared that the private sector partners of the GWP

were tapped by US ATARI to bring the brand and platform to ASEAN countries like

Thailand, Cambodia, and Indonesia. The Philippines will also conduct the pilot testing of the

Healthy Women, Healthy Economies Toolkit. With regard to the Women and the Economy

Dashboard, the Philippines committed to take part in SME trainings and incubation.

RUSSIA

The delegation from Russia shared statistics on loans and grants given to women and women

entrepreneurs. Non-governmental organizations are also active in skills and capacity

building of women.

SINGAPORE

The delegation from Singapore shared that what it lacks from natural resources, it makes it up

by providing an enabling environment and investing and maximizing the potential of its

people regardless of gender, race, or creed. Singapore stressed that its women have equal

opportunities and access to fundamental resources like education and healthcare. Singapore’s

statistics of women participation in the civil service and Supreme Court were also reported as

well as its need to increase the number of women in the Board rooms and private sectors.

Singapore also shared that it has already set up twelve (12) Small and Medium Enterprises

centers to provide assistance to capital and markets, as well as other in other areas of concern.

There were also presentations made by Papua New Guinea and Canada on its Project

Proposal and Initiative to further infuse gender equality and women’s economic

empowerment across APEC work streams, respectively.

Presentation of the Concept Note on “Women’s Access to Financial Services Data

in the APEC Region” by Papua New Guinea

The project recognizes APEC’s lack of data on women accessing financial services and aims

to collect data on women’s access to financial services and identify barriers to such services,

and provide key recommendations to contribute to policy development on financial services.

The Philippines, Peru, United States of America, and Indonesia have agreed to co-sponsor the

project. Indonesia also recommended for this project to also provide sex-disaggregated data.

The Papua New Guinea delegation shared that the project will begin is data collection in the

1st and 2

nd quarter of 2016 and will hold a workshop on sharing best practices on women’s

access to financial services and promoting inclusive growth sometime in 1st quarter 2017. By

the end of 2017, a documentation based on the outcome of the workshop is expected to be

released.

Page 23 of 108

Report on “Dedicated MSME Sub-fund and Policy Support Facility” by Canada

The Canada delegation explained that this is still a project proposal that stemmed from the

lack of a dedicated funding facility for MSME-related projects within APEC. The approval

of this project will increase direct support for MSMEs and enhance Canada’s policy and

research leadership on MSMEs. By the end of the presentation, the United States of America

expressed its positive outlook on the approval of the project.

One of the targets set by PPWE is to collaborate with and influence at least ten (10) APEC

fora by 2018. The Meeting reported that there are already nine (9) APEC cross-fora

collaboration (in various degrees) which are the following:

1) Emergency Preparedness Working Group – recognizes the impact of disasters on

women, children, elderly and PWDs;

2) Transportation Working Group – has produced a framework for benchmarking and

tracking the participation and influence of women as transportation workers,

entrepreneurs, leaders and travellers and will be holding a conference on Women in

Transportation in October in Cebu;

3) Health Working Group – together with the HRDWG and PPWE has launched the

Healthy Women, Healthy Economy Tool Kit which provides a guide to eliminate

health-related barriers specific to women so they can join, remain, and rise in the

work force. It contains policy recommendations and practices on five (5) areas:

workplace health and safety; health access and awareness; gender-based violence;

sexual and reproductive health; and work/life balance;

4) Human Resource Development Working Group – implements training programs

for women to create better quality jobs and increase their competitiveness;

5) Small and Medium Enterprises Working Group – has included a focus on

microenterprises majority of whom are women so they can grow and create jobs and

have better access to markets through gender-responsive trade promotion services;

6) Telecommunications Working Group – with a couple of ICT related projects in

PPWE, this cross-cuts with the work of the TWG;

7) Economic Committee – a project on capacity building for the reduction of

educational gender gaps through structural reforms was launched to enhance

education with equal opportunities for women in APEC economies. With this

purpose, the project focuses on improving the capacity of civil servants to adapt,

design, implement and evaluate gender gap reduction policies. The project is directly

related to the ANSSR, as well as the SME and Women Development pillar, which has

driven the recent activities of the Economic Committee;

8) Energy Working Group – there was an information provided that women’s

involvement in renewable sources of energy were being discussed in this fora; and

9) Anti-Corruption Working Group – includes discussion on trafficking in persons,

most of whom are women and children.

The PPWE recognized the efforts of all nine working groups to integrate gender in their

projects and policy statements. PPWE looked forward to stronger collaborations to achieve

concrete and sustainable results that will impact the lives of women in the Asia-Pacific.

After the discussions and reporting, the PPWE Chair then called for the formal adoption

of the PPWE Strategic Plan 2015-2018.

Page 24 of 108

APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora Statement

The PPWE worked on the APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora Statement which

contains concrete and actionable recommendations categorized along the three sub-themes of

the APEC WE 2015 Fora: 1) Women and Inclusive Business; 2) Women in the International

Markets and Global Value Chains; and 3) Women and Sustainable Development. The APEC

WE 2015 Fora Statement was deemed endorsed by the body for adoption to the High Level

Policy Dialogue on Women and the Economy.

Chair’s Closing Remarks

The Peru delegation expressed its gratitude to the host of the APEC WE Fora 2015 and

invited all Economies to Peru for APEC 2016.

The PPWE Chair delivered her closing remarks by highlighting the next steps to be done:

1) Submission of the Strategic Plan 2015-2018 to the SCE;

2) Filling in of projects in the Strategic Plan 2015-2018 Implementation Schedule; and

3) Conduct of the PPWE Management Council Meeting that will be co-chaired by the

Philippines, China, and Peru, and attended by two delegates per economy and ABAC

representatives.

Finally, the PPWE Chair acknowledged the hard work of all the delegation on the finalization

of the APEC WE 2015 Fora Statement and encouraged men’s active engagement for the

achievement of gender equality.

Page 25 of 108

Annex C: Public Private Dialogue on Women and the Economy

Summary Report Policy Partnership on Women and the Economy (PPWE) 2 Meeting

17 September 2015 | 08:30 AM – 06:00 PM

Reception Hall, Philippine International Convention Center


Executive Summary

The Public Private Dialogue on Women and the Economy (PPDWE) was held in Manila on

17 September 2015 and served as a platform for a highly informative, inspiring, and

insightful exchange of information and insights on women empowerment and integration in

global trade and business.

Over 800 individuals from 19 member economies of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation

(APEC) attended the event. Of this number, 82% were women, 19% were men; 58% came

from the private sector while the rest came from the public sector.

H.E. President Benigno S. Aquino III graced the forum as keynote speaker. In his speech,

President Aquino assured the PPWDE participants of the Philippines’ commitment in

expanding opportunities for women, adding that the “issue of gender equality calls for

continuous reflection and corresponding action.” He shared that the Philippines was cited in

the World Economic Forum (WEF) Gender Gap Report 2014 as the top-ranking Asian

economy in terms of closing gender gaps. The Philippines ranked 9th

out of 142 economies

and was the only Asian economy in the top 10 ranked economies.

The WEF Gender Gap Report 2014 reveals that gender gaps remain although there has been

progress in closing these across the world. At the Forum, the speakers discussed global

developments seen to impact on efforts to empower women and engage them in economic

activities. These include the following:

Rise of technology and digital economy

Increasing number of the millennial workforce

Changing work landscape allowing more virtual / off-site / work-from-home

arrangements

Improved awareness and discussions on inclusive business as an emerging field

Greater opportunities for young women compared to previous years

Recommendations for women empowerment and gender equality that were gathered at the

PPDWE were as follows:

1) Increase gender diversity in boards starting with government owned and controlled

corporations (GOCCs), government financial institutions, and publicly listed

companies. Establish a quota for women seats on Corporate Boards and incorporate

gender diversity language into corporate governance codes of each country.

2) Adopt the gender lens in establishing financial support and training for businesses.

Funnel investments in private sector companies with innovative gender policies that

extend across their supply chains. Provide direct capital to companies and social

enterprises that offer products and services benefiting women and girls.

Page 26 of 108

3) Establish ICT infrastructure that will connect women in businesses into customers and

markets, value chain support, mentoring and networking initiatives, as well as e-

commerce programs.

4) Invest on the youth, particularly on science, technology, engineering, and

mathematics (STEM) education. Develop women STEM professionals and increase

the number of women in the fields of information technology, research, and

innovation.

5) Invest in talent management and development. Conduct mentoring programs for

women, grant scholarships, and conduct skills training and capability building for

women, including leadership training for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises

(MSMEs) and women-owned enterprises.

6) Initiate programs for those who are at the bottom of the pyramid (BoP). Increase

engagement and participation of low-income women in order to create and develop

policies, laws, and programs that are more responsive to their needs and in alignment

with on-ground realities. Support more inclusive businesses particularly those with

explicit women empowerment in their business strategy.

7) Start gender equality advocacies and technology discussions at home. Increase

awareness and appreciation on gender advocacies and women empowerment among

children, spouses, relatives, and friends. Find ways to allow more young girls to learn

technology so that they may harness it in future efforts for inclusive growth and

women empowerment.

8) Continue collaboration among the government, business sector, and civil society in

designing and implementing programs for women.

9) Develop policies that will call on government offices to dedicate a percentage of their

procurement for MSMEs and women-owned enterprises.

10) Identify role models who can serve as inspiration for young women in pursuing their

goals and objectives whether it is in the field of entrepreneurship, technology,

education, or social development.

About the APEC Women and Economy 2015 Fora and the Public Private

Dialogue on Women and the Economy

On 15-18 September 2015, the Philippines hosted the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation

Women and the Economy (APEC WE) 2015 Fora, guided by the theme “Women as Prime

Movers of Inclusive Growth.” The Fora aimed to develop a set of actionable, measurable

and concrete policy recommendations for presentation to the APEC Leaders during their

meeting in November 2015.

One of the components of APEC WE 2015 is the Public Private Dialogue on Women and the

Economy (PPDWE), which was held on 17 September 2015 at the Philippine International

Convention Center in Manila. The PPDWE was organized by the Department of Trade and

Industry (DTI), which serves as Chair of the APEC WE. Together with the DTI are the

Women’s Business Council of the Philippines (WomenBizPh) and the Philippine

Commission on Women (PCW).

WomenBizPh is the premier advocate and resource of APEC on issues faced by business

women in the Philippine private sector, while PCW is the country’s primary policy-making

and coordinating body on women and gender equality concerns.

Page 27 of 108

Over 800 attendees from the government, business, academe, and civil society organizations

across 19 APEC economies joined the event. H. E. President Benigno S. Aquino III graced

the PPDWE as Keynote Speaker.

Attendance Data

19 economies

represented

Delegations headed by:

6 Ministers

7 Deputy Ministers

2 Ambassadors

1 Minister Counsellor

3 Senior Director, Managing Director, Deputy

Director level

Over 800 people

registered

Official delegates:

54% public, 44% private, 2% academe

Guests (Non-Member Participants):

58% private sector

Majority are CEOs, Founders, Managing Directors

37% public sector

2 of 3 are Ministers/ Secretaries, Ambassadors,

Deputy Ministers/ Undersecretaries/ Directors

5% academe

Around 30 student observers; Majority are from

the Philippine Women’s University (PWU), Asia’s

first women college established in 1919 by seven

women from the Philippines

Total: 82% women; 19% men

APEC WE 2015 Fora Website and Mobile Application

On 15 July 2015, the APEC WE 2015 Fora launched the satellite website under APEC 2015

Philippines for the meeting period, accessible at http://apec2015.ph/women/. All delegates

and guests were encouraged to check for updates and announcements on the website prior to

and during the event.

http://apec2015.ph/women/

Page 28 of 108

Allowing each session in PPDWE to be more interactive in nature by engaging the audience,

the APEC WE 2015 Fora has launched its mobile application which are available both in

iOS and Android platforms.

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.teamasia.apec

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/apec-we-2015-fora/id1024041301?ls=1&mt=8

How to download the mobile app:

1. From your mobile phone, click PlayStore or App Store.

2. Search the app “APEC WE 2015 Fora.”

3. It should show the app in the first result.

4. Click install. Usec. Terrado showing the APEC WE 2015 Fora Mobile Application to Hon. Joyce Yen Feng, Head

of the Chinese Taipei delegation.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.teamasia.apec

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/apec-we-2015-fora/id1024041301?ls=1&mt=8

Page 29 of 108

Plenary Presentations and Panel Discussions

The PPDWE featured six plenary sessions and five panel discussions. See Annex C.1 for the

APEC Women and Economy 2015 Fora: PPDWE Agenda.

PLENARY SESSIONS

• Welcome Remarks, Undersecretary Nora K. Terrado

• Opening Speech, Ms. Doris Magsaysay Ho

• Harnessing the Power of the Crowd, Maria Ressa

• World’s Economic Forum Gender Gap Report 2014, Saadia Zahidi

• Keynote Speech, H.E. President Benigno S. Aquino III

• Closing Remarks

o Kathy Xiaosi Gong (People’s Republic of China)

o Ana Maria Choquehuanca (Peru)

o Ma. Aurora “Boots” Geotina-Garcia (Philippines)

PANEL SESSIONS

• 5 Pillars of Women’s Economic Empowerment

• Young Women Leaders as Powerful Drivers of Change

• Women in the International Markets and Global Value Chains

• Women and Inclusive Business

• Women and Sustainable Development

The succeeding pages provide the highlights of these sessions.

Page 30 of 108

“The overall theme of APEC Women

and the Economy 2015 Fora

“Women as Prime Movers of

Inclusive Growth” reflects our

growing recognition of the role and

power of women to spur business

and economic growth.”

1 WELCOME REMARKS

NORA K. TERRADO

Chair, APEC WE 2015 Fora

Undersecretary, Department of Trade and Industry

Undersecretary Nora K. Terrado officially welcomed the delegates and guests to the APEC

Women and the Economy 2015 Fora Public-Private Dialogue on Women and the Economy.

She started her remarks with a video which highlighted the three (3) pillars of APEC in

advancing free trade for Asia Pacific prosperity: (1) Trade and investment, (2) Business

Facilitation, and (3) Economic and technical cooperation.

Usec. Terrado discussed the historical background of APEC WE 2015 Fora citing it as a

platform that supports integration of women across APEC work streams through

collaboration and gender equality. She expressed optimism that through the efforts of the

working group of the APEC WE 2015 Fora and the results of the PPDWE discussions during

the day, a set of concrete and actionable policy recommendations would be adopted at the

High Level Policy Dialogue on Women and the Economy.

The Undersecretary cited some trends for the PPDWE’s consideration as APEC moves

forward in its agenda.

1) Increase of global economy participants from 500 million in 1995 to 7 billion today;

2) Growth in business to consumer ecommerce to 1.5 trillion sales;

3) Women influencing the greater majority of purchasing decisions;

4) Women in western economies using technology more than their male counterparts;

5) Cloud, social media, big data, and mobility creating major disruptions and impacting

women;

6) Virtualization of work, allowing more women to work from home; and

7) Rise of the millennials, many of whom are women.

Usec. Terrado explained gender gaps still exist and more work is required. She is optimistic

however that the line-up of speakers in the PPDWE will provide delegates with insights and

key learnings on women issues and realities. She encouraged everyone to be engaged in the

discussions and to put forward their views and opinions on how women empowerment and

integration in business could be pursued.

Supplemental Information: Copy of Usec. Terrado’s speech can be accessed here: APEC WE Chair Speech

http://mddb.apec.org/Documents/2015/PPWE/DIA1/15_ppwe2_dia_002a.pdf

http://mddb.apec.org/Documents/2015/PPWE/DIA1/15_ppwe2_dia_002a.pdf

Page 31 of 108

2 OPENING SPEECH

DORIS MAGSAYSAY-HO

Chair, APEC Business Advisory Council

President and CEO, Magsaysay Maritime Corporation

Ms. Magsaysay-Ho emphasized PPDWE’s role in continuing the dialogue on women

participation in trade and the economy. She cited the Forum as an opportunity for women to

share their own experiences and insights with regard to pushing gender equality and women

empowerment.

Ms. Magsaysay-Ho shared two lessons she learned in her life and cited her own experiences

in managing their family’s maritime business. The first lesson refers to being true to one’s

self. She learned that women should harness their unique character as women, and should

not try to be like men, if they wish to succeed.

The second lesson is her realization that women’s success in business must also allow

success at home. Knowing women’s stress in balancing challenges at work and at home, Ms.

Magsaysay-Ho said there should be increased opportunities for women to do their jobs

without sacrificing their personal responsibilities to their families.

Today’s landscape helps bridge the gaps and barriers to include women’s participation in the

economy. Ms. Magsaysay-Ho cited some opportunities for women to better balance work and

family amid this landscape: technology driving virtual work, rise of e-commerce and online

selling, increasing number of companies offering part-time jobs or work-at-home

arrangements, among others.

Supplemental Information: Copy of Ms. Magsaysay-Ho’s speech can be accessed here:

ABAC Chair Speech

3 HARNESSING THE POWER OF THE CROWD

MARIA RESSA


Rappler

“Every business today is an internet business,” Maria Ressa said

as she opened her presentation. Ressa showed how technology

has changed the business landscape. According to her,

technology has given rise to new business models and has

resulted into exponential growth of many organizations.

She talked about the rise of technology-driven businesses, social

media as businesses’ direct connection to consumers, big data

for collaborative business, and online crowdsourcing – all of

which spell opportunities for organizations, including women.

Technology + Women

= Magic Combination

http://mddb.apec.org/Documents/2015/PPWE/DIA1/15_ppwe2_dia_003.pdf

Page 32 of 108

Ressa shared their experience in Rappler, an online-based media platform, as a case study of

how organizations can leverage on technology. The pace of information flow has become

exponentially faster today that it has dictated changes in the way a media organization like

Rappler does business. Because of technology, Rappler is able to deliver news at a faster pace

without need for infrastructure typically used by traditional broadcast stations. One of its

initiatives, “Project Agos,” harnesses technology to maximize the flow of critical data before,

during, and after disasters. Through data shared by the public, Project Agos proved “help can

come from the crowd”.

4 WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM’S GLOBAL GENDER GAP REPORT

SAADIA ZAHIDI

Senior Director, Gender Parity, Human Capital and Constituents

World Economic Forum

The Gender Gap Report 2014 seeks to understand gaps

between men and women in the areas of health,

education, economic participation, and political

empowerment. It aims to know if women and men in

both developed and less developed economies have the

same rights and opportunities.

The study reveals gender gaps remain although there is progress in closing these across the

world. Of the 142 economies covered by the study, those in Northern Europe such as

Iceland, Finland, Norway, Sweden, and Denmark made it to the list’s top five (5), closing

over 80% of the gender gaps. Chad (140), Pakistan (141) and Yemen (142) were ranked at

the bottom. The Philippines (rank 9) is the only Asian economy included in the top 10.

Kuwait (113) ranked the best among Middle East economies, followed by the United Arab

Emirates (115). Data shows that 105 of the 111 countries originally tracked since 2006 are

making progress in closing these gaps. Saudi Arabia, for example, has made most progress

(relative to itself) in terms of closing gaps in women’s economic participation.

The Gender Gap Report highlights people and talents are key resources driving economies. It

underscores gender equality as vital part of humanity’s progress.

Note: highest possible score is 1 (equality) and lowest possible score is 0 (inequality).

Supplemental Information: Global Gender Gap Report Rankings can be accessed here:

Rankings

http://reports.weforum.org/global-gender-gap-report-2014/rankings/

Page 33 of 108

5 KEYNOTE SPEECH

H.E. BENIGNO SIMEON AQUINO III

President of the Republic of the Philippines

President Aquino assured PPWDE delegates and guests of the Philippines’ commitment to

expanding opportunities for women, adding that the “issue of gender equality calls for

continuous reflection and corresponding action”.

He recognized the roles of Filipino women in history from the Spanish era to the modern

times, citing among others, women heroes like Gabriela Silang and Tandang Sora, as well as

former President Corazon Aquino. He described women as strong-willed and superior in

many areas. He is confident of women’s roles and contribution in achieving inclusive

growth.

The President spoke of the number of women appointees in various positions in the

Philippine government. Over the years, according to him, women government leaders have

become pillars of the government’s reform agenda. He assured future public servants that

“they would not be defined by their gender” but by their integrity and work ethic.

Women have also proven their roles in driving the Philippines’ economic growth. President

Aquino cited data on women economic participation: 54% of registered trade names are

owned by women while 63% of business owners and managers are women.

He talked about some of government’s initiatives to empower women. These include

TESDA-STAR (Technical Education and Skills Development Authority – Sari Sari Store

Training and Access to Resources), which helps women sari sari storeowners become more

professional in doing business. The program has produced over 30,000 graduates since it

started in 2011. In the area of legislation, the Congress has repealed provisions of the Labor

Law prohibiting women from working on evening shifts.

Supplemental Information: Copy of the President’s speech can be accessed here: PNoy

Speech

“The issue of gender equality

calls for continuous reflection

and corresponding action.”

- H.E. President Benigno S. Aquino III



Page 34 of 108

Photo Opportunity with the President of the Republic of the Philippines, H.E. Benigno

S. Aquino III

President Benigno S. Aquino III and Trade Secretary Gregory L. Domingo together with the Heads of Delegation to the APEC PPDWE held on 17 September 2015 at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) Reception Hall, Manila.

APEC WOMEN AND THE ECONOMY 2015 FORA Heads of Delegation

H.E. Bill Tweddell

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary

Embassy of Australia

AUSTRALIA

Hon. Anna Solomon

Secretary

Department of Religion, Youth and

Community Development

PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Datin Paduka Hajah Adina Binti Othman

Deputy Minister

Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports

BRUNEI DARUSSALAM

Hon. Marcela Huaita

Minister

Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Peoples

PERU

H.E. Neil Reeder

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary

Embassy of Canada

CANADA

Hon. Lilia B. De Lima

Director General

Philippine Economic Zone Authority

PHILIPPINES

Mrs. Alicia Frohmann

Minister Counsellor

National Women’s Service

CHILE

Ms. Natalia Strigunova

Deputy Director

Asia, Africa and Latin America Department

Ministry of Economic Development

RUSSIAN FEDERATION

Page 35 of 108

Mme. Meng Xiaosi

Vice President and Member of the Secretariat

All-China Women’s Federation

PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA

Mrs. Tan Hwee Seh

Senior Director

Office for Women’s Development

Ministry of Social and Family Development

SINGAPORE

Hon. Yohana Susana Yembise

Minister

Ministry of Women's Empowerment and Child

Protection

INDONESIA

Dr. Joyce Yen Feng

Minister without Portfolio

CHINESE TAIPEI

Mr. Kazuhiko Ishihara

Vice-Minister for Special Missions

Cabinet Office

JAPAN

Pol. Gen. Suwat Chanitthikul

Vice Minister

Ministry of Social Development and Human

Security

THAILAND

Hon. Heejung Kim

Minister

Ministry of Gender Equality and Family

REPUBLIC OF KOREA

H.E. Catherine Russell

Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's

Issues

U.S. Department of State

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Senator Datin Paduka Chew Mei Fun

Deputy Minister

Ministry of Women, Family and Community

Development

MALAYSIA

Mr. Nguyen Trong Dam

Deputy Minister

Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs

VIET NAM

Dame Wendy Pye

Managing Director

Wendy Pye Publishing Limited

NEW ZEALAND

6 PANEL SESSION: THE GLOBAL GENDER PICTURE

5 PILLARS OF WOMEN’S ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT

The panelists discussed the importance of creating avenues for women to effectively

access capital and assets, the international markets, as well as technology. They agreed

on the need to improve women’s skills, capacity, health, and leadership. They called for

efforts that will allow women to have a bigger share of the voice in countries and

organizations.

Heather Cox stressed the need to maximize opportunities arising from developments in

the technology space. Cox advocated for increased number of women joining digital /

technology workforce, citing that in the United States alone, there are one million gaps in

technology jobs.

Page 36 of 108

She believes women should be equipped to work in the new world. She pointed out the need

to ensure that society overcomes misperceptions regarding women’s participation in

technology. She noted that by the 12th

grade, boys are four (4) times likely to be placed in

advance computer science programs than girls.

For Cox, diversity helps organizations come up with the best

solutions to issues and problems. Closing the gender gap impacts

on every aspect of the economy. Cox cited a Citibank study

showing that achieving gender equality for millions of people

can generate US$12 trillion worth of growth.

Hafimi bte Abdul Haadii pointed out that any economy,

regardless of size, could create positive impact on women

provided stakeholders work together. She talked about three

initiatives that proved women could access markets better given

relevant support.

1. Cross E-Commerce Training (CBET). An initiative of

the APEC Business Advisory Council, CBET provides

women training and e-commerce tools to help them reach the

global marketplace.

2. Cherie Blair Foundation. By combining technology and

mentoring, the Foundation provides women with cross-

border support in increasing their market access.

3. The Collective. A group of young women in Brunei

joined forces to do business with social aspect. Relying

heavily on social media, they create pop-up events with great

impact and buzz.

4. Yasmin. An Indie film about a girl who wants to become

a silat (Brunei’s combat sport) champion. The film is

produced through public-private cooperation and will be

marketed internationally.

Belén Garijo recommended investing in health and education, with focus on women, in

order to realize economic growth and competitiveness. She encouraged women to continue

to take action, adding that effective public-private collaboration and strong leadership are

imperative to achieve gender equality goals.

Cancer is more prevalent among women and women suffer 60% more deaths from certain

communicable diseases. Dr. Garijo explained there is need to obtain data on prevalence

factors and indicators on women’s health in order for medical practitioners to improve

clinical outcomes.

In education, Dr. Garijo noted women’s under-representation in science, technology,

engineering, and mathematics (STEM) – this despite the fact that females outperform males

on science scores and that they are at par in mathematics performance. She called on

delegates to move faster in creating the right incentives in the area of capacity building for

women in order for women to integrate themselves better into STEM. By 2012, there will be

an opening of 1.2 million jobs in STEM fields.

PANELISTS HEATHER CARROLL COX Chief Client Experience Digital and Marketing Head, Citi HAFIMI BTE ABDUL HAADII Director/ Shareholder, LVK Group of Companies BELÉN GARIJO CEO and President, Merck Healthcare IRENE NATIVIDAD President, Global Summit of Women and Chair, Corporate Women Directors International CHAO-CHIA HUANG Managing Director, LoFTechnology, Inc. MODERATOR MARIA RESSA CEO, Rappler

Page 37 of 108

Chao-Chia Huang talked about technology and innovation inspired by his experience in

his own start-up company. Huang’s start-up had sprung from a government program aiming

to introduce technology to the countryside. He has a female partner whom he said gives a

different point of view and attitude, motivates people, and provides warmth in the company.

For Huang, start-ups must be willing to create “disruptions” by embracing risks, going

beyond status quo, and making their own rules.

He encouraged innovation and use of technology. In his presentation deck, he wrote that data

is the foundation of the information age. He quoted David Buckingham who said, “data is

the new oil.” He encouraged teaching programming to schoolchildren and suggested to

integrate basic language curriculum in education system. This curriculum includes logic

(language of machines) together with Arts (language of the soul), English (language of

people), and Math (language of physics).

Huang believes gender equality / diversity must start from the home. For him, parents

should help children prepare to act and live in the digital and tech world of the future.

Irene Natividad challenged women to be the key to finding gender equality solutions.

She advocated for increased representation of women in corporate boards globally. She

stressed that while women CEOs exist, women continue to be under-represented in top

corporations in many industries in the United States. In fact, she said, only 27 of the CEOs of

the top 500 companies are women. Women remain as outsiders in the economy.

Natividad stressed that the women sector is not a market niche but THE market of the 21st

century. Currently, women occupy 40%-50% of the workforce and have a 30%-40%

consumer clout. There is a business case for why women should be in each part of the value

chain strategy, including the corporate board setting.

According to Natividad, putting women on corporate boards is a top-down strategy to

integrate more women into the managerial world. She pushed for setting quotas on women

board participation and incorporating gender diversity into corporate governance codes. She

shared that Malaysia’s women board seats improved from 6% to 12% when it applied the

quota strategy while Australia saw an increase of 11% in women board seats (9% to 20%)

after making gender diversity language in corporate governance codes a listing requirement.

She called on members of APEC, particularly US, China and Japan, to adopt a national

strategy to improve corporate leadership roles.

During the Open Forum, panelists stressed the importance of the following in closing gender

gaps:

Having fast and affordable internet access

Re-wiring the education system to give priority to coding and STEM

Increasing public-private partnerships

Continuing forum and dialogue on women

Innovation – doing something different

Page 38 of 108

7 PANEL SESSION: YOUNG WOMEN LEADERS AS POWERFUL DRIVERS

OF CHANGE

Young speakers shared their experiences in starting

and pursuing their respective enterprises. They were

one in saying that having role models and mentors

are important to help young women succeed in their

chosen fields. One of them encouraged the audience

to “invest in the millennial”.

Kathy Xiaosi Gong shared her views and insights as

founder and CEO of a business consulting firm and a

logical and data driven company.

She highlighted the importance of creating products that

would make business dealings across borders easier

amid today’s landscape characterized by frequent

movements and changes. It is critical for young women

to understand how businesses can compete in a world

where there are multiple and similar products. Gong

said business ideas and functions of companies should

reflect the values of the entrepreneurs and the people

behind it. She is confident that values and commitment

can change the world.

Anna Nesterova founded and led her investment

company, Center Capital, to growth. The company

survived the financial crisis in 2008 to 2009 and the

Russian securities market recession in 2014.

Nesterova talked about some key projects of Center Capital, including an SME Internet Portal

and a funding program for children. Fully aware of the opportunities that free trade among

developing economies brings, Nesterova and her company created a special BRICS, Latin

America, and Southeast Asia SME Internet Portal. Launched only this year, the portal helps

businessmen from different economies look for best partners in selling goods and services

abroad.

Another major project is “Children’s Future” which provides opportunity for parents to save

and preserve investments for their children. It guarantees parents’ income equal to the

inflation score plus interest.

Marita Cheng shared her story in starting and growing 2Mar Robotics, a company based

in Australia that builds robots to help people in their everyday lives. 2Mar is developing

Jeva, a mobile phone-controlled robotic arm that seeks to help people with limited upper

mobility in their daily tasks. This robotic arm is functional and could help people with

disabilities feed themselves, take medicines, brush their teeth, pick-up hard to reach objects,

open doors, etc.

PANELISTS KATHY XIAOSI GONG Founder & CEO, Pinpoint Founder & Chair, KG Inc. and Seeway Group ANNA NESTEROVA Chief Executive Officer, Investment Company Center Capital MARITA CHENG Founder and CEO, 2Mar Robotics VICTORIA LENNOX Co-Founder and CEO, Start Up Canada MARIA MAY-I FABROS Board Member for the Youth, Philippine Commission on Women MODERATOR BOY ABUNDA TV Host, Celebrity Management and Marketing Consultant

Page 39 of 108

In an economy where only 10% of engineers are women, Marita’s passion in robotics stood

out. She did have her share of disappointments in building 2Mar, but she remained steadfast

in achieving her goals. Two years after it was founded, 2Mar has now gained the support of

different groups in Australia, including the government. It has also reaped national and

international awards.

Marita’s story inspired young women leaders to believe in their dreams. It encouraged

entrepreneurs to embrace and adapt to changes. It also stressed the importance of having role

models.

Victoria Lennox is a young social entrepreneur who hopes to influence policy making for

entrepreneurships. Her company runs initiatives to help create an environment and culture

for entrepreneurial growth and success.

Lennox underscored the value of having strong female role models in helping young women

succeed, as she cited her own case. Despite being sickly as a child and having been

diagnosed with cancer, Lennox succeeded as an entrepreneur. She advised women to invest

in entrepreneurship on a policy level. She suggested consultation with entrepreneurs would

help policy makers craft measures on gender equality in business.

Canada was named one of the top places in the world for women entrepreneurs. Lennox

shared that in 2011; majority female owned SMEs were slightly more engaged in innovation

activities than majority male owned SMEs. These enterprises were engaged in product

innovation.

Maria May-I Fabros advocated for increased investments in the millennial / youth. She

spoke about the character of today’s young people and how it impacts on what they do.

According to Fabros, people often perceive young people as irreverent or lacking respect for

things that are generally taken seriously. This perceived “irreverence”, however, could be

seen in a positive note. Fabros said this irreverence is what drives the youth to innovate and

move out of their comfort zones. It is the youth’s innovative essence that spurs change. To

translate this youthful character into positive results, young people only need to have role

models and be guided by capable women mentors.

Fabros also discussed concerns confronting young women, such as sex, women’s health, and

teenage pregnancies. She cited how legislative measures like the Sin Tax Law have helped

generate increased resources to address some of these issues.

During the Open Forum, the panelists agreed that while financial success is important, they

also described success as having the ability to create positive impact on people and creating

opportunities to assist them. Many attributed their success to their parents, especially their

mothers who did not enjoy as much opportunities as today’s women.

Page 40 of 108

8 PANEL SESSION: WOMEN IN THE INTERNATIONAL MARKETS AND

GLOBAL VALUE CHAINS

The panelists discussed how the changing face of international markets and global value

chains result to opportunities and challenges for women-led enterprises and for women,

in general. Presentations zoomed in on the digital economy, including e-commerce, as a

key driver for gender equality. The strong business case for women was also

highlighted in this panel session.

Adaire Fox-Martin’s presentation key points focused on the role of technology / digital

in enabling women businesses to access markets beyond their borders. She stressed the

importance of education and training in helping women-owned businesses maximize

technology and move up the value chain.

Martin remarked that the digital economy resulted into better

communication platforms that made today’s business

networks smarter, faster, and more global. For Martin, a

hyper-connected world means greater opportunities for

women. Through digital marketplaces, women entrepreneurs

who used to have limited chances to influence business

networks are now able to do so. Start-ups are not as costly as

it used to; risk-averse women entrepreneurs are able to tap

cloud based tools, web-based services, and e-commerce.

Working arrangements / set-ups are evolving as more women

get the opportunity to work from off-site / anywhere so long

as they have Internet connections.

Ümran Beba talked about the strong business case for

women integration in workplaces. At Pepsi, women’s agenda

is not only a talent sustainability priority; it is a business

imperative, given women’s market size worldwide.

Beba explained that women workforce reflects the profile of a large percentage of their

consumers – shoppers, mothers, etc. Diversity in workplace enables PepsiCo to push

innovation as women bring in “outside in” perspective. Women leadership also provides

different approaches and styles that have been proven to work. Thus, Beba shared, PepsiCo

takes effort to create the right work environment to allow their women employees to be their

true selves and to succeed.

Beba also shared some of PepsiCo’s social initiatives that seek to create positive impact on

women and the communities where they operate. These include “Liter of Light “ , which

repurposes PET bottles as light bulbs and “WaterHope” , a social enterprise that promotes

resource conservation and provides clean water access to thousands of people.

Janette Toral described e-commerce as the gender equalizer of the global economy. Data

shared by Toral showed that by 2020, the global Internet market would be worth US$9.9

trillion, or 12% of total GDP. Asia Pacific countries are expected to have more e-commerce

PANELISTS

ADAIRE FOX-MARTIN

President,

SAP Asia Pacific Japan

ÜMRAN BEBA

Senior Vice President and Chief

HR Officer,

PepsiCo Asia/ Middle East/ Africa

JANETTE TORAL

Site Owner,

DigitalFilipino.com

MODERATOR

MITZI BORROMEO

News Correspondent,

CNN Philippines

Page 41 of 108

purchases compared to North America by 2015. This year alone, e-commerce purchases in

the region reached US$525.2 billion compared with North America’s US$482.6 billion.

Zooming in on the Philippines, Toral expressed optimism on e-commerce’s growth given the

support of the government and other stakeholders. Part of the efforts is to incorporate e-

commerce into the national strategy and to develop an e-commerce roadmap. A challenge in

improving ecommerce in the Philippines is ensuring gender balance, which, Toral said,

should also cover the rights of the LGBT community. Other key deliverables are bandwidth

improvement, anti-cybercrime improvement, customs modernization, tariff/ tax system

simplification, e-commerce education, etc.

During the Open Forum, the discussions continued on the challenges women face. The

panelists talked about women as role models and leaders. They discussed the need to

increase women presence on corporate boards and talked about its positive impact on

companies. They also discussed setting quotas on women participation in the public and

private sector. Policy-wise, there are challenges in creating e-commerce legislations. Other

challenges are cultural prejudices in global work setting and integration of personal and

professional lives (due to connectivity).

9 PANEL SESSION: WOMEN AND INCLUSIVE BUSINESS

The session explored options in trickling business and economic growth to communities

and the lower income population. Increasing inclusive business, having women as key

company workforce, supporting women capability building through CSR, and

encouraging STEM education are some of the recommendations cited by the panelists.

Sonomi Tanaka encouraged support for more inclusive businesses (IB) particularly those

with explicit women empowerment in their business strategy. She described companies

involved in inclusive business as commercially viable enterprises, which, through their core

business operations, create positive social impact on the base of the pyramid population

(BoP) or the poor / low-income people. Tanaka explained that IB is not similar to the

concepts of social enterprise, corporate social responsibility (CSR), micro-enterprises, or

even labor.

Tanaka shared the preliminary findings of an ADB study on IB. The report shows the need to

gather more case studies to help generate better understanding on IB given that it is an

emerging field prone to misunderstanding. It confirms the great potential of IB to help the

BoP population. IB has two types of women empowering impact: (1) creation of job

opportunities for women BoPs in agribusiness; and (2) meeting BoP’s direct needs / wants as

a sales & marketing opportunity. The second type applies to finance, water, education,

energy and health.

Tanaka suggested the adoption of an APEC accreditation and recognition system for gender-

responsive IBs. She also proposed the conduct of information campaign to increase

businesses’ IB awareness.

Page 42 of 108

Nilesh Patel shared Avon’s commitment to women

empowerment. For Avon, an independent woman is a

beautiful woman. Beauty is about having strength and

self-confidence. Patel showed videos that highlighted

Avon’s positioning as a company for women – from

hiring millions of Avon ladies (direct marketing

agents), producing beauty products for women, aiming

to make women financially independent, and

establishing a foundation for women causes.

Adel Tamano discussed Coca Cola’s 3Ws in

creating shared value that impact communities and

contribute to inclusive growth: (1) Well-Being, (2)

Women, and (3) Water. He pointed out that women’s

empowerment is an indispensable requirement for the

company to reach its business goals.

Tamano discussed the company’s point of view on

women empowerment and closing gender gaps.

Women do 66% of the world’s work but they earn only

10% of the world’s income. And yet, women reinvest

90% of their income into their family and community.

To help empower women, Coca Cola launched the

“5by20 Program “in the Philippines. Today, the Program has helped women sari-sari

storeowners become better entrepreneurs through training in bookkeeping, business

management, etc. A beneficiary testified that by applying what she learned from the training,

her monthly revenues more than doubled from PHP6,000 to PhP15,000. Tamano attributed

the success of the program to the collaboration among the government, the business sector,

and civil society, which he called as the Golden Triangle approach.

Malathi Das highlighted the role of science, technology, engineering , and mathematics

(STEM) education for women and girls in pushing gender equality. She suggested to have a

strong policy and to increase investments in order to develop women STEM professionals.

She also encouraged increase in number of STEM role models and mentors. Advocates

believe that role models and mentors reinforce the idea that a future in STEM is achievable.

She talked about two programs that seek to encourage student education on STEM.

Girls2Pioneers program organizes and offers technology day camps for 10-15 year old girls.

The experience allows the girls to cultivate their technological skills in design and

construction, research, planning, improvisation, and engineering. It is followed by field trips

and mentoring sessions with the project’s corporate partners. Another project is Fuel Your

School, a program designed to enhance STEM capabilities of lower secondary school

students in Singapore. It also encourages students to major in STEM-related fields in the

future.

During the Open Forum, the discussions included women’s challenges in moving

themselves out of poverty. Most Overseas Foreign Workers (OFWs) are women, forced to

live away from families to earn better income. More often, the loss of female income has

greater impact on the welfare of the family. And yet, most employers are said to more likely

PANELISTS

SONOMI TANAKA

Technical Advisor,

Social Development, Governance, and

Gender Division, Asian Development Bank

NILESH PATEL

SVP and President,

Asia Pacific Avon Products, Inc.

ADEL TAMANO

Vice President for Public Affairs and

Communications,

Coca Cola Philippines

MALATHI DAS

President,

Singapore Council of Women’s

Organizations

MODERATOR

KAREN DAVILA

Broadcast Journalist, ABS-CBN

Young Global Leader, Women Economic

Forum

Page 43 of 108

lay off a woman than a man. Most women also continue to face barriers in entering the

business sector. The panelists agreed on the need for various sectors of societies – public,

private, non-profit, academe – to invest more on women. In return, women are called to take

advantage of the opportunities given to them. They are advised not to fear leadership.

10 PANEL SESSION: WOMEN AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

The panel session looked at possible roles of women in sustainable development

initiatives in relation to disaster risk planning and management, climate change,

environment, supply chain management, and access to energy. Each panelist agrees that

women’s involvement in these areas result to positive outcomes and should therefore be

continued and increased.

Maria Leni Robredo pointed out the need to economically empower women and

suggested to give women the power of the purse by educating them on savings, investment,

and livelihood opportunities.

The Congresswoman opened her presentation by sharing her on-ground learning on disaster

response and management from impoverished communities and her constituents in

Camarines Sur. She described women in these areas as vulnerable and suffering mostly in

silence because they have no more strength to fight. Women’s role in disaster planning is

limited, Robredo said. Most of them only take action when disaster strikes.

Robredo proposed involving women on the ground in

disaster preparedness and vulnerability assessment. She

also suggested developing home-based livelihood

programs so women need not leave their homes and miss

on their household responsibilities in order to earn. She

emphasized the need to create markets to help women sell

their goods.

For Robredo, the “best solutions to poverty are not found

in the Board Rooms”. She encouraged sustainable

development advocates and stakeholders to find the time

to consult, understand, and fuel the fire of poor

communities and individuals. “Poor people are broke but

are not broken,” she said.

Jeremy Prepscius discussed the positive impact of

healthy and financially literate women workers on

companies. He cited as a case study HERproject, a

program that engages and empowers women in supply

chains (particularly those in factories) through health and

financial education.

PANELISTS

MARIA LEONOR ROBREDO

3RD

District Représentative,

Camarines Sur, Philippines

JEREMY PREPSCIUS

Vice President, Asia Pacific,

Business for Social Responsibility

ANDREA IRARRÁZAVAL

OLAVARRÍA

Founder and CEO,

Clean Energy

LESIELI TAVIRI

General Manager,

Origin Energy

MODERATOR

CHECHE LAZARO

President, Probe Productions Inc.

Editor-at-Large, Rappler

Page 44 of 108

HERproject has two components: HERhealth and HERfinance. Both are grounded on peer-

to-peer education, which means that 3% to 5% of workforces are selected as peer educators.

The health component runs for 12 to 16 months while HERfinance runs for 9 to 12 months.

Overtime, companies running the program observed workers’ improved attitudes towards

health, increased willingness to seek formal health services, increased knowledge on ATM

usage, among others.

Business-wise, the companies noted several positive outcomes such as reduced health-related

absenteeism, reduced error rates, increased worker responsibility for overall safety in the

company, etc. There is also a noted improved relationship between the workers and middle

management.

Andrea Irarrázaval Olavarría shared the story of Clean Energy, a company that

develops “integrated biological systems” for capturing and/or reducing industrial gases. Its

system also sustainably produces bio-composts with high commercial value such as food,

biomass, biodiesel, and fertilizers. The company also generates alternative electrical energy at

controlled costs.

Clean Energy promises various potentials for industrial development, including reduction of

carbon dioxide emissions per year, strengthening environmental practices, etc. Starting with

only 2 people, the company now has 18 employees in Chile and another 18 in Mexico.

Ninety percent (90%) of them are single and single mothers. The Chilean Government has

granted Clean Energy US$1 million in financial support.

Clean Energy is a case study for sustainable development, innovation, and public-private

collaboration.

Lesieli Taviri talked about the linkage between women and sustainable energy through the

Smart Energy Pilot Project, which aims to expand Origin Energy’s LPG distribution network

by providing energy solutions to off-grid communities.

Taviri explained that the electricity grid in Papua New Guinea has only 12% reach. Firewood

and kerosene continue to be the energy source due to accessibility. Her company, Origin

Energy, saw the opportunity to deliver energy sources to communities across their

distribution supply chain. They targeted mothers in off-grid communities who are starting to

look for alternative energy sources as they increasingly realized the health impact of using

traditional firewood.

Taviri shared that after 3 months, the project has resulted into Origin Energy’s widened

distribution network (many dealers are women) and increased LPG sales. In terms of

community impact, Origin Energy saw increased opportunities for women to generate

informal income (e.g., income from mobile phone charging, selling cooked food) because

they now have access to energy.

Today, Origin Energy looks forward to maximizing opportunities to further widen their reach

and make energy more accessible to women. They are looking at possible partnerships with

micro banks. They are also planning to organize environmental awareness campaigns on the

negative impact of using firewood.

Page 45 of 108

During the Open Forum, the panelists shared their views on the difficulties in pushing

women empowerment. Congresswoman Leni Robredo stressed the need for local

government officials to have a change in mindset / perspective on implementing gender-

responsive laws. She explained that while there are several laws on gender equality, some

are not in alignment with the realities faced by women on the ground, making these

ineffective. She suggested engaging women in communities in legislative development and

program planning stage.

For Taviri, the most difficult challenge is the lack of skilled women in Papua New Guinea.

Women in their economy would certainly benefit from skills training program and capability

building. Irarrazaval meanwhile said that access to capital is one of the key concerns for

women empowerment in Chile.

11 CLOSING REMARKS

Kathy Xiaosi Gong expressed her gratefulness for the opportunity to represent China in

the APEC Women and Economy Fora. She shared her belief that women economic

empowerment lies in the heart of every women. She advised women to choose to live life;

for women to seize the moment, to create, to impact, and to love.

She described women as better dreamers than men and natural in creating generous things.

For her, women’s emotional characteristic is at the core of women’s innovative side.

Women-led businesses are not cold, only calculated. Entrepreneurs, in fact, are romantic.

She shared her own story as an entrepreneur and as a

woman. Her own experience showed her that women

entrepreneurs need to create new things: products,

strategies, customers, in order for them to turn their ideas

into realities. She also discovered that what matters is

not the acceptance of others but loving ones’ self.

Ana María Choquehuanca talked about integrating

women into the global economy and removing the

obstacles that hinder women from empowering

themselves. She reported that the multi-stakeholder

round table in Peru has led to public-private partnerships

across Peruvian Departments and that work with private

sector women entrepreneurs in Peru has started.

Choquehuanca said Peru looks forward to advancing the

women’s agenda in the APEC Region as it prepares to

host next year’s APEC Meetings. She closed her

presentation with a video on Peru which described their

economy as land of hidden treasures.

SPEAKERS

CHINA

KATHY XIAOSI GONG

Founder & CEO, PinPoint

Founder and Chair, KG Inc. &

Seeway Group

PERU

ANA MARÍA

CHOQUEHUANCA

President,

Peruvian Association Industrial

Women – PERU MISUR

PHILIPPINES

MA. AURORA “BOOTS”

GEOTINA-GARCIA

Chair,

Women’s Business Council of the

Philippines

Page 46 of 108

Ma. Aurora “Boots” Geotina-Garcia called on PPDWE participants to commit to

pursuing APEC’s women and inclusive growth agenda. She encouraged everyone to keep the

momentum gained in creating new economic opportunities for women going forward.

As Chair of the Women Business Council of the Philippines, Geotina-Garcia outlined the

women private sector’s recommendations to strengthen women empowerment and integration

efforts. These recommendations included the following:

1) Funneling investments to private sector companies with innovative gender policies

that extend across their supply chains and providing direct capital to companies and

social enterprises that offer products and services benefiting women and girls.

2) Establishing ICT infrastructure that will connect women in businesses into value

chain support, mentoring, and e-commerce programs.

3) Developing policies that will call on government offices to dedicate a percentage of

their procurement for MSMEs and women-owned enterprises.

4) Creating an APEC-wide exchange platform for women-owned enterprises and women

suppliers in the region.

5) Increasing gender diversity in boards starting with government owned and controlled

corporations (GOCCs), government financial institutions, and publicly listed

companies.

Geotina-Garcia officially closed the PPDWE as she thanked everyone who was involved in

organizing the event. She also thanked the delegates, resource persons, and guests for their

interest and active participation.

12 FEEDBACK

Delegates and guests from different economies sent their congratulatory greetings and

showed their appreciation to the Philippine organizers for the successful conduct of the

PPDWE. Positive feedback centered on the following:

Filipino hospitality

Great line-up of speakers

Content / program / sessions

Dedication of the team behind the event

Participants shared how they were inspired by the discussions in the forum. Marita, one of

the young entrepreneur speakers, felt privileged sharing the stage with other inspiring

women. A guest from De La Salle College of Saint Benilde commented that she hopes to see

more young people in forums such as the PPDWE. Many are looking forward to attending /

being part of succeeding APEC Women and Economy Fora.

Below are the feedback / messages sent by the delegates and guests. Australia, Ms. Carol Hanlon

“Congratulations to all on ICONOGRAPH, it was a very impressive exhibition. Thanks also for the

wonderful hospitality during my time at APEC WEF. All the best.”

Australia,Ms. Caroline Martell-Hill

“I wanted to extend a big thank you and also congratulations on such a fantastic and successful event

Page 47 of 108

yesterday! Thank you for looking after Marita so well. She was truly grateful and felt so privileged to

share the stage with so many inspiring women.

I really enjoyed the opportunity so thank you very much. I thought the event was so well organized

and the variety of speakers amazing. All the best!”

Chile,Mrs. Alicia Frohmann

“I want to thank you for the excellent APEC WE 2015 meeting. You set a high standard, regarding

both substantive content and organization.

Thank you also for assigning me excellent escorts, who took good care of me and taught me a bit

about the Philippines: Ana Buenafe (escort), Aldrin Labis (driver), Joylene Bulan and Vangie

Escultura (security officers). I felt very much at home. The Philippines clearly shares an important

cultural heritage with Latin America. I hope to see you soon on either side of the Pacific.”

Japan,Mr. Yazawa Toshikazu

“...Congratulations on great success of the WE fora! You have done great job.

I would also like to express my sincere appreciations on all of your supports for Japan and

Yokohama... Again thank you very much and congratulations!”

Japan,Mr. Tamai Takeshi

“I also express my great thanks to your arrangement and hospitality. It was truly helpful for us and we

had fruitful time in Manila.”

Japan,Ms. Aya Tamura

“...We would like to thank for all of your great arrangement for APEC WE last week!! We all truly

had a great week in Manila.”

Papua New Guinea, Mr. Aro Davis “Thank you for looking after our women in Manila...”

Papua New Guinea, Ms. Julie Wapo “...The meetings were a great success and I congratulate Philippines for all your efforts and wonderful

experience that our delegation experienced the hospitality of Philippines. I would also like to express

our sincere appreciation for allowing PNG to host the PPWE 1 in Port Moresby.

It certainly gave us experience in preparation for 2018. Our appreciation is also extended for the

support of the Concept Note on Financial Access-Data in APEC Region. We will continue to work

together to embrace and promote Women’s Economic Empowerment in APEC.”

Papua New Guinea, Ms. Mataria Rupa-Tau “...I look forward to work in close partnership with APEC organized events to empower women

towards financial prosperity through entrepreneurship and trade within APEC economies.”

People’s Republic of China, Mme. Meng Xiaosi “I have come back to Beijing safe and sound after the APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora,

and I wish you can have some rest after the Fora.

Here, on behalf of the Chinese Delegation and the All-China Women’s Federation, and in my own

name, I’d like to congratulate you on the successful completion of the Fora and thank you for your

strong leadership and the hard efforts of the APEC WE Secretariat as well as all the staff. Finally,

thank you again for your hospitality and the thoughtful arrangement of our Philippine sisters!”

People’s Republic of China,Mr. Paul Lee and Ms. Kathy Gong

“Thanks for the awesome assistance, much appreciated!”

Peru,Ms. Ana Maria Choquehuanca

“Muchas gracias a ustedes por la cordial invitacion, espero haber cubierto sus expectativas.”

(Thank you very much for your cordial invitation. I hope I have met all your expectations.)

Philippines,Ms. Irene de Padua Bencito

“...I would like to extend my heartfelt appreciation for inviting me and very honored for being part of

very successful [APEC PPDWE]. The forum was indeed a great help for my advocacy for women

Page 48 of 108

empowerment and helping women sector for business and economic development. Rest assured for

my support and cooperation for your future endeavors for women advancement. Thank you and more

power.”

Philippines,Ms. Linda O. Boniao

“In fairness, that was the best APEC meeting I have attended! Everything from the small tokens to the

seminar kit to the Great Speakers, they were well thought of and planned. Thank you for that

Excellent and Fantastic Hosting, great women leaders!”

Philippines,Ms. Susan Z. Prado

“It was my pleasure and honor to participate in the forum. I hope I can still participate in other

forums and activities to continue to work. Thanks and regards.”

Philippines,Ms. Lorelei Astrera

“...I thought the program was thoughtfully developed and the speakers and moderators excellently

selected. I did take away a lot of learning and a big measure of inspiration which I believe will have

lasting impact on my personal as well as professional life as an academic, a women empowerment /

gender equality advocate and development practitioner. If there is anything I could ask for, in general,

I wish there were more people in the audience, the youths in particular.

It is my hope that more women can partake of the good that a highly integrated world economy

brings. I hope that the academe can better prepare them for what is ahead, and that together with the

civil society and public and private sectors, we can all contribute to that collective goal of moving

everyone forward and building this nation.

I do look forward to more fora and conferences of the same caliber in the future. Congratulations to

everyone – the women and men – behind this successful event.”

Philippines,Ms. Myrna Pablo

“Thanks for the opportunity of having been a part of the APEC WE 2015. CONGRATULATIONS

for the excellent forum/fora. Indeed it was world-class event. We are proud to have been part of it.”

Philippines, Ms. Cherise Nicole Rosales “...We owe the greatest thanks to the minds behind the APEC fora and for the warm welcome you’ve

given to us.”

Philippines,Ms. Cheche Lazaro

“It was a pleasure to have been a part of the APEC Forum. With all good wishes!”

Philippines,Ms. Mitzi Borromeo

“…It was a pleasure and honor to have been part of the APEC PPDWE. Wonderful to hear that the

recommendations from that will be considered in the APEC economic leaders’ meeting next month.

Congratulations on putting an amazing and very important initiative together, and all the best for more

success in all your endeavors. Cheers.”

Russia,Mrs. Eugenia Babakhina

“Thank you for such warm assistance for Mrs. Nesterova! She was very glad to be at the WE fora.”

Chinese Taipei,Ms. Francesca I-Ku Chen

“It is really my pleasure to attend WEF and all activities that you all made every arrangement with

great efficiency and profession. I look forward to meeting you in near future.”

US-APEC Technical Assistance to Advance Regional Trade and Integration (ATAARI),

Ms. Victoria Waite “Congratulations on the successes of the PPWE, WEF and associated meetings. I’ve been following

the news releases, reports from delegates, and the media attention garnered from the suite of meetings

and outcomes. It’s been so inspirational and proof positive of what APEC can achieve, particularly on

these important issues...”

United States of America, Ms. Margareta Schettler “...We would like to commend you and the whole Philippines APEC Women and the Economy team

for absolutely wonderful meetings. The dedication and enthusiasm that the whole team showed

throughout the whole process was amazing and it has been an absolute pleasure to work with the

Page 49 of 108

team. We look forward to collaborating with you to continue the momentum throughout the rest of the

year and into 2016.”

APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC), Ms. Roxanne Lu “...Congratulations to the success of the Women and the Economy meetings and events!!!”

APEC Secretariat, Mr. Carlos Kuriyama “It was a pleasure for me and my unit to contribute to the Women and the Economy and related

meetings this year.”

Page 50 of 108

Annex C.1: APEC WE 2015 Fora – Public Private Dialogue on

Women and the Economy Program of Activities

APEC WOMEN AND THE ECONOMY 2015 OPENING CEREMONY

08:30H – 08:35H Preliminaries / Short Safety Briefing (5 min.)

08:35H – 09:05H Welcome Remarks and APEC Overview Video Presentation (20 min.)

Ms. Nora K. TERRADO CHAIR, APEC WE 2015 Fora

Undersecretary, Department of Trade and Industry

Opening Speech (10 min.)

Ms. Doris Magsaysay-Ho

Chair, APEC Business Advisory Council

President and CEO, Magsaysay Maritime Corporation

09:05H – 09:15H Harnessing the Power of the Crowd (10 min.)

Ms. Maria Ressa


Rappler

09:15H – 09:30H Facilitated Audience Participation (with Q&A and Polling) (15min.)

Ms. Maria Ressa Chief Executive Officer

Rappler

09:30H – 09:45H World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report (15 min.)

Ms. Saadia Zahidi Senior Director

Gender Parity, Human Capital and Constituents

World Economic Forum

09:45H – 10:00H Break to prepare for the President’s arrival

PUBLIC PRIVATE DIALOGUE ON WOMEN AND THE ECONOMY

(PPDWE)

10:00H – 10:15H Protocols, Preliminaries and Introduction of VIP Keynote Speaker (10-15

min.)

Hon. Gregory L. Domingo

Chair, Ministers Responsible for Trade

Secretary, Department of Trade and Industry

10:15H – 10:30H Keynote Speaker (15 min.)

H.E. Benigno Simeon Aquino III President of the Republic of the Philippines

10:30H – 10:45H Photo Opportunity with the President

10:45H – 11:00H Coffee / Tea break

11:00H – 12:00H Panel Session on the 5 Pillars of Women’s Economic Empowerment

On access to capital and assets

Ms. Heather Carroll Cox

Chief Client Experience

Digital and Marketing Head, Citi

On access to markets

Ms. Hafimi bte Abdul Haadii

Director/Shareholder

LVK Group of Companies

Page 51 of 108

On skills, capacity building, and health

Dr. Belén Garijo

CEO and President

Merck Healthcare

On leadership, voice, and agency

Ms. Irene Natividad President, Global Summit of Women

Chair, Corporate Women Directors International

On innovation and technology

Mr. Chao-Chia Huang

Managing Director

LoFTechnology, Inc.

Facilitated Audience Participation (with Q&A and Polling)

Moderator:

Ms. Maria Ressa Chief Executive Officer

Rappler

12:00H – 12:50H Lunch break

12:50H – 13:50H PPDWE Session on Young Women Leaders as Powerful Drivers of Change

Moderator:

Mr. Boy Abunda

TV Host, Celebrity Management and Marketing Consultant

Speakers:

Ms. Kathy Xiaosi Gong Founder & CEO, PinPoint

Founder & Chairwoman, KG Inc. & Seeway Group

Ms. Anna Nesterova


Investment Company Center Capital

Ms. Marita Cheng

Founder and CEO

2Mar Robotics

Ms. Victoria Lennox

Co-Founder and CEO

Start Up Canada

Ms. Maria May-I Fabros

Board Member for the Youth

Philippine Commission on Women

14:00H – 15:00H WOMEN IN THE INTERNATIONAL MARKETS AND GLOBAL VALUE

CHAINS

Innovation Women in the

International

Markets and

Global Value

Chains

Ms. Adaire Fox-Martin President

SAP Asia Pacific Japan

Ms. Ümran Beba Senior Vice President and Chief HR Officer

PepsiCo Asia/Middle East /Africa

Ms. Janette Toral

Site Owner, DigitalFilipino.com

Moderator:

Ms. Mitzi

Borromeo

News

Correspondent

CNN Philippines

Page 52 of 108

15:10H – 16:10H WOMEN AND INCLUSIVE BUSINESS

Empowerment Women and

Inclusive

Business

Ms. Sonomi Tanaka Technical Advisor (Gender Equity)

Social Development, Governance, and Gender

Division

Asian Development Bank

Mr. Nilesh Patel Senior Vice President & President, Asia Pacific

Avon Products Inc.

Atty. Adel Tamano

Vice President for Public Affairs and

Communications

Coca-Cola Philippines

Ms. Malathi Das President

Singapore Council of Women’s Organisations

Moderator:

Ms. Karen Davila

Broadcast

Journalist,

ABS-CBN

Young Global

Leader, World

Economic Forum

16:10H – 16:20H Coffee / Tea break

16:20H – 17:20H WOMEN AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Resiliency Women and

Sustainable

Development

Ms. Maria Leonor “Leni” Robredo

3rd

District Representative,

Camarines Sur, Philippines

Mr. Jeremy Prepscius Vice President, Asia Pacific

Business for Social Responsibility (BSR)

Ms. Andrea Irarrázaval Olavarría

Founder and Chief Executive Officer

Clean Energy

Ms. Lesieli Taviri

General Manager

Origin Energy

Moderator:

Ms. Cheche

Lazaro President, Probe

Productions Inc.

Editor-at-Large,

Rappler

17:20H – 17:45H Integration and Synthesis (10 min.)

Ms. Cheche Lazaro

President, Probe Productions Inc.

Editor-at-Large, Rappler

17:45H – 18:00H Closing Remarks (5 min. each)

Past, Future, and Present Host Economy Private sector Lead representative

CHINA

Ms. Kathy Xiaosi Gong Founder & CEO, PinPoint

Founder & Chairwoman, KG Inc & Seeway Group

PERU

Ms. Ana María Choquehuanca President

Peruvian Association Industrial Women – PERU MISUR

PHILIPPINES

Ms. Ma. Aurora “Boots” Geotina-Garcia Chair, Women’s Business Council Philippines

19:00H – 21:00H Welcome dinner with cultural show

Page 53 of 108

Annex C.2: Profiles of Speakers and Moderators Arranged by Order of Speaking Appearance

Nora K. Terrado is the Undersecretary for Management Services and Chief

of Staff of the Department of Trade and Industry. Before entering the civil

service, Usec. Terrado was the Country Manager of Headstrong Philippines

and Vice President for IT Services and Capital Markets of Genpact

Philippines. She is this year’s Chair for the APEC Women and the Economy

2015 Fora. The Undersecretary is an alumnus of the University of Asia and the

Pacific for her graduate studies in business economics and the University of

Saint La Salle for her degree in Commerce. She is a Certified Public

Accountant.

Doris Magsaysay-Ho is the Chief Executive Officer of the Magsaysay

Group of Companies which is involved in shipping, logistics, human resources,

marine travel and tourism. She is also the President and CEO of Magsaysay

Transport & Logistics Group. Ms. Ho was recognized as the Global Filipino

Executive of the Year at the Asia CEO Awards in 2012. In 2011, she received

the Lloyd’s List Asia 2011 Lifetime Achievement Award for her outstanding

contribution in the shipping industry. In 2010, she ranked 94th in the Lloyd’s

List of 100 Most Influential People in the Shipping Industry. Ms. Ho is the

Chair of the APEC Business Advisory Council.

Maria Ressa is the CEO and Executive Editor of Rappler, a social news

network which uses a hearts and minds approach to news through a unique

mood navigator. Prior to establishing Rappler, she headed ABS-CBN News

and Current affairs, for six years, since 2005, determining strategic direction

and managing more than 1,000 journalists for the largest multi-platform news

operation in the Philippines. She has been a journalist in Asia for more than

25 years, most of them as CNN’s bureau chief in Manila (1987-1995) then

Jakarta (1995-2005).

Saadia Zahidi is the Senior Director for Gender Parity, Human Capital and

Constituents at the World Economic Forum. Her former post at WEF is as

Economist, Global Competitiveness Programme. Ms. Zahidi finished

International Economics at the Graduate Institute of International Studies and

her Master's in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School.

Page 54 of 108

Heather Carroll Cox has been the Chief Client Experience, Digital and

Marketing Officer for Global Consumer Banking at Citigroup since April

2014, She is responsible for developing and implementing the vision, strategy

and execution of common client experience, driving global customer

satisfaction efforts and leading Digital, Marketing and Decision Management

across Global Consumer Banking. Prior to joining Citi, Ms. Cox served as the

Head of Card Operation at Capital One Financial Corporation. She also served

as the Head of North America Operations at E*TRADE.

Hafimi bte Abdul Haadii is the Director/ Shareholder of LVK Group of

Companies. She is a third generation entrepreneur who took over the company

started by her paternal grandfather over 30 years ago. She sits as a

director/shareholder on the boards of the following companies: LO

International Sdn Bhd, Syarikat Perusahaan Gunong Intan Sdn Bhd, Mas

Sugara Travel Services Sdn Bhd, The Jag Shop and Syarikat Bintang Berjaya.

Ms. Hafimi finished her tertiary education at Deakin University where she

attained a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture and a Bachelor of Architecture with

First Class Honours.

Belén Garijo is a Member of the Executive Board of Merck since January

2015. She is responsible for the Healthcare segment, comprising the businesses

of Merck Serono, Consumer Health, Allergopharma and Biosimilars. Before

joining Merck, Dr. Garijo was employed by Sanofi-Aventis as Senior Vice

President Global Operations Europe. Pre-2006, Dr. Garijo worked for Aventis

Spain, Rhône-Poulenc Rorer, and in Abott Laboratories / R&D. Dr. Garijo is a

medical doctor. She worked as a practicing physician for six years, before

moving to the pharmaceutical industry.

Irene Natividad is President of the Global Summit of Women, a 25-year old

annual gathering of women leaders who aim to accelerate women’s economic

progress globally. She also serves as Chair of Corporate Women Directors

International (CWDI) which conducts research on women on boards globally

and brings together women corporate directors from around the world on

issues of corporate governance. Her commitment to promoting women,

nationally and internationally, stems from her decade-long involvement with

the National Women's Political Caucus, a bipartisan organization dedicated to

electing and appointing women to public office.

Page 55 of 108

Paul Chao Chia Huang is the Managing Director of LoFTechnology, Inc.

He holds a PHD degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Tokyo

while he obtained his MS and BS degrees in Electrical Engineering and

Computer Science both from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Boy Abunda is a TV host and a celebrity management and marketing

consultant at ABS-CBN. While he has often been called the Philippines's King

of Talk, Boy credits his mastery of the Art of Listening as one of the key

attributes that has allowed him to become one of Asia's best hosts and

interviewers. Outside of his work in television, Boy dreams of writing his first

book, “13 Things I Know That You May Want To Know About Public

Figures/Celebrities In The Philippines." Mr. Abunda has a Master’s Degree in

Communication Arts from the Philippine Women's University, and is currently

in the process of completing his final dissertation for his PHD in Social

Development also at the PWU. He studied Business Management at the

Ateneo de Manila University.

Kathy Xiaosi Gong is the Founder & CEO of PinPoint and Founder &

Chairwoman, KG Inc & Seeway Group. As a serial entrepreneur, in 2015, she

decided to develop PinPoint, an internet company allowing users to conduct

smart business negotiation (B2B2C). In 2012, she founded KG a business

event management company. The year before that, she founded Seeway Group

which offers innovative portfolios to both investors and partners worldwide.

She was awarded as one of the Top Ten Entrepreneur Representatives of

China’s Economic Innovation in 2011 and 2013. Ms. Xiaosi Gong was the

youngest national chess champion at the age of 10 in 1996 and again at 12 in

1998. She holds a B.A. Degrees in Economics and in East Asian Languages

and Cultures from Columbia University.

Anna Nesterova is the Chief Executive Officer of Investment Company

Center Capital. She is finance and banking professional, with over 15 years of

experience, specializing in financial markets, macroeconomics, and

investments. Ms. Nesterova is a recognized participant of the financial market.

She is also active in public activities. She regularly publishes articles on

professional issues in the media.

Page 56 of 108

Marita Cheng is the Founder and CEO of 2Mar Robotics. In 2012, she was

names as the Young Australian of the Year and was included in the 100

Women of Influence List by the Australian Financial Review and Westpac.

Ms. Cheng has demonstrated vision and leadership well beyond her years and

is dedicated to encouraging young women to pursue careers in engineering. A

former panelist on ABC TV's New Inventors, Marita serves as a Board

Member for the Foundation for Young Australians.

Victoria Lennox is a 30-year-old Canadian social entrepreneur,

commentator, program architect and policy advisor who has a track record of

creating meaningful political and policy inroads to advance entrepreneurship.

She is the Co-Founder and CEO of grassroots non-profit organization, Start-Up

Canada, and the founder and President Emeritus of UK-based Charity

NACUE. Ms. Lennox is the first Canadian and one of the youngest recipients

of the Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion on the recommendation of the

British Prime Minister. She completed her MSc. Global Governance &

Diplomacy at Oxford University in 2008 and completed her undergraduate

degree in Political Science and Governance & Public Policy at the University

of Ottawa in 2006.

Maria May-I Fabros is a Board Member for the Youth Philippine

Commission on Women. Ms. May-I Fabros likes to take risks, build and break

things. She has embarked on multiple business ventures, beginning at the age

of eight (8) when she made stationaries to sell to her classmates and family.

Currently, May-i is in the service industry – capacitating and empowering

people, particularly young women, to actively participate in ensuring

accountable and transparent governance.

Mitzi Borromeo is a News Anchor and Correspondent at CNN Philippines.

She anchors the daily week night news program "Nightly News" broadcast

and is host, writer and co-producer of the weekly current affairs program

"Profiles." She cut her teeth in Philippine broadcast media as a news anchor

on the Sarimanok News Network (SNN) which eventually became the

ABS-CBN News Channel. She went on to become segment producer and

presenter for the daily morning show "Breakfast."

Mitzi went on to work as Communications Officer at WWF-Philippines,

then as Press Officer at WWF International in Switzerland, and later as

Communications Associate at the United Nations University Institute of

Advanced Studies in Japan. She has worked extensively on environment,

conservation, and sustainability issues, including gender equality. Mitzi

earned a BA Political Science degree from Ateneo de Manila University.

Page 57 of 108

Adaire Fox-Martin is the President of the SAP Asia Pacific Japan (APJ).

She is responsible for all activities spanning APJ sales and operations, as well

as SAP's expansion and growth in APJ. Ms. Fox Martin’s career spans over 23

years’ experience in the IT sector, including leadership positions in sales,

business development, consulting and education, across APJ and Europe. She

is a respected thought leader and a frequent speaker at seminars and

conferences including the World Economic Forum. She is regularly featured

and quoted in numerous publications throughout the region. Fox-Martin’s

media appearances include CNBC, BBC, Bloomberg TV, Channel NewsAsia,

Nikkei Asian Review, and many others.

Janette Toral is the site owner of DigitalFilipino.com and a staunch advocate

of e-commerce in the Philippines since 1997. She serves her community in the

DigitalFilipino Club and the public at large through training and consulting in

the area of e-commerce, digital marketing, blog campaign, and the likes. She

is a Certified Scrum Master and Certified Scrum Product Owner. Ms. Toral, as

technical consultant / executive director of the Congressional Oversight

Committee for the E-Commerce Law, was instrumental in the creation of

policies in the area of consumer protection, data privacy for the private sector,

and acceptance of electronic payment in government. As founding president

of the Philippine Internet Commerce Society, she was instrumental in the

passage of the Y2K Law and E-Commerce Law.

Ümran Beba is the Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources

Officer of PepsiCo AMEA (Asia, Middle East and Africa) which covers 90

markets and 30,000 direct employees. Ms. Beba has held a wide range of roles

since joining the company in 1994. She served as President of PepsiCo’s Asia-

Pacific region, President of PepsiCo's South East Europe Region, Business

Unit General Manager for East Mediterranean. She started her PepsiCo career

at Frito-Lay in Turkey, where she held positions including Marketing Director,

HR Director and ultimately General Manager. Ms. Beba finished her MBA

and BSc in Industrial Engineering from Bogaziçi University in Turkey.

Karen Davila is a multi-awarded broadcast journalist in ABSCBN having

won the much coveted The Outstanding Young Men or TOYM Award for

Broadcast in 2008 and The Outstanding Women in the Nation's Service of

TOWNS Award in 2014. She is a Young Global Leader of the World

Economic Forum, having moderated international televised sessions on

ASEAN for the East Asia Summit in Manila and Jakarta. She anchors three

live daily programs - a daily talk show, Headstart shown on ANC or the

ABSCBN News Channel, a daily political commentary radio program on

DZMM 630 and Bandila, ABSCBN's late night newscast.

Page 58 of 108

Sonomi Tanaka is the Technical Advisor (Gender Equity) for Social

Development, Governance, and Gender Division at the Asian Development

Bank. She is responsible for overseeing and providing advice on ADB-wide

operations in support of gender equality and women’s empowerment. Ms.

Sonomi has worked on gender and development, poverty reduction, social

analysis, social protection, and community participation issues in Asia and the

Pacific for nearly 20 years. Prior to working with ADB, she worked in World

Bank’s South Asia Department and in development institutions in Japan. She

holds a Master of Arts on Gender and Development from Sussex University.

She has a bachelor’s degree on International Relations from the University of

Tokyo.

Nilesh Patel is the Senior Vice President & President, Asia Pacific at Avon

Products, Inc. Mr. Patel joined Avon following a 26-year career with the Heinz

Company, where he acquired deep experience across multiple functions and

built a solid record of success in emerging Asian markets. Prior to joining

Heinz, Mr. Patel was a Process Development Engineer for Grand Metropolitan

in the food retailer's Research and Development department. He spent his early

professional career at a pharmaceutical company. Mr. Patel holds a Bachelor's

degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Glamorgan in South

Wales (now the University of South Wales).

Adel Tamano is the Vice President for Public Affairs and Communications

of Coca-Cola Philippines. He was previously University President of the

Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila and the Association of Local Colleges and

Universities. He was a Trustee of the Harvard Law Alumni Association and

served as Dean of the College of Law of Liceo de Cagayan University in

Cagayan de Oro. Atty. Tamano is a known media practitioner, a columnist,

legal analyst, and TV personality in Philippine media. He obtained his Master

of Laws, with Honors, from the Harvard Law School. He obtained his Master

of Public Administration from the University of the Philippines.

Malathi Das is the President of the Singapore Council of Women’s

Organisations. She is a commercial litigation lawyer, who has a special

interest in family, gender and child issues. She graduated with LLB Honours

from the National University of Singapore and currently heads the litigation

and dispute resolution department of Messrs Joyce A Tan & Partners. From

2011 to 2013, Malathi served as President of regional law organisation,

LAWASIA. At present, she is a Board Member on the Law Society’s Pro

Bono and Access to Justice Committee and serves on the Board of Governors

of the Institute of Technical Education (ITE). She is a Teaching Fellow for the

postgraduate Family Practice course at the Singapore Institute of Legal

Education (SILE).

Page 59 of 108

Cheche Lazaro is the President of Probe Productions, Inc. and the Editor-at-

Large of Rappler. She graduated from the University of the Philippines with a

Bachelor of Arts degree in Speech and Drama. Ms. Lazaro obtained here MA

in Radio-Television from the University of Michigan.

Maria Leonor Gerona-Robredo is the Representative of the Third District

of Camarines Sur, Philippines. Prior to being elected in the Congress, she was

a public attorney and lawyer committed to non-governmental organization

(NGO) work where her legal services to the poor were pro bono. At present,

part of her responsibilities as Congresswomen is serving as Senior Vice Chair

of the Committee on Revision of Laws and Vice Chair of the Committee on

Good Government and Public Accountability. Congresswoman Robredo

graduated from the University of the Philippines School of Economics.

Jeremy Prepscius is the Vice President for Asia Pacific Business for Social

Responsibility (BSR). Mr. Prepscius has extensive experience in supply chain

management, business integration, external communications, government

relations, and compliance operations. Prior to joining BSR in 2006, he spent

more than 10 years on equipment sourcing, footwear production and corporate

responsibility for Nike, Inc. He also worked in China for five years as the

North Asia Regional Compliance Director. He holds an M.S. in Economic

Development from the Patterson School of Diplomacy, and an M.S. in

International Commerce from the University of Kentucky.

Andrea Irarrázaval Olavarría is a social entrepreneur and the Founder &

Chief Executive Officer of Clean Energy in Chile. Clean Energy is a project-

based company dedicated to reduction of CO2 and greenhouse emissions.

Prior to founding Clean Energy, Ms. Irarrázaval served as advisor to several

banking institutions such as Banco Santander and Banco de Chile. She has

over 20 years of experienced in advocating and promoting women

entrepreneurship in Chile. She has a Bachelor Degree in Social Sciences from

the Santo Tomas University in Chile, a graduate degree in Social Work also

from the Santo Tomas University, and a Master Degree in Human Resources

from the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Page 60 of 108

Lesieli Taviri is the General Manager of Origin LPG in Papua New Guinea,

one of the largest providers of LPG in the Pacific Region. Ms. Taviri is one of

the most prominent business leaders in PNG. She has recently won the 2014

Outstanding Woman of the Year Award. As chairman for the PNG Business

Coalition for Women, she is committed to removing the barriers that have

prevented women advancing their careers in the region. Ms. Taviri completed

her Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science at the PNG University of

Technology and worked in IT for 8 years before moving in to the energy

sector.

Ana María Choquehuanca is the President of the Peruvian Association

Industrial Women - PERU MISUR. She represents the incoming Host

Economy Private Sector Delegation.

Ma. Aurora "Boots" Geotina-Garcia is Chair of the Women's Business

Council of the Philippines. She represents the 2015 Host Economy Private

Sector Delegation. As President of Mageo Consulting, Ms. Geotina-Garcia has

mentored businesses on corporate finance, sharing advice and philosophies she

learned as Global Corporate Finance Division head of SyCip, Gorres, Velayo

& Co. / Ernst & Young’s. She expands her advocacy as a Member of the

Board of Directors for various corporations in real estate, banking, and retail.

She is a Board member of Business & Professional Women - Makati, Phil.

Women Corporate Directors, and Samahan ng Pilipina para sa Reporma at

Kaunlaran (Spark).

Page 61 of 108

Annex D: High Level Policy Dialogue on Women and the Economy

Summary Report

High Level Policy Dialogue on Women and the Economy (HLPD on WE) 18 September 2015 | 09:00 AM – 01:00 PM

Summit Halls C and D, Philippine International Convention Center


The High Level Policy Dialogue on Women and the Economy (HLPD on WE) was chaired

by the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Undersecretary Nora K. Terrado.

Eighteen economies participated led by Ministers and Deputy Ministers as Heads of

Delegations, and delegates from Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, People’s

Republic of China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines,

Republic of Korea, Russia, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, United States, and Viet

Nam.

Prior the commencement of the meeting, the Chair invited the Ministers and Heads of

Delegations for a Family Photo session at the lobby of the Philippine International

Convention Center.

The Chair expressed her appreciation to everyone for attending the meeting. She

congratulated the participants for their active participation and contribution to the success of

the Policy Partnership on Women and the Economy (PPWE) 2 Meeting and the Public

Private Dialogue on Women and the Economy (PPDWE) which took place on the 16th

and

17th

of September, respectively. She also recognized the presence of the distinguished guest

speakers from the APEC Secretariat, Philippine Department of Trade and Industry, and

Yokohama City, Japan.

The meeting was declared open followed by the adoption of the agenda.

To turn over the floor to the next speaker, the Chair invited Ms. Irene Sim, Chief of Staff of

the APEC Secretariat to give the introductory remarks and provide an overview of the APEC

agenda.

Introductory Remarks

Ms. Sim congratulated and thanked the Philippines for hosting magnificently and warmly the

APEC WE. She added that “one cannot help but be rejuvenated and inspired by the energy,

optimism, spunk, leadership, and enthusiasm of the participants reverberating through the

various meetings, workshops, and seminars in the past days.” In particular, she recalled the

stories of young women leaders – the millennials – during the APEC PPDWE. Ms. Sim

remarked “Well done, Philippines.”

Ms. Sim noted that the women’s economic empowerment agenda in APEC has been

sustained and steadfast. She recalled how it began in 1998 when the first Ministerial Meeting

on Women was held in the Philippines that resulted in the adoption of the Framework for the

Integration of Women in APEC.

Ms. Sim narrated that the PPWE was then established in 2011 at the second Senior Officials’

Meeting held in Montana, the United States. PPWE’s aim was to generate stronger

Page 62 of 108

collaboration between public and private sectors and to do better to mainstream and to

integrate gender responsive policies and programs focused on women’s economic

empowerment to APEC activities.

Since 2011, Ms. Sim recounted that APEC Leaders recognized the crucial role of women in

the development and prosperity of the Asia Pacific and have emphasized the importance of

women’s economic empowerment in the annual APEC Leaders Declaration. For this year,

the Philippines adopted for APEC the theme of “Building Inclusive Economies, Building a

Better World” with a goal of attaining sustainable and inclusive growth in the Asia Pacific

region.

Ms. Sim recognized that women play a critical role in achieving economic prosperity. For

that reason, the APEC WE 2015 is focused on the significance of women as Prime Movers of

Inclusive Growth.

Ms. Sim congratulated the PPWE and the PPWE Chair for finally coming up with the

Strategic Plan 2015-2018 which reflects the efforts of all 21 APEC Member Economies to

promote women’s economic empowerment. She shared that the main key in this plan is

mainstreaming the women’s agenda including by working in collaboration with other APEC

fora. She explained that this is where the APEC Secretariat comes in, as it recognizes that

gender is a cross cutting issue and will continue to promote cross fora collaboration to

advance gender integration and gender equality agenda. For that reason, Ms. Sim stated that

the Secretariat have ensured, and will continue to ensure, that the Program Director

supporting the other APEC fora, are regularly brief on the PPWE initiatives and recent

developments so they could in turn, integrate gender issues into their presentations to the

various APEC fora that they are supporting.

Ms. Sim reported that recently, APEC Secretariat Program Directors have delivered

presentations to mainstream gender in the Policy Partnership on Science, Technology, and

Innovation (PPSTI), Committee on Trade and Investment (CTI), Group of Services, the Sub-

Committee on Standards and Conformance, the Energy Working Group (EWG), the Mining

Task Force (MTF), and the Investments Experts Group (IEG). She explained that these

activities are intended to support PPWE’s own outreach into other APEC fora.

In conclusion, Ms. Sim stated that advancing gender equality and women’s economic agenda

is a challenge that belongs not only to women, but also to men.

After the speech of Ms. Sim, the Chair introduced DTI Secretary Hon. Gregory L. Domingo,

who recently chaired the Ministers Responsible for Trade, who will expound how the

economic empowerment of women is vital in achieving inclusive growth.

Economic Empowerment of Women for Inclusive Growth

In return, Secretary Domingo congratulated Undersecretary Terrado for a job well done and

all the efforts in the past months have been well worth it. He thanked everyone for their

participation as it bolsters gender integration, gender equality, and women’s economic

empowerment towards fostering sustainable economic growth and prosperity in the Asia

Pacific region. He took note that the major agenda of the fora is the ensure women’s greater

access to capital, markets, capacity and skills building, and to promote women’s leadership

and competitiveness through technology and innovation. In particular, the Philippines has a

Page 63 of 108

greater focus on micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) taking into account

thatmajority of enterprise owners, managers and workers in micro enterprises are women.

In setting the background on the current contribution and potential inputs of women to

economic productivity, Secretary Domingo mentioned the market share of small and medium

enterprises as over 97 per cent and account for 50 to 80 per cent of jobs generated in APEC

countries. SMEs contribute 13 to 60 per cent to the gross domestic product (GDP) across

APEC countries. They also make up 35 per cent of a country’s exports wherein between 20

per cent and 80 per cent are active importers. SMEs collaborating with larger firms are seen

as major contributors in the innovation of an economy.

The SMEs integrated in the supply chains of global firms showed improvement in human and

technology capital which enhanced their productivities. Secretary Domingo explained that to

promote inclusive and equitable growth, APEC focused on developing the region’s SMEs in

order to bolster their ability to take advantage of cross border business.

The rise of Global Value Chains (GVCs) and forging of free trade agreements opened doors

for SMEs to participate in trade. In connection with this, Secretary Domingo shared that in

the recent meeting of the APEC Ministers for Trade (MRT), adopted the Boracay Action

Agenda to Globalize Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) which promotes

the direct participation of MSMEs in regional and global trade.

However, Secretary Domingo expounded that global value chains generally engage medium

enterprises and; only a small minority of MSMEs are able to participate because of lack of

required sophistication and are unable to participate in direct exports due to cumbersome

rules and procedures. With the promotion of MSMEs in the APEC region, women enterprises

will benefit as APEC is giving special focus in bringing MSMEs front and center in the

decision making of the global trade fora.

According to the 2010 United Nations estimate, the APEC region loses up to US$ 47 billion

in output each year due to lack of women’s participation in the labor markets. Additionally

in 2012, they estimated that up to US$ 89 billion a year could be added to the regional

economy when barriers to women’s economic participation are eliminated.

In addition, Secretary Domingo mentioned that there is a need to mainstream women’s

participation in the various APEC Fora in order to address their capacity building needs.

He also stated that the Strategic Blueprint for promoting global value chains development and

cooperation and capacity building for SMEs’ integration into the global value chains in major

industries would be relevant in promoting greater participation of women in trade.

Furthermore, he said that to “strengthen the focus on MSMEs led by women,” the Boracay

Action Agenda to Globalize MSMEs specifies the following major directions:

1) APEC will foster the use of gender-disaggregated data in measuring the economic and

social impacts of MSMEs. This is important in monitoring the progress of women’s

participation in the economy;

2) APEC will promote the understanding of the divergent constraints faced by male and

female-led MSMEs; and

3) APEC will encourage the exchange of best practices on women-friendly interfaces

with customs and other border authorities.

Page 64 of 108

APEC to achieve sustainable growth with equity, will enhance SMEs’ global competitiveness

through innovation and tapping women’s productivity, ensure financial inclusion, strengthen

food security and improve access to health services. Secretary Domingo explained that it is

for this reason that APEC Ministers and Leaders agreed to focus on eliminating the barriers

which curtail gender equality and women’s economic empowerment. He emphasized that

these will be worth the effort as US$ 89 billion per annum could be gained if women across

the region realize their full economic potential.

In connection with the above, Secretary Domingo announced that the Philippines will be

chairing the Committee on Trade and Industry next year for APEC and a woman from the

Trade and Industry will be heading this committee.

In concluding his Welcome Remarks, Secretary Domingo stated that with the high quality of

participation and energy of the participants in the workshops in the last few days, he had no

doubt that women economic empowerment is already at hand.

Following Secretary Domingo was Mayor Fumiko Hayashi of Yokohama City, Japan. The

Chair thanked Mayor Hayashi for gracing the event and also recognized the 50th

anniversary

of the sisterhood of the cities of Yokohama and Manila.

Opportunities and Challenges for Women’s Economic Empowerment in Japan

Mayor Hayashi stated that ever since Yokohama hosted the 2010 APEC Economic Leaders’

Meeting, she took part in APEC Women and the Economy discussions. Due to Prime

Minister Abe’s initiative in putting the promotion of women’s empowerment in Japan as a

major pillar of its growth strategy, movement on this has grown fast pace. Recently in

August, the World Assembly for Women in Tokyo 2015 was held where female leaders from

around the globe exchanged dynamic ideas; something that you could consider women’s

version of the Davos forum. Public efforts are accelerating on the bill to promote the

empowerment of women that is currently being debated upon.

Yokohama, being Japan’s most populous city with 3.7 million inhabitants, Mayor Hayashi

devoted herself to making it easier and more fulfilling for women to work specifically by

improving the availability of child care which is their primary barrier to female social

progression. She has managed to reduce the number of children on waiting lists to zero by

increasing the number of facilities while matching the needs of the residents. She also shared

that developments are being made through the various policies including support for female

entrepreneurs and networking among working women.

Mayor Hayashi heads the Mayor’s Association of Designated Cities, which is a male

dominated organization, composed of 20 Japanese cities. She articulated how she was able to

change relationships and foster constructive debate by seeing things from the viewpoints of

others.

Another big issue in Japan is the long working hours. She mentioned how the idea that

women are meant to do the housework, child-rearing and care, while men are meant to devote

long hours to a profession, has stood a long way in female progression. Hence, revisions to

tax and social security systems are now being considered to foster an equally empowered

society.

Page 65 of 108

Mayor Hayashi stated how she was motivated by the APEC discussions since 2010 until

2015, where the role of women promoting inclusive growth was discussed. She cited how

everyone, both locally and internationally, is now working to advance women’s economic

empowerment which she hoped will be transmitted around the world. She emphasized how

this dialogue and implementation is vital to set all this in motion. In closing, Mayor Hayashi

mentioned how she was determined to see APEC continue to grow and bring about a rich

future.

After the speech of Mayor Hayashi, the Chair called on the PPWE Chair Ms. Emmeline L.

Verzosa from the Philippine Commission on Women to report on the outcomes of the PPWE

2 Meeting held on 16 September 2015.

Report by the PPWE Chair

The PPWE Chair thanked Papua New Guinea for graciously hosting the first meeting of

PPWE in Port Moresby on May 3 to 5, 2015.

With a mission to mainstream, elevate, and integrate gender responsive policies and programs

focusing on women’s economic empowerment into APEC activities, the PPWE Chair gladly

announced that the three-year PPWE Strategic Plan 2015-2018 was officially adopted in

Manila. She said that the Strategic Plan envisions a “strong sustainable, balanced economic

growth in the APEC region that is more inclusive and enabling for women to succeed and

advance.” She mentioned how the Strategic Plan will advance women’s economic

participation through the five (5) priority pillars: 1) women’s access to capital and assets; 2)

access to markets; 3) capacity and skills building, and health; 4) leadership, voice, and

agency; and 5) innovation and technology. This also aims to strengthen the foundation and

operating structures of the PPWE and the Women and the Economy Fora.

To strengthen the integration of gender responsive policies and programs across APEC fora,

the Guide on Gender Criteria for APEC Project Proposals was updated to assess all

concept notes and projects submitted to the APEC Secretariat. The PPWE Chair mentioned

that this tool provides a range of approaches to address gender issues, from basic to more

complex, depending on the type of project. She thanked the APEC Secretariat by designating

a Gender Focal Point who facilitates the assessment of project proposals.

The PPWE Chair shared that based on the updates provided by the APEC Secretariat during

the meeting, twenty one (21) out of forty two (42) project proposals for 2015 Project Session

1 satisfactorily addressed the gender criteria in their first submission. Meanwhile, proposals

that did not satisfactorily address the gender criteria were returned with feedback and

constructive suggestions on how the project could be improved and become gender

responsive. She informed the body that a draft Cross-cutting Issues Map was prepared by the

APEC Secretariat which illustrates the various APEC fora and working groups that are

working on gender-related issues.

With the target of achieving at least ten (10) cross-fora collaboration by 2018, the PPWE

Chair reported that there are already nine (9) APEC cross-fora collaboration in varying

degrees have been made. These are the following:

1) Health Working Group

2) Human Resource Development Working Group

3) Small and Medium Enterprises Working Group

Page 66 of 108

4) Telecommunications Working Group

5) Transportation Working Group

6) Emergency Preparedness Working Group

7) Anti-Corruption Working Group

8) Economic Committee

9) Energy Working Group

The PPWE Chair noted the gender-responsive provisions of the Boracay Action Agenda to

Globalize MSMEs which advocates the strengthening of women-led MSMEs through the use

of sex-disaggregated data in measuring the economic and social impacts on MSMEs, and also

recognizes the divergent constraints faced by male and female-led MSMEs in doing their

business.

The PPWE Chair also mentioned that in the upcoming 22nd

APEC Micro, Small and Medium

Enterprises Ministerial Meeting in September and the 12th

APEC Energy Ministers Meeting

in October, increase in women’s participation will be discussed.

On the PPWE projects and Individual Action Plans (IAPs), the PPWE Chair highlighted the

reports done by a number of economies such as:

1) Japan: fourteen (14) economies have submitted their IAPs to increase women’s

leadership in the public and private sectors which have been uploaded at the APEC

website. It also shared its compilation of best practices on Women’s

Entrepreneurship in Local Communities in the Process of Disaster Reconstruction.

2) United States: the online platform on Women’s Entrepreneurship in APEC (WE-

APEC) initiative has been launched on 17 September which identifies existing

networks of women-owned business in the APEC economies.

3) Chinese Taipei: conducted a Seminar on Empowering Women through ICT for

Inclusive Growth on 16 September which is part of the multi-year project “Innovation

for Women and Economic Development – Facilitating Women’s Livelihood

Development and Resilience with ICTs” that illustrates how women use ICT for

business in the digital arena.

4) Papua New Guinea: presented a project proposal entitled “Women’s Access to

Financial Services Data in the APEC region” which aims to collect data on women’s

access to financial services and identify barriers and recommendations. Co-sponsors

of this project are the Philippines, Peru, United States of America, and Indonesia.

5) Canada: presented an initiative on “Dedicated MSME Sub-fund and Policy Support

Facility” which aims to address the lack of a dedicated funding facility for MSME-

related projects within APEC.

6) Other delegations from Australia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Russia and

Singapore also reported on their initiatives to advance women’s economic

empowerment.

The PPWE Chair added that the APEC Women and the Economy Dashboard has been

finalized and will soon be available online. This initiative aims to provide a snapshot on the

status of women in APEC, by looking at a set of eighty (80) indicators to measure progress of

women’s participation in economic-related activities and women’s inclusion in several

aspects of life. She encouraged the economies to support the implementation of the

Dashboard to make it a robust tool for tracking, measuring, and communicating progress in

reducing barriers to women’s economic participation.

Page 67 of 108

The PPWE Chair endorsed the APEC Women and the Economy Fora 2015 Statement

which contains concrete and actionable recommendations categorized along the three sub-

themes: Women and Inclusive Business; Women in the International Markets and Global

Value Chains; and Women and Sustainable Development.

In her closing statement, the PPWE Chair thanked all economies, APEC Secretariat, and

private sector representatives for their hard work during the meeting and looked forward to

communicating inter-sessionally to continue the discussions in achieving gender equality,

women’s economic empowerment, and the realization of inclusive economies build a better

world for all.

Afterwards, the Chair called on Ms. Ma. Aurora “Boots” Geotina-Garcia representing the

Women’s Business Council Philippines which is the private sector partner and co-lead for the

hosting of the PPDWE on 17 September 2015.

Report by the PPDWE Lead

Delivering the outcomes of the PPDWE, Ms. Garcia cascaded the highlights of the

discussions wherein more than eight hundred (800) delegates and guests were present. She

narrated how the dialogue was filled with compelling stories of great women, men and their

organizations, and how it fostered rich exchange of insights and best practices on women

empowerment and integration. She affirmed how women possess the capability and right

attitude and character in driving inclusive growth in our respective economies and the APEC

region.

Ms. Garcia shared the following recommendations generated from the PPDWE on how

APEC WE can maximize and harness the strengths and potentials of women towards

achieving our goals:

1) PPDWE recommended investing on the youth, recognizing the rise of the women

millennials and their contributions to the society. To do this, they recommended

investing in education – especially in the areas of science, technology and

mathematics (STEM) – which allows us to take advantage of the rising need for

talents and people in the fields of information, technology, research and innovation.

Other suggestions include initiating mentoring programs for women, granting

scholarships, and retooling the education system to ensure that it addresses

tomorrow’s skills and knowledge requirements;

2) PPDWE recognized the value of technology which has created huge impact on the

way people do business, connect with others, build relations, and live their daily lives.

In this regard, PPDWE encouraged stakeholders to establish ICT infrastructure that

will connect women in businesses into customers and markets, value chain support,

mentoring and networking initiatives, as well as e-commerce programs. They also

recommended to support start-ups that create and harness today’s so called “creative

disruption” by encouraging them to pursue their dream of starting their own

enterprises with the use of technologies – allowing them to take the risks, go beyond

status quo, and create their rules and programs customized to their business models

and needs;

3) PPDWE recommended increasing gender diversity in boards starting with

government owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs), government financial

institutions, and publicly listed companies. To do this, they suggested these two

strategies to be taken into consideration: a) establishing a quota for women seats on

Page 68 of 108

Corporate Boards; and b) incorporating gender diversity language into corporate

governance codes of each country. To further increase opportunities to advance

women’s voice and leadership, they suggested the conduct of leadership training for

MSMEs and women-owned enterprises around APEC economies;

4) PPDWE recommended initiating programs for those who are at the bottom of the

pyramid (BoP) such as by means of consulting low-income women more to

understand the effective approaches in helping them. They suggested to create

carefully designed livelihood programs that will effectively empower women in

communities, particularly mothers;

5) PPDWE recommended supporting more inclusive businesses particularly those with

explicit women empowerment in their business strategy. As the Gender and Inclusive

Business Study of the Asian Development Bank shows, inclusive businesses have

great potential for BoP population and for women empowerment. These kinds of

businesses create jobs and income opportunities for the poor and help meet priority

service needs in education, water, and energy, among others. Inclusive business was

defined as commercially viable enterprises that market solutions to the BoP. To

clarify, this does not refer to social enterprises, CSRs, or micro-enterprises;

6) PPDWE recommended the use of gender lens in establishing financial support and

training for businesses. Additionally, they suggested to funnel investments on private

sector companies with innovative gender policies that extend across their supply

chains as well as provide direct capital to companies and social enterprises that offer

products and services benefiting women and girls;

7) PPDWE recommended starting gender equality advocacies right in our own homes by

increasing awareness and appreciation among our children, spouses, relatives, and

friends. These programs should help identify parents, especially in communities,

become better equipped to mentor and guide their family about issues surrounding

gender equality. These should allow more young girls (and even boys) to learn more

about technology so that they may harness it in future efforts for inclusive growth and

women empowerment; and

8) PPDWE recommended continuing the collaboration among the government, business

sector, and civil society in designing and implementing programs for women as this

results to significant and positive impacts where everyone converged. PPDWE

expressed its hope that the HLPD on WE will mark the start of our continuous

collaboration and convergence.

Finally, Ms. Garcia stressed that PPDWE offered challenges and opportunities on women

empowerment; yet she remained optimistic that the HLPD on WE will offer solutions to the

challenges identified.

Policy recommendations (from the Heads of Delegation and ABAC)

Australia

Australia, as represented by Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary H.E. Bill

Tweddell, stated that the theme “Women as Prime Movers of Inclusive Growth” highlights

the importance of women’s role in achieving regional growth as it aligns with other

international commitments, such as the G20 leaders’ commitment to reduce the gender

participation gap by 25 per cent by 2025. Ambassador Tweddell stated that this commitment

is a policy priority for Australia which they are working hard to achieve.

Page 69 of 108

Australia noted the progress that is being made, but challenges still remain to be addressed.

Nevertheless, Ambassador Tweddell remarked that the unique strength of the Fora is that it

maximizes international collaboration between the public and private sectors to increase

women’s participation, which is not only good for women, their families and communities,

but also vital to economic growth.

Ambassador Tweddell mentioned how APEC has consistently exhibited the vitality of

forging bilateral and regional partnerships and the importance this will provide when they

support each other to reach important outcomes. He emphasized the relevance of APEC in

achieving this and commended the host for the coming up with the sub-themes: Women and

Inclusive Business; Women in the International Markets and Global Value Chains; and

Women and Sustainable Development as it provided great foundation to further the

conversation thus far and as these showcased foresight and aspirational focus to advance

women’s economic empowerment agenda.

Australia expressed its disappointment that the 2014 economic participation rate of women

lags behind of men and is under 50 per cent in many APEC economies. Ambassador

Tweddell noted how limiting women’s participation in the workforce is a waste of potential

which would amount to an estimated US$ 89 billion every year.

Although Australia entered their 25th

consecutive year of growth which has forged

unprecedented trade links within the region, their economy still faces challenges. As of

today, Australia has an ageing population and this challenge pushes downward pressure on

income growth, while the investment boom is behind them. Ambassador Tweddell shared

that increasing workforce participation and productivity is among the considered solutions.

Currently, the level of women’s workforce participation in Australia is 71 per cent, which is

behind men with 83 per cent.

Ambassador Tweddell reported that the Australian government is therefore working closely

with the private sector in creating conditions for business to innovate and help to drive the

social change necessary for real progress on women’s economic participation. Australia is

currently working on:

1) Studying the economic conditions for employment growth;

2) Improving the accessibility and affordability of Australia’s child care system;

3) Supporting women in small business and encouraging more women entrepreneurs;

4) Examining the disincentives to work in the tax and transfer system, and implementing

programs that help women overcome barriers to employment; and

5) Supporting women to pursue careers in growth industries and to reach senior

leadership positions.

Australia maintained its commitment to remain at the forefront and to sustain its close

collaboration with regional and multilateral organizations in promoting gender equality and

women’s economic empowerment. In this regard, Australia set a target requiring at least 80

per cent of aid investments, regardless of their objectives, to address gender issues effectively

in the implementation process.

Ambassador Tweddell shared how APEC economies play an important role in steering the

conversation where women’s economic empowerment is not a woman’s issue, but an

economic and cultural issue. He encouraged all economies to make concrete commitments to

increase the participation of women in their economy.

Page 70 of 108

Australia stated that gender equality and the economic empowerment of women is an

achievable goal. By way of closing, Australia expressed its unwavering support in making

men as equal partners to achieve a future where gender equality truly exists. Ambassador

Tweddell said that by engaging men, this will drive and accelerate the changes needed to

achieve it.

Brunei Darussalam

Brunei Darussalam, represented by Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports Deputy Minister

Datin Paduka Hajah Adina Binti Othman, shared how women’s role has gained its

prominence in the society and economy. Deputy Minister Adina acknowledged how the

theme "women as prime movers of inclusive growth" is timely and cannot be denied. As

policy makers, she encouraged everyone to ensure that there are facilities that can provide an

enabling environment allowing women to participate in their respective economy.

Brunei Darussalam recognized women as the backbone of the family being the primary

educators at the first line of informal education. Deputy Minister Adina stated that women

play the vital role in the upbringing of their children and equipping them with intellectual and

social skills while, managing the household. She explained that this poses challenges for

modern women as they juggle responsibilities being a mother and part of the workforce. To

address this, she shared that capacity building and empowerment programs have been

Brunei’s supporting mechanisms for women as emphasized in their Plan of Action under the

purview of the Special Committee on Family Institution and Women Issues which highlight

eight priority areas:

1) Strengthening family institutions

2) Work-life balance

3) Economy

4) Women and legal rights

5) Information

6) Health

7) Education

8) National mechanism for women empowerment

Brunei Darussalam shared that these programs are implemented in close coordination with

the government agencies, NGOs, private sectors, and other stakeholders within their

community. This Plan of Action incorporates key performance indicators and timelines to

ensure the outcomes of each line of action.

In acknowledging the role of women as movers of inclusive growth, Brunei emphasized the

need to implement target-specific policies to build resilience in our women and equip women

with necessary skills and knowledge to increase their competitive edge.

Brunei shared that the outline for strategy and policy development in their national vision

2025 provides equal opportunities for women in the labor force even in the male dominated

organizations. As of today, Deputy Minister Adina reported that with more than half of

SMEs in Brunei owned by women, young women’s participation in online home businesses

is the recent trend. She stated that these business enthusiasts participate locally as well as the

regional market through the use of technology and social media as platform for advertising

and by finding innovative ways to deliver their services.

Page 71 of 108

Brunei stated that research play a major role in isolating specific challenges and to accelerate

women’s innovativeness throughout the journey towards gender equity, gender equality, and

women’s economic empowerment. In their economy, Technology Park, knowledge hub, and

financial grants were provided to further the innovation. Deputy Minister Adina shared that

they also closely work with representatives of international bodies like the UN Women,

UNICEF, and UNESCO.

Canada

Canada, represented by Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary H.E. Neil Reeder,

stated that women are an essential role player and equal partner in pursuing the growth and

prosperity of an economy and the Asia Pacific Region. Statistics show that progress has been

made globally wherein:

1) Women represent 40 per cent of the global workforce;

2) Women represent 43 per cent of the global agricultural workforce;

3) Women represent more than half of the world’s university students; and

4) In the APEC region, more than 60 per cent are women are part of the formal

economy.

On another note, Ambassador Reeder reported that women are significantly underrepresented

as a proportion of small business owners in Canada. In 2011, Canadian women held majority

of leadership in only 15 per cent of small businesses. Further, majority of women-owned

businesses engaged in Canada tend to be smaller in size, smaller in revenue and growth rate,

and less likely to be incorporated than business of male-owned counterparts. Nevertheless,

significant progress is currently trending in Canada as statistics shows that 1) four out of five

businesses are founded by women; 2) women business owners now employ 1.7 million

Canadian out of its 34 million citizens; 3) women-owned SMEs generated US$ 74 billion in

revenue; and 5) 5 per cent of all export-sales abroad was generated by women-led SMEs.

Ambassador Reeder stated that the benefits of women’s economic empowerment are now

broadly understood. Significant progress abroad has been helpful in assisting girls and

women around the world to realize the right to education and participate meaningfully in their

economies and society.

Canada also recognized the significant skills gap between men and women particularly in

developing economies. Ambassador Reeder noted how this translates into lower labor force

participation of women and the tendency of women to be channeled to lower status pay for

employment.

In this regard, Canada proposed the following recommendations focusing on three major

areas:

1) Canada emphasized the need to ensure that laws, policies and institutions enable

women’s full and equal participation in the economy are in place. This includes the

need to break down restrictions for women to own land, ability to open and manage

their own business, participate in skills training, and have access to finance;

2) Canada suggested ensuring that women are integrated into economic decision-making

and committed to support initiatives for women entrepreneurs as well as ensuring

women and girls have access to learning and training opportunities to have enough

skills to participate in the economy on an equal footing with their male counterparts.

Capacitating them with necessary skills for employment will help facilitate access to

Page 72 of 108

labor markets for marginalized or disadvantaged population including women and

youth.

Canada cited that in the Philippines, they are supporting the GREAT Women Project

which assists micro entrepreneurs in the food, clothing, textile, and household goods

sectors to successfully and sustainably grow their businesses through enhancing their

products, increase their productivity, marketing, and compliance with safety and

business regulations. It also helps connect Philippines to the domestic and

international markets. Canada shared that they have placed assistance through the

Philippine Commission on Women with a total contribution of 14 million dollars in

two phases.

Furthermore, Canada reported that in the Philippines through grant in Asian

Development Bank, they are supporting the program called JOBSTART which aims

to improve the job readiness of Filipino youth, both male and female who are not in

employment, in education or in training. Canada explained that they provide them

enhanced employment facilitation assistances like career guidance, life skills training,

technical training, and internship with employers. Canada cited the study conducted

by ADB which shows that more than one-third of women fall into this category

compared to 1 out of 5 men in the Philippines. Additionally, women who are high

school graduates are more than 3 times more likely to be unemployed, not in training

or educational programs, as compared to women who are college graduate.

Eventually, Canada emphasized that skills for employment, particularly more targeted

at women, play an important role in promoting economic growth as well as

development goals. Ambassador Reeder explained that women who are educated and

trained are not only better equipped to provide for themselves, but better equipped to

provide for their families. He also mentioned that women who tend to marry later,

have fewer children, although they provide better health and nutrition for their

families and, they contribute more to the wider economy; and

3) Canada recognized that women are crucial to long term economic growth having

multiple roles as worker, entrepreneur, consumer, caregiver, and leader contribute

enormously to local and global economies. Canada has taken action to promote

greater rates for women’s entrepreneurship. The Action Plan for Women

Entrepreneurs is part of the 2015 budget to help women connect with the tools they

need to succeed in business. Canada also provides funding including US$ 700 million

available for 3 years in order to finance women-owned businesses in Canada though

Canada’s Business Development Bank.

Canada shared that they have a project called It Starts with One, which is a campaign

designed to encourage successful business leaders to make a difference in a woman’s

career by being her champion. They create online tools for young women

entrepreneurs and lead to enhance trade missions abroad to network. The Department

of Foreign Affairs and Trade is compiling some of the best practices such as to

promote market expansion into a dedicated website for women entrepreneurs in

Canada, newsletter, a dedicated LinkedIn group, as well as a directory of women-

owned businesses in Canada to facilitate dialogue and interaction in our women’s

business community. Working together on these key issues, women’s autonomy and

Page 73 of 108

leadership, skills for employment, and support of institution and legal environment,

Canada expressed its confidence that real progress will be made in advancing

women’s economic empowerment, economic security, and right.

Canada encouraged APEC through PPWE to continue to identify and support best practices

in the abovementioned areas.

Chile

Chile, represented by National Women’s Service Minister Counsellor Mrs. Alicia Frohmann,

emphasized that “his-tory” does not necessarily mean “her-story.” Mrs. Frohmann explained

that economic growth does not automatically lead to inclusive growth. She explained that

during the time of the slowdown of economic growth at the international financial crisis,

Chile tapped the potential of women through their economic participation.

Although big progress in health and education indicators has been made according to the

2014 World Economic Forum Global Gender Gap Report, Chile stated that they are behind

economic and political participation which involve power relationship. Mrs. Frohmann

explained that women’s movement, public policy focusing on women and gender equality,

contribution of smart and creative women in science, business, and politics have changed

their society. Further, she said that having a woman President H.E. Michelle Bachelet made

a difference.

Chile shared the following updates in their economy to further advance women’s

participation:

1) Chile reformed their electoral law. Temporary quota for women was put in place

wherein not more than 60 per cent of names of people on the ballots can be of

members of one sex. This is to ensure 40 per cent quota on the ballots, and to

encourage political parties to include women;

2) On 8 March International Women’s Day, Chile has made an institutional reform

which created the Ministry for Women and Gender Equality; an upgrade of the

previous status of the government agency for women;

3) Regarding equal rights, there is a certification or norm 3262-2012 for gender equal

rights certification of organization following ISO standards and certification;

4) Regarding health and reproductive rights, the government of Chile has presented a bill

to de-penalize involuntary pregnancy interruption in three cases: a) threat for the

woman’s life; b) lack of life viability of the fetus; and c) rape. This is now being

discussed in their Parliament though quite controversial; and

5) Meanwhile, improvements on the labor rights have been made such as through the

ratification of ILO Convention number 189 regarding decent work for domestic

workers and the new domestic Chilean law that guarantee the rights of women as part

of our society.

In APEC, Chile enumerated the four initiatives that they are currently participating in:

1) WE-APEC Network pilot program participation which provides avenue for

networking with member economies particularly in America;

2) Pilot economy for the Healthy Women, Healthy Economy Policy Toolkit;

3) On the gender gap in education in math and sciences, there will be a seminar in

Santiago on 13 and 14 October wherein everyone is invited; and

4) Current project they are developing is on Best Practices on Women MSME Exporters.

Page 74 of 108

Chile also proposed to include gender specific commitment in trade and trade negotiations in

free trade areas in the Asia Pacific initiatives. Chile shared that they are participating in the

Free-Trade Area of the Asia Pacific (FTAAP) Joint Strategic Study and will propose this

issue in the study group.

Chile shared that in 2019, being the host of APEC; they plan to establish a working group

composed of the present and future host to coordinate for the Women and the Economy

Forum. They plan to propose women’s economic inclusion as a priority issue at the APEC

Leaders’ level in 2019. This will include addressing issues on: women’s resilience in times

of natural disaster; disparities in labor force participation; women’s political and economic

empowerment; overcoming poverty for women and the impact on development; and

promotion of women-led SMEs, among others.

Lastly, Chile assured that they will bring back home the ideas and energy generated in the

meetings and that they will strive to implement all the ideas raised.

People’s Republic of China

The People’s Republic of China, represented by All China Women’s Federation Mme. Meng

Xiaosi, mentioned the following policy recommendations:

1) On supporting women to do online business, China highlighted the need to enhance

the development by letting APEC women be part of the network;

2) Provide support for women to be part of the Global Value Chain;

3) Open up opportunities for women to gain access to capital, existing internet platforms.

They suggested for women entrepreneurs to network amongst others;

4) Create an inclusive economic environment for women; and

5) APEC to increase women’s economic development by improving the status of women

that have unpaid work.

Ultimately, Mme. Meng mentioned that they will continue to work hand in hand with its

APEC partners.

Indonesia

Indonesia, represented by Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Minister

Yohana Susana Yembise, recognized how the 2015 APEC WE 2015 Fora theme is inspiring

and very relevant to the slow growth of the current economic conditions that require all

elements of the community to be informed in the economic development.

Indonesia shared that in their economy, women’s economic growth in the MSME sector

increased by 70 per cent in 2015. There was also progress in the utilization of ICT which

provided the opportunity for both woman and man to engage in business. Currently,

Indonesia’s internet penetration rate has increased significantly making them place as the 4th

in the world in terms of access to the internet.

Furthermore, Indonesia provided the following updates:

1) Women in decision making positions in the government and private sector have also

increased. In the executive body, it elevated from 9 per cent in 2010 to 16 per cent in

2015; whilst in private sectors, women CEOs have increased from 2 per cent in 2010

to 5 per cent in 2013;

Page 75 of 108

2) Training and marketing assistance have been provided to women-owned micro, small,

and medium enterprises with general agricultural products such as coffee, tea, and

batik;

3) To assist women in informal sector, Indonesian government has conducted mapping

and survey of woman in household and now preparing a special policy to promote

their productivity and opportunity to market their products while, protecting them

from discriminatory policy and regulations; and

4) Indonesia put up the Presidential instruction number 9 on gender mainstreaming

which will be carried out by ministries down to district governments to ensure that

women and men have equal access to participate, benefit and control development

including in the economy. In 2012, government issued national strategy for the

acceleration of the implementation of gender mainstreaming through gender

responsive planning and budgeting. Indonesia stated that in the current mid-term

national development plan for 2015 and 2019, 30 government agencies have planned

to integrate gender policies and programs in their ministries to eliminate gender

discrimination.

To address the constraints and obstacles to achieve gender equality and women’s economic

empowerment, Indonesia proposed the following policy recommendations and strategies:

1) Each economy is encouraged to make the public procurement more inclusive for

woman;

2) Promote policies and practices to support flexible working arrangements and work-

life balance;

3) Promote policies to encourage the public sector to procure goods and services from

women-owned businesses;

4) Undertake and disseminate gender analysis of policies and programs related to micro

economic stability, structural reform, taxation, and foreign direct investments;

5) Link policies on social development to ensure poor and vulnerable group benefit from

economic growth and development;

6) Develop and implement gender sensitive employment center growth strategies based

on full and productive employment, decent work for women and men;

7) Adopt and enforce the principle of decent work in both formal and informal sectors

giving due consideration to gender equality perspective in implementation;

8) Develop methodologies, tools and capacities for gender responsive budget process to

ensure the systematic incorporation of gender perspective in all budget and planning

processes;

9) Maintain statistical instruments to measure in quantitative and qualitative terms

unpaid work that is outside national account to reflect better its value in policies,

strategies, plans and budgets across all relevant sectors; and

10) Promote the greater recognition that care work should be shared between the state,

private sector, civil society and household between men and women and strengthen

dialogue and coordination between all relevant stakeholders.

Indonesia concluded that the fora should be a medium not only to exchange information and

best practices on the role of women and contribution in the economic sector, but should also

be a medium to holistically address the common constraints and challenges faced by women.

Page 76 of 108

Japan

Japan, represented by the Cabinet Office Vice-Minister for Special Missions Mr. Kazuhiko

Ishihara, stated that Prime Minister Abe’s administration has been the first in Japan to

address woman’s participation in the economic context. Vice-Minister Ishihara shared how

these efforts clearly change the Japanese society and wished to move together with the APEC

member economies.

Japan proposed three policy recommendations as follows:

1) Promote the creation of a Framework to advance women’s empowerment. As such,

by the end of August 2015, Japan’s diet passed an Act on the promotion of women’s

participation and advancement in the work place. This act aims to promote the active

participation of women in the workplace not only in government organizations, but

also national government agencies, and large companies are obligated to create and

publish an action plan for the promotion and recruitment of women including specific

numeric progress. For instance, if a company will make an effort to promote

productive and sustainable work-life balance, the government will support that

company through government procurement.

Japan also encouraged economies’ participation to the APEC Project that enhances

women’s leadership through the establishment of Individual Action Plan. Japan

explained that each economy could include voluntary targets which they could work

on by the end of 2020;

2) Japan expressed its hope for economies’ active participation in this and work together

to advance women’s empowerment in the APEC region. They believe that by

including more people in action for women’s empowerment, in particular men, this

will create a win-win society for everyone.

Japan shared that they hosted a World Assembly for Women (WAW!) in August 2015

in Tokyo, which brought global wisdom that made people realize that a society where

women shines exist. It also provided opportunity for male global leaders to share that

women’s economic empowerment to a better place for all and to encourage to support

each other; and

3) Japan raised the need to empower woman to take leadership positions. In case of the

great Japan earthquake in March 2011, women including the elderly and persons with

disabilities are the most affected in times of disasters in Japan. Women involvement

in decision-making in disaster risk reduction is highly encouraged as women’s

perspective is critical, in particular, into family, health, and safety.It also contributes

to the safety and security of the community.

Taking note that natural disasters can happen anywhere, Japan shared the document

which was circulated to the attendees, which stated the experience of women from the

Great East Japan earthquake. They encouraged the APEC economies to use this

document as reference in discussing women’s economic empowerment in disaster

reconstruction efforts. Japan also informed that they held a workshop on Good

Practice on Woman Entrepreneurship in the Local Communities in the Process of

Disaster Reconstruction which aimed to share to APEC member economies, Japan’s

experience in reconstruction phase.

Page 77 of 108

In conclusion, Japan expressed its hope that the outcomes of this dialogue will lead to

concrete actions for promoting the economic participation of women in the APEC region.

Republic of Korea

The Republic of Korea, represented by Ministry of Gender Equality and Family Minister

Heejung Kim, reported on the importance of capitalizing on women’s talents and its

contribution to sustainable economic growth.

Minister Kim mentioned how women’s economic participation rate has to increase for

economic growth. In comparison, a country with a US$ 40,000 per capita income versus a

country with a US$ 50,000 per capita income will generate over 60 per cent and 70 per cent

female economic participation rate respectively.

Minister Kim explained that generally, a country with high GDP per capita also shows higher

rate of women’s economic participation. In the diagram presented, employment rate of

women in GDP per capita and birthrate are very closely related. In all three areas, Republic

Korea’s numbers are far below OECD average. Moreover, study shows that if low birthrate

continues, Minister Kim stated that Korean population will be extinct by 2750. But this

program is not only for Korea, even China with the world’s largest population of 1.3 billion

could face similar situation.

Republic of Korea explained that utilizing women resources is necessary due to the low birth

rate problem. To encourage women’s participation, Minister Kim said that the Korean

government has been focusing on four dimensions: Recruit, Retention, Re-start, and

Representation.

1) Recruit: Republic of Korea noted that there is no gender gap at entry level positions;

however, there is a difference as the economic activity of man is 94 per cent; but for

women, it is below 60 per cent. Further, more men get to be promoted than women.

The economic participation of those at the age of 30s is 90 per cent wherein women’s

participation is very low.

2) Retention: Republic of Korea emphasized that for women to continue their career,

family culture and work life balance policies is important. Hence, Minister Kim

reported that Korean government has developed a policy promoting flexible working

hours and childcare systems are done in order to have quality time. For individuals

and families, Korean government is working on campaigning quality time together

once a week by declaring every Wednesday as a Family day.

3) Re-start: Republic of Korea shared that there are support centers with over 100

networks nationwide providing counselling, job connection, and career development

education. Minister Kim explained that the government encourages company

management programs for them to promote family friendly management. Since

implementing the certification policy, she stated that the mindsets of corporations are

now changing and more of them are practicing family friendly management. The

number of companies was up almost to tens of thousands and counting this year.

Korean government is also providing incentives including time extension on local tax

audit and interest rates benefit resulting to higher growth and lower turnover.

4) Representation: With the representation of the first female President Madame Park

Geun-hye, Minister Kim shared that the public sector is leading the change with a

goal of women’s advancement in employment with 40 per cent of women leaders in

the public sector and 50 per cent women managers in the private sector. In the

Page 78 of 108

Republic of Korea, Minister Kim stated that they are working hard in encouraging the

private sector to include women in management and leadership positions.

In conclusion, the Minister Kim encouraged everyone to "Let's go together!”

Malaysia

Malaysia, represented by Ministry of Women, Family, and Community Development Deputy

Minister Senator Datin Paduka Chew Mei Fun, mentioned that in 2015, the total population

of Malaysia is amounting to 30.5 million with women comprising 48.7 per cent.

Since 1989 through the formulation of national policy for women which was later on

reviewed in 2009 together with the formulation of the plan of action for the advancement of

women, Deputy Minister Fun shared that empowering women has always been part of

Malaysia’s plan. She stated that it was first mentioned in fourth Malaysian plan followed by

the sixth and tenth, where woman and gender continue to be the focus particularly in the

economic development specifics to increase female labor force participation rate from the

47.9 per cent in 2011 to 55 per cent in 2015.

To increase the number of women in key decision positions, Malaysia stated that they plan to

be a high income nation by 2020 under the economic transformations program. Deputy

Minister Fun expounded that the objective in increasing female labor participation rate will

continue in the 11th

Malaysian plan which is 2016-2020 where the new target is to achieve 59

per cent participation of women in the work force by 2020. Apart from this, she shared that

the goal is to realize 30 per cent participation of women directors in corporate boards of

public listed companies. From 46.4 per cent in 2007, 54.1 per cent of women in the first

quarter of 2015 are now participating in Malaysia’s work force.

In order to achieve and support the abovementioned targets, Malaysia did the following:

1) Promote flexible work life by using ICT to enhance work efficiency and employee

participation. Malaysia put up an online portal which aims to view a network of

employers and talents that optimize work-life integration while maximizing efficiency

and enhancing employee engagement. It also serves as repository of best ideas and

practices in flexible working arrangements as well as family friendly facilities. The

key features of the portal are the network available between the employee and

employer. List of the job opportunities and incentives are also provided;

2) The government of Malaysia also launched a Career Comeback Program to encourage

woman to return to job market. Under this program, there is the resourcing grant and

retention grant introduced to provide incentives to employers to implement programs

to recruit and retain women who have been on career break; and

3) Support women in decision-making roles through Women Director Program, with at

least 30 per cent of women in decision making in public sector has been adopted in

2004. Women in top management position in the public sector have increased by 18.8

per cent in 2004 to 33 per cent in June 2015. Due to the remarkable progress made in

the public sector, at least 30 per cent of women in decision making positions in the

corporate sector in 2011 are implemented through Malaysia’s corporate governance.

Companies are required to disclose policies and targets with respect to companies’

positions of women in their report. Three views of the program are: Registry,

sourcing, and reporting. Malaysia explained that this will help track achievements of

the key performance indicators of the women director program.

Page 79 of 108

Malaysia reaffirmed the importance of women to be part of economic resources and having

opportunities to uplift their capability in order to optimize their potential as economy building

contributors to the country.

Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea, represented by Department of Religion, Youth, and Community

Development Secretary Anna Solomon, thanked the Philippines for giving them the

opportunity to host the first PPWE Meeting in Port Moresby in May 2015 which provided

them a handful of experience in preparation for their hosting in 2018.

Papua New Guinea shared that they are a very young economy in APEC, as compared to the

other APEC member economies. They are diverse in terms of culture whereas with 7.3

million people, there are 850 distinct languages, and 3 national languages. Eighty per cent of

its population lives in the rural areas with very ragged terrains. Secretary Solomon explained

that this back drop posed challenges for them such as timely delivery of services. On a

lighter note, Papua New Guineans, most especially the women, are very resilient. She stated

that they have learned a lot from the bigger economies and the journey that they have taken.

Papua New Guinea highlighted the importance of informal economy and microenterprises.

Secretary Solomon suggested on having discussions on financial inclusion, financial literacy,

and the most basic adult literacy, since there is still a lot in their population that are not able

to read and write.

The hosting of the PPWE 1 Meeting showcased Papua New Guinea’s commitment of

wanting to learn more from bigger economies and to make improvement on the conditions of

their women. Further, Secretary Solomon said that they are committed to the Bogor Goals,

particularly in addressing the challenges of the global financial crisis while, acknowledging

the challenges of the social dimension of globalization.

Papua New Guinea’s constitution called on equal participation in political, economic, social

and religious aspects. Secretary Solomon stated that religion played the biggest part in their

country being one of the major service providers to the most rural areas. With this, main line

churches are considered as strategic partners in service delivery.

With a heightened focus on Human Capital Development, Papua New Guinea’s Vision 2050

strongly recommended intervention programs which aim to have gender equality be given

more attention and support with sufficient resources. Secretary Solomon emphasized that

although these policies are listed in documents, the reality shows that these sometimes do not

happen.

Through the Papua New Guinea’s Medium-term Development Strategy 2011-2015, gender

equality and reducing violence against women are identified as key to promoting long term

economic and social development. This strategy highlights the need for gender responsive

budgeting, recognizing gender inequality as a severe threat to development.

Papua New Guinea further shared that their government focused on three areas: 1) women

leadership; 2) women’s economic empowerment; and 3) gender-based violence. But now,

they are shifting the focus to women’s economic empowerment as a way of addressing

Page 80 of 108

gender-based violence. Through structural changes and policy interventions, women now

move to leadership positions. There is also Papua New Guinea’s gender equality and social

inclusion policy that put quota for women to attain leadership roles based on meritocracy. As

of today, Papua New Guinea proudly shared that there are now 3 women secretaries in their

government.

In order to do this, Papua New Guinea suggested to look for male champions in advocating

women’s empowerment and also noted the need to study the context of each village to

appropriately address stereotypes on women. Additionally, the benefits brought by strong

private sector participation were also cited.

As she ended her remarks, Secretary Solomon congratulated the Philippines for their

ICONOGRAPH exhibit.

Peru

Peru, represented by Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Peoples Minister Marcela Huaita,

proposed the following policy recommendations:

1) In 2015, Peru’s Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Peoples has created a General

Directorate of Promotion and Development for Women’s Economic Rights which will

be responsible in policy formulation and coordination with the public, regional

government, private companies, as well as with international and technical

organizations. In this regard, Minister Huaita emphasized the importance of having

an institutional framework which advocates for women’s economic rights and

participation which will help utilize specific programs that will ensure women’s

access to financial and technological resources;

2) Peru suggested having a multi-sectoral gender national plan with strategic objectives.

In this plan, they recommend to include ways of addressing gaps in women’s

participation in Science and Technology; guarantee women’s economic rights; reduce

gender based violence in all legislations; increase the participation of women and men

in the decision making and political and civic participation; and assess the

contribution of women in the sustainable natural resources; and

3) Peru recognized the APEC Women and the Economy Dashboard as an important tool

to advancing progress in reducing barriers to women’s economic participation across

the PPWE five pillars. The same as what they do in Peru, Minister Huaita

recommended having a national system for gender equality aligned to quality policies

and indicators. They use this as an instrument to facilitate the monitoring and

evaluation of public management for gender equality at the different sectors of

government in the national, regional, and local level.

Philippines

The Republic of the Philippines, represented by Philippine Economic Zone Authority

Director General Lilia B. De Lima, reiterated the remark of President Aquino which is in

achieving the goal of an inclusive economy, women are seen as better partners; hence, the

government provides women entrepreneurs with even more opportunities.

Director General De Lima mentioned how it is intrinsic in the Philippine society wherein

women are seen superior in many aspects, including prudent budgeting and family

advancement as a whole. She explained how the Gender Responsive Economic Actions for

Page 81 of 108

the Transformation (GREAT) of Women Project brought policies and reforms as a core

group of government agencies was formed as gender champions. These group

institutionalized processes to review and reform policies and programs that address gender

issues. For instance, these are the National Development Plan for Micro, Small and Medium

Enterprises and the Go Negosyo Act or Go into Business Law which showcase that women

are represented and consulted in the national and local MSME development. Likewise,

gender champions started to streamline and simplify business registrations and improved

access to business development services through the local investment and enterprise

promotion services.

The Philippines also cited the advocacies of the Women’s Business Council Philippines and

Women Corporate Directors Philippines through the support of the Management Association

of the Philippines which promote more women in managerial roles in companies. However,

women MSMEs on the other hand, face difficulties in linking in international markets and

global value chains. As a way of addressing this, she acknowledged and praised the WE-

APEC Network online portal which is the initiative of the United States.

On the other hand, the Philippines stated that the Department of Environment and Natural

Resources is intensifying efforts on the use of green technology and environmental-friendly

businesses and in the development of alternative livelihood specific for women in the upland

areas particularly in the agro-industry and eco-tourism; while the Department of Science and

Technology builds women-friendly designs for the equipment of small businesses benefiting

mostly women.

The Philippines noted that a lot still needs to be done for the full implementation of the

Magna Carta of Women and the Strategic Plan for Women and the Economy to intensify

gender responsive capacity building skills training. In support of these initiatives, Director

General De Lima, as head of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority, committed to pilot the

implementation of the Healthy Women, Healthy Economy Toolkit in the PEZA economic

zones. She stated that there are 3,500 companies and counting inside these PEZA economic

zones which account for more than 80 per cent of total exports of the Philippines.

Additionally, she shared that out of the 1.3 million directly employed by PEZA, 58 per cent

of it are women; the same ratio of women in managerial positions in Filipino-owned

companies inside these zones. But for foreign-owned companies, 90 per cent of which are

male managers.

Director General De Lima shared that they aim to influence medium and large scale

companies to link with MSMEs as part of their supply chain to promote inclusive business.

She also expressed its gratitude to the government of Canada for the continuous support on

the GREAT Women Project, among others.

In conclusion, the Philippines emphasized the need to formalize an APEC-wide exchange

platform or portal for women in enterprises to encourage mentoring, sharing of best practices

and success stories, training, access to marketing, financing, among others to reach many

women entrepreneurs in the APEC region.

Russia

Russia, represented by Ministry of Economic Development Deputy Director of Asia, Africa

and Latin America Department Ms. Natalia Strigunova, took note that the Philippines was the

Page 82 of 108

economy who launched the theme of women’s empowerment in the APEC Agenda. She

recounted that the first Ministerial Meeting was held in Manila and paved way for the

drafting of the Framework for the Integration of Women in the APEC Agenda.

Russia recommended for economies to increase women’s economic performance by

launching projects and, organizing capacity building events in collaboration with other fora.

This will also create an efficient and favorable environment that support women’s economic

activities. Ms. Strigunova noted that one of the distinctive features of modern global

economic development is the growing role of women in international business activities. In

Russia, as guaranteed by their Constitution, women are equal to men in their rights and

economic opportunities.

In the recent years, Russia discussed that to ensure livelihood balance for women with

children, the ministry of labor has prepared a set of programs that include measures to ensure

the reliability of record on education, health, children, as well as flexible forms of

employment and decent employment for women, including the promotion of self-

employment organization of occasional guidance and training for women on maternity leave.

Russia stated that there are about five and a half million small and medium enterprises, with

women owning 35 per cent and also share 25 per cent of the products and services produced

by women-led SMEs. Women are prevalent in the fields such as consulting, advertising,

tourism, social services, and business activities in the areas which provide good opportunities

for the Russian economy. Ms. Strigunova interestingly noted that in the 2014 Global

Entrepreneurship Monitoring, Russian companies founded by women are more successful

during the first year, in comparison with companies founded by man.

Ms. Strigunova stated that the Russian government focused on providing support for female

business initiatives and unleashing their potential since 2013. These measures are

implemented within the program of SMEs support, realized by the Ministry of Economy and

Development of Russia. Additionally, Russia has also paid attention to the creation of special

infrastructure; business incubation sites; science and technology industrial parks; centers for

business development; and financial organizations.

In APEC, Russia emphasized the need to focus more on increasing projects and activities for

women, specifically through PPWE to be approved by APEC. Russia expressed its support

to the PPWE Strategic Plan 2015-2018 and Gender Criteria for APEC Project Proposals as

these create comprehensive approach to increasing the efficiency of the PPWE work.

However, Russia commented the need to be realistic and patient in setting goals and

timelines. They explained that our priority is to have a quality and reliable work and policy

recommendations which are used by our Ministers and Leaders.

Russia mentioned how every woman entrepreneur in APEC has her own unique story of

success and rich experience that she can share with others. Hence, Russia recommended

developing communication, networking, and coordination among economy level, business

network, private sector initiatives and government services that support and strengthen the

capacities of women owned enterprises and female entrepreneurs in the APEC region.

By way of doing so, Ms. Strigunova shared that in Russia, they have a National Business

Success Cup which provides an avenue in discovering new business talent of women

innovators or entrepreneurs. She expounded that this Cup is a business competition which

Page 83 of 108

includes nomination of women’s best projects wherein regional winners are provided

opportunities to participate in international exchange programs that aim at sharing business

experience. Ms. Strigunova added that this provides an excellent chance for local

entrepreneurs to be acquainted with international best business practices, get new contacts

and easier access to new finance sources and new markets.

Lastly, Russia stated that they are open for new projects and initiatives to co-sponsor.

Further, Russia shared that they will also launch their own project and will be open for

communication.

Singapore

Singapore, represented by Ministry of Social and Family Development Senior Director Mrs.

Tan Hwee Seh, stated that to achieve economic empowerment, women need equal

opportunities for education, skills and capacity building, fair employment and leadership.

Senior Director Tan explained that women-owned enterprises need equal access to resources

such as capital and market.

Singapore shared their experience in the following areas and also provided recommendations

accordingly:

1) Equal Opportunity: Senior Director Tan shared that in the UN Human

Development Report 2014, Singapore ranked 15th

out of 152 countries in the gender

equality index. This report includes the opportunities available to women in areas

such as labor markets and empowerment, education, skills, and capacity building. She

explained that the key is to invest and maximize the potential of the people regardless

of gender, race, or creed. By doing so, education becomes the key enabler in

harnessing the potential of women. In Singapore, more than half of the university

graduates are women and now well represented in subjects traditionally viewed as

male dominated, in particular in STEM.

2) Fair Employment: Singapore shared that the employment rate for female workers

(aged 25 to 54) was 76 per cent in 2014; while for older women (aged 55 to 64) was

52.7 per cent in the same year. Women have also made into previously male

dominated professions such as legal, engineering, accounting, professions.

Supporting women workers in Singapore is the ILO Convention 100 on Equal

Remuneration, ratified in 2002, which reinforce inclusive and non-discriminatory

work practices for women.

3) Access to Capital and Markets: Senior Director Tan cited that in Doing Business

2014 Report, Singapore ranked 17 out of 189 economies for ease of getting credit for

business. Nevertheless, she mentioned that they still face challenges particularly in

increasing the number of women in boardroom. She explained that the percentage of

women directorship in stock exchange listed companies lagged 8.3 per cent in 2013;

although it has increased marginally to 8.8 per cent in 2014. To address this, she

stated that they will further raise awareness on the economic value of having women

on board by sharing best practices.

Finally, Singapore remained confident that the APEC’s efforts to break down barriers to

women’s economic participation will enable more women to become prime movers of

inclusive growth. As Senior Director Tan explained: “we will then have more “her-story”

instead of “his-story”.”

Page 84 of 108

Chinese Taipei

Chinese Taipei, represented by Dr. Joyce Yen Feng, shared that on 16 October 2015 they co-

held with the Philippines the Seminar on Empowering Women through ICT for Inclusive

Growth. This Seminar is part of the APEC Multi-Year Project (MYP) Innovation for Women

Economic Development led by Chinese Taipei and co-sponsored by the Philippines, Republic

of Korea, Chile and Australia. Launched in 2013, this Project is the first MYP under PPWE.

It emphasized how women’s utilization of ICT to innovate and achieve economic growth by

gathering successful cases from economies that illustrate how women in the Asia Pacific

region use ICT to innovate, create business opportunity, and improve their economic status.

Dr. Feng encouraged more economies to join this project.

In line with the abovementioned, Dr. Feng enumerated the following policy

recommendations and shared the actions taken by their economy:

1) Chinese Taipei suggested for APEC Leaders and Ministers to recognize and give

importance on innovation and ICT for women’s economic development. Economies

should work on providing an enabling environment that have full and equal access to

resources and opportunities for women to participate in the global market; and

2) Chinese Taipei encouraged economies to support inclusive business by integrating

learning resources that provide diverse digital learning environment, promoting

enterprises utilizing e-learnings to cut training costs, andfree entrepreneurship training

courses to equip businesswomen with skills in each stage for the start up. Some

online open universities have already opened these courses covering business

operations, financial management, innovation, and marketing skills.

Dr. Feng shared that from 2012 to 2014, a total of 51,000 women became new

students of the online university accounting for 51 per cent of all members. Female

entrepreneurship network and information exchange platform were constructed to

create interpersonal exchange business opportunities for women and help them set up

companies successfully. Entrepreneurship service window was established to provide

consultation and guidance service for female entrepreneurs from the year 2011 to

2014.

Further, she reported that the Female Micro Start-up Program provided courses for a

total of 51,741 women trainees as well as startup consultant services for 11,303

women trainees; 6,482 women to set up their own business; and 10,920 job

opportunities for women.

Chinese Taipei also mentioned that in September 2014, Social Enterprise Action Plan

was launched at central government level which provided them a friendly ecosystem,

skills, network, and space hub for social entrepreneurs. Chinese Taipei provided

funding amounting to US$ 5.38 million dedicated for private sector to participate in

this field and help the young generation enter social entrepreneurship.

Thailand

Thailand, represented by Ministry of Social Development and Human Security Vice Minister

Pol. Gen. Suwat Chanitthikul, reported that positive developments and progress as a result of

the economy’s efforts in improving the lives of its people as reflected in the National

Economic and Social Development Plan. Vice Minister Chanitthikul reported that Thailand

Page 85 of 108

continues to achieve progress by increasing the overall opportunities for women to reach

executive or decision making level and reaching the target to double the proportion of women

in parliament, sub-district administrative organizations, and executive positions in the civil

service. Additionally, Thailand has increased the number of women entering the labor

market with 64 per cent labor force participation rate; one of the highest in the Asia Pacific

region.

Vice Minister Chanitthikul expounded that in order to improve gender equality and provide

benefits for women, nine days before the HLPD on WE, Gender Equality Law became

effective in their economy which criminalizes those who discriminate among sexes and

practice gender inequality. He added that in May 2015, Thailand’s cabinet has approved the

law on the prevention on sexual harassment, which provided a broader definition and

enforcement to protect women from sexual harassment in the workplace. This law aims to

create a more enabling environment for women to allow them to harness their full potential.

On another note, Thailand informed the body on the concept of gender budgeting which was

the topic discussed in UNDP and King Institute. He explained that despite the fact that this

topic has been acknowledged, Thailand does not have the monetary system for budgeting in

place. Hence, workshops have been conducted to provide knowledge and understanding on

gender budgeting, starting from the government and policy makers. This is to avoid the

misconception that gender budgeting is merely allocating the budget for women; but instead,

an important issue that needs to be taken into consideration.

In line with the abovementioned, Thailand has now included in their new draft Constitution a

gender budgeting policy through the formation of the National Reform Council. They

believe that this development will provide an opportunity to put forward this issue into

affirmative action. Thailand discussed further that as a member of ASEAN and with the

establishment of the ASEAN Community, this will provide women a better chance to

compete with other economies. In their Ministry, they have conducted workshops with the

aim to promote economic and trade development, and improve entrepreneurial skills.

Together with the rest of the economies, Thailand reiterated its commitment to advance

gender equality goals and women’s economic development agenda in APEC. Further,

Thailand committed to continue working with other APEC economies to realize our common

goals which is: to invest in gender equality and women empowerment not just in monetary

terms, but also to change the social bias against this goal. Vice Minister Chanitthikul said

that through the recognition of the contributions that women can make, there will be

prosperity and inclusive growth in the region.

United States of America

The United States of America, represented by US Department of State Ambassador-at-Large

for Global Women’s Issues H.E. Catherine Russell, recalled the two important milestones for

gender equality, citing the anniversaries of the 1995 United Nations 4th

World Conference on

Women held in Beijing and the adoption of Learning and Development Goals in 2000.

Ambassador Russell noted how these initiatives drove progress for over two decades but at

the same time, a reminder that our quest for gender equality and women’s economic

empowerment remains unfinished.

Page 86 of 108

The United States emphasized the need for a continued commitment throughout the APEC

region and around the world in order to attain gender equality. In this regard, Ambassador

Russell gladly reported that the APEC Women and the Economy Dashboard went live at the

APEC website. She explained that the Dashboard serves as a valuable tool in developing

policies and building capacities grounded on hard data.

Another initiative that the US has recently launched a global platform called Alliance for

Global Artisan Enterprise which provides support to global artisan enterprises. In support to

this, they have launched a campaign called Choose Artisans which asks for government,

investors, private sector, and consumers to take part and support women’s entrepreneurship

both domestically and abroad. In line with this, an online portal which was also the initiative

of the US called Women’s Entrepreneurship in APEC (WE-APEC) Network was launched.

There is also a global initiative called SPARK which was launched to help emerging

entrepreneurs generate over US$ 1 billion in private investments in their businesses. US

stated that more than half of the investments to be raised will benefit women and youth.

Additionally, US shared that they opened several women’s entrepreneurship centers in Africa

and Asia and will continue to provide brick and mortar for women entrepreneurs to get the

resources they need to start and grow their own businesses.

Meanwhile, Ambassador Russell informed the body that the US Small Business

Administration launched the Innovate Her challenge earlier this year. This initiative aims to

discover products and services across the US that help empower women and their families.

US also expressed their delightfulness for being part of the APEC’s efforts to develop

Healthy Women, Healthy Economy Policy Toolkit that was launched on 17 September 2015.

She stated that they will continue to implement President Obama’s Signature Healthcare Law

which has specific benefits for women. For instance, in early September, President Obama

ordered federal contractors to offer employees 7 days of paid sick leave.

Another initiative led by US is the Young Southeast Asian Leadership Initiative (YSEALI)

which provides leadership opportunities to young women and men in ten regional economies.

They also now bring their attention to traditionally male dominated sectors like

transportation, by working with APEC economies to improve women’s representation across

that sector from boardroom to shipping docks.

Furthermore, US shared that they are also investing for the leaders of tomorrow. Ambassador

Russell informed that earlier this year, President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama

launched That Girls Learn Initiative to tackle the challenges that keep 52 million girls from

going to school over the world. As a support to this initiative, she shared that three-week

camp for girls was organized in July which focused on science, technology and, engineering,

art and design, and math, in addition to leadership skills training. The Obama

Administration’s Strategic Plan on STEM Education prioritizes STEM Educations for groups

underrepresented in these areas including women and girls.

Ultimately, US duly noted that none of these work would not be possible without the

collaboration and support of economies, civil society, and the private sector. Joint efforts of

these sectors are key to the strength and importance of APEC to the global effort to support

women and girls.

Page 87 of 108

Viet Nam

Viet Nam, represented by Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs Deputy Minister

Nguyen Trong Dam, remarked that APEC is an important avenue to discuss economic

cooperation and women’s empowerment. In their economy, laws and policies have been

initiated and considerable number of programs have created opportunities and provided

women access to employment opportunity, getting out of poverty, and enhancing their

economic situation.

Deputy Minister Nguyen shared that currently; a Vietnamese woman has gotten better access

to jobs and now participates in labor market whereas female workers account for more than

48 per cent out of the 53 million workers. The rate of woman in business increased from 20

per cent in 2014 to nearly 25 per cent in 2015. They have also proactively launched and

promoted women’s status and development through women’s business networks and

collaborating with other APEC economies. They acknowledge though that challenges still

exist such as financial insecurity and the nature of business the woman has.

As a solution to this, Viet Nam emphasized that by eliminating the barriers that limit

women’s economic participation; this will encourage a more inclusive participation, promote

growth, and enable development of the economy. Viet Nam recommended for the PPWE to

create more projects supporting the Framework for the Integration of Women in APEC,

women’s economic empowerment and development, and capacity building activities.

Finally, Viet Nam highlighted how the discussions in HLPD on WE provide a place where

economies learn from each other’s experience which will be helpful in preparation for their

economy’s hosting of APEC in 2017.

ABAC

The APEC Business Advisory Council represented by its Chair Ms. Doris Magsaysay-Ho

shared their recommendations on ways in which APEC can collectively promote and support

the economic empowerment of women in the region.

This year, ABAC is guided by the theme “Resilient, Inclusive Growth: A Fair Deal for All”

which is aligned with the APEC 2015 theme “Building Inclusive Economies, Building a

Better World.” She remarked that how these themes guide us in our shared mission which is

to ensure that all segments of society – especially women – are empowered to have

meaningful access to work and business opportunities and that more people at the bottom of

the pyramid benefit from global markets.

The ABAC Chair has enumerated the following areas of concern where ABAC recommends

both business and government to address:

1) ABAC recognized the shortages of talent brought about by aging populations and how

having someone available to care for children and elderly at home will help women

enter the workforce. To address this, ABAC shared how they engaged other

economies in seeking best practices across the region, which includes providing day

care facilities offered by companies or governments and, flexible time or work at

home programs. ABAC applauded the project 50 Leading Companies for Women in

APEC spearheaded by APEC PPWE that recognized companies that offer proven and

effective ways to improve women’s economic participation;

Page 88 of 108

2) ABAC informed that they are working on with APEC on developing a new approach

called “Earn, Learn and Return” to effectively manage cross border labor flows which

they envision will provide opportunities for workers to pursue careers across borders,

but to regularly return home to be close to their families, and eventually return home

permanently to contribute their knowledge to the sending economy. This initiative

recommends a sectoral approach to education and training and the mutual recognition

of educational skills certification. ABAC expressed its support to Chile in its call for

the ratification of the ILO Convention on Domestic Helpers. They also reported that

the Philippines has adopted the convention in 2012 and has brought it a step further

with the adoption of the Domestic Workers Act in 2013;

3) ABAC welcomed the Healthy Women, Healthy Economy Policy Toolkit that

provides a menu of options for companies to implement gender sensitive policies and

programs that address the well-being, health, and work life balance of women in the

workforce. They also welcomed the Women and the Economy Dashboard as a great

way to measure the effectiveness of policies across economies;

4) ABAC recognized technology as a driver for inclusive growth and recommended to

remove barriers in order to engage in e-commerce. They shared the USC Marshall

School study which posits that technology and e-commerce are giving women the

greatest ability as entrepreneurs to have the flexibility to manage their own work life

balance and achieve financial empowerment. Through this, ABAC supported the

Boracay Action Agenda and the Cebu Action Plan mentioned by Secretary Domingo

which outlined inclusive policies that will give MSMEs and women meaningful

access to trade;

5) ABAC cited the paper they released in 2013 which showed the striking reality that the

restrictiveness in accessing capital for women entrepreneurs emanated from their lack

of assets that they own, and the insufficient business training that they have received,

if any at all. ABAC updated that they will be having a meeting with SME Ministers

to discuss this issue and recommend solutions;

6) Recognizing how technology levels the playing field, ABAC strongly recommended

for APEC to implement policies and promote more women to embrace STEM and

engineering, changing mind sets across young girls of APEC;

7) ABAC advocated the active engagement of private and public sectors in consolidating

best practices to increase women’s representation in the board room, promoting

corporate family responsibility, and integrating women-owned businesses into the

global supply chain. Furthermore, they advocated for more companies to embrace the

concept of inclusive business with larger companies developing longer value-based

partnership models with their suppliers. ABAC posits that this model can propel

SMEs owned by women into global value chains most quickly; and

8) ABAC urged APEC to lead by example. They shared that as of today, there are only

11 women out of the 63 ABAC Members, with some economies having two female

members. They said that ideally, one out of three ABAC members should be a

woman.

To cap it off, Ms. Ho congratulated the Chair for the successful PPDWE, expressed its

support to the initiatives everyone has made in their respective economies and across APEC,

and looked forward to a continuous collaboration of APEC and ABAC to achieve full

participation of women in the economy.

Page 89 of 108

Concluding remarks – Setting the Action Agenda for Women’s Economic

Empowerment

Wrapping up all discussions done thus far, the Chair, Undersecretary Terrado conveyed her

warmest and sincerest gratitude to all economies who took time to participate in the

discussions and who clearly stated their views and recommendations on how gender equality

and women’s economic empowerment agenda could be pushed forward in the APEC work

streams. Although the Chair noted that much still needs to be done, but she remained

optimistic that with economies joining hand in hand in pushing for a concrete, actionable, and

measurable policy recommendations, gradual progress is being made.

The Chair thanked the PPWE for taking the initiative in reaching out with other cross fora

through active participation in the SOM Steering Committee on ECOTECH (SCE) to ensure

that the other APEC fora and member economies take into consideration looking through a

gender perspective in assessing project proposals and initiatives originating from their

respective fora. She especially thanked the APEC Secretariat for its great decision to appoint

a Gender Focal Point who will assist the Program Director of the PPWE in ensuring that the

other APEC fora’s project proposals will be infused with a gender flavor that is acceptable to

all.

The Chair recognized the efforts of the PPWE and congratulated its Chair who has done an

excellent job in guiding the discussions for the implementation of the PPWE Strategic Plan

which further strengthened the initiatives of APEC WE and for coming up with an agreed and

acceptable language for all for the APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora Statement.

On the other hand, the Chair also congratulated the PPDWE for a very enlightening sharing

of best endeavours and success stories. She emphasized that having the presence of the

APEC Leader, no less than the President of the Republic of the Philippines H.E. Benigno S.

Aquino III strengthened our call not just Philippines as Host Economy, but Philippines

together with APEC economies, to bring back again the focus on gender equality and

women’s economic empowerment agenda.

The Chair took into account the policy recommendations and interventions made by all

Ministers and Heads of Delegations in the HLPD on WE. She reiterated the call for an action

agenda that should be given special attention for women’s economic empowerment by

enumerating these five points:

1) The Chair emphasized the importance of increasing the role of women MSMEs in

regional and global trade by putting this as our top priority. To achieve this, the Chair

encouraged economies to assist these MSMEs by improving the financial

environment through the promotion of alternative financing schemes for start-ups and

MSMEs, and by fostering inclusive and gender responsive business strategies to

empower these women entrepreneurs;

2) The Chair reiterated the call to increase the participation of women in leadership

positions such as in business and politics. She encouraged economies to promote

targeted approaches in creating an enabling environment for women where they could

reap valuable rewards in order to move to the top management position or “C-suite”.

She suggested expanding opportunities through skills and capacity development and,

peer-to-peer learning and networking among others;

3) The Chair emphasized the importance of closing the gender gap divide by increasing

women’s ability to access Science and Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM)

Page 90 of 108

and Information and Communications Technology (ICT) jobs and opportunities. She

recognized how women’s ability are harnessed through the utilization of efficient ICT

tools and smart technology in building, operating, managing, and growing women-led

enterprises;

4) The Chair promoted the use of the recently launched Healthy Women, Healthy

Economies (HWHE) policy toolkit for greater economic participation of women in

the economy; and

5) The Chair encouraged government agencies to collect and produce sex-disaggregated

data. She also expressed her support to the implementation of the Women and the

Economy Dashboard to bridge the gender gap.

Ultimately, the Chair noted how advancing women’s economic agenda has always been a

tricky issue as it cross-cuts to all sectors and relevant topics in the APEC fora. She

encouraged economies to determine which aspects APEC should put special emphasis. She

remarked that through the adoption of the Women and the Economy Statement, this will help

address the 5 Pillars of Women’s Economic Empowerment in APEC: 1) access to capital and

assets; 2) access to markets; 3) skills, capacity building, and health; 4) leadership, voice and

agency; and 5) innovation and technology.

On a personal note, the Chair expressed her gratitude to everyone who supported her execute

the leadership position or the Chairmanship of the APEC WE 2015 Fora. She humbly

thanked everyone for their understanding in case there are unintentional omissions and

commissions that she did. She shared how this experience as the Chair has been a pleasure

for her in which she will remember for life.

Formal adoption of the Women and the Economy Statement

The Chair of the HLPD on WE presented the APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora

Statement which was hereby adopted by all economies present. The APEC WE 2015 Fora

Statement serves as the APEC WE’s contribution to the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting

in November 2015, in Manila, Philippines.

The Chair invited the Past Chair represented by the People’s Republic of China and the

Incoming Chair represented by Peru to give some statement.

Remarks by the HOD of the Past and Future Chairs

People’s Republic of China

The People’s Republic of China mentioned "See you in Peru."

Peru

After eight years, Peru will be hosting once again APEC in 2016. They shared that the theme

of the APEC Women and the Economy 2016 Fora will be “Breaking Barriers to Economic

Integration of Women in the Global Market” noting how this cross-cuttings to all APEC fora.

In line with the five pillars in advancing women’s economic empowerment, the following

sub-themes are:

1) Care systems to break down barriers for inclusive growth;

2) Costs of gender-based violence in the economic development;

Page 91 of 108

3) Mechanisms for the internationalization of women entrepreneurs in Micro, Small and

Medium Enterprises;

4) Financial literacy for access to capital; and

5) Digital literacy for economic inclusion.

Peru proposed to discuss the issues on digital and financial literacy, so that women can gain

access to markets, capital and assets, as well as to achieve internationalization of women

MSMEs. All of these are possible only if APEC member economies provide care systems, as

it will free up time that women devote to unpaid domestic work which impedes economic

inclusion of women. Another barrier identified is the costs of gender based violence in the

economic development of women as it causes loss of productivity in female labor force.

Peru stressed the need to have a consensus agreement on policies that promote women’s

economic empowerment and gender equality in APEC. They welcomed everyone to go to

Peru with open arms followed by the presentation of a video teaser on what they will expect

next year. The Chair expressed her excitement for Peru’s hosting in 2016.

Before she adjourned the session, the Chair once again thanked all people behind who

supported the whole execution of the APEC Women and the Economy 2015 Fora.

Page 92 of 108

Annex E: PPWE Management Council Meeting

Summary Report

Policy Partnership on Women and the Economy Management Council Meeting

(PPWE MCM)

18 September 2015 | 02:00 PM – 05:00 PM

Philippine International Convention Center


I. Preliminaries

Prior the official start of the meeting and while waiting for other economies, the participants

engaged in an informal discussion on the following:

The rationale for creating the Management Council Meeting (MCM) is to ensure

smooth transition between the current and incoming PPWE Chairs through sharing of

information on planning processes, issues and challenges in organizing the Women

and the Economy Fora and other related meetings; and

USA informed the Meeting that there is a scheduled independent assessment of

PPWE in 2016; this is already approved by the Steering Committee on ECOTECH

(SCE). SCE will hire a consultant to conduct survey and interviews among PPWE

members.

II. Opening Remarks by the 2015 PPWE Chair

The PPWE MCM Chair Ms. Emmeline L. Verzosa, welcomed everyone to the Meeting, and

warmly greeted her co-Chairs, Peru and People’s Republic of China. The MCM was

attended by the following economies: Australia, Chile, China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia,

Peru, Philippines, Chinese Taipei, and USA. The APEC Secretariat and the APEC Business

Advisory Council were also represented.

III. Adoption of the Agenda

The agenda include the following:

A. Implementation Plan of the PPWE Strategic Plan for 2016-2018

B. APEC 2016 Work plan: An Introduction by Peru Co-Chair

C. Other Matters

The PPWE Chair invited the Economies to endorse the Agenda, which was done accordingly.

IV. Discussion and Agreements on the Agenda

A. Implementation Plan of the PPWE Strategic Plan for 2016-2018

The Meeting discussed strategies on how to sustain and further strengthen cross-fora

collaboration within APEC.

A.1. APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC)-related discussions

Australia inquired on what is the official interface between PPWE and ABAC;

ABAC representative shared that currently, the engagement is per project basis.

ABAC recently collaborated with PPWE on the development of the Healthy Women,

Healthy Economy Policy Toolkit;

Page 93 of 108

The ABAC representative expressed willingness for a more meaningful and

institutionalized collaboration with the PPWE as regards the implementation of the

Strategic Plan 2015-2018;

The US delegation also expressed its desire to start a partnership with ABAC to move

forward the WE-APEC Network Initiative;

The PPWE members were in agreement that there should be a conscious effort to

nominate women representatives to the ABAC. The US delegation suggested having

a list of women ABAC nominees prepared for when nominations come up. The US

delegation also shared that in the case for US representatives at ABAC, the White

House selects the US representatives; this highlights the commitment of Senior

Officials and private sector to the ABAC;

The Australia delegation shared that they have a commitment to have one woman

representative at ABAC but have, so far, not placed one in the council;

The ABAC representative clarified that the council does not meddle with the affairs

of the Members when it comes to an Economy’s representatives. The ABAC simply

flags to an Economy if there is a position that needs to be filled up; and

While it is important to have women ABAC members, it was also stressed that it is

equally important to have a gender-responsive members, whether male or female, at

the council.

AGREEMENT: Each economy should have at least one woman member (1/3) in the

ABAC. Fill out all slots because it impacts on the agenda and projects of ABAC.

A.2. PPWE Communications Plan

Following the discussion on PPWE engagement with ABAC, it was suggested that a

Communications Plan be developed that will indicate how PPWE engages with ABAC and

other working groups. The development of a Communications Plan is one of the targets in

the Strategic Plan.

A.3. Guide to Gender Criteria

As reported during the PPWE 2 meeting, fifty per cent of projects have gender criteria.

Projects that did not pass the gender criteria were returned and given recommendations for

improvement. However, it was noted that the current gender criteria are not too strict.

Nevertheless, it is a very significant development to have gender expert, Ms. Penelope

Howarth, in the APEC Secretariat who facilitates the assessment process.

AGREEMENT: It is imperative that all projects will pass the criteria, more so now that the

APEC Secretariat has a gender expert to review the projects.

A.4. Guidelines on mainstreaming gender in APEC

In the approved Strategic Plan, PPWE targeted the development of Guidelines on

Mainstreaming Gender in APEC by 2018.

The delegations agreed that having this set of Guidelines will help PPWE in

mainstreaming gender in the other working groups, especially in those with no clear

correlation between gender and their sector. While the Gender Criteria is useful, it is

not sustainable and not enough as it is only for projects;

It was suggested for each working group to be reminded of gender issues to be

addressed in their projects. The PNG delegation further commented that the working

groups should look into where the key pillars impacting women’s economic

empowerment fall in their work plans; and

Page 94 of 108

The following were suggestions on how to develop the Guidelines: (1) develop

guidelines on specific areas and not on general statements that can just be easily

ticked; (2) Indonesia suggested to monitor the implementation of the five key pillars

in relation to the Guidelines; (3) US suggested looking for an external consultant who

can coordinate the update of the Guideline; and 4) explore if this endeavour can fall

under Canada’s new project on a dedicated micro, small and medium enterprise

(MSME) sub-fund and policy support facility.

AGREEMENT: The following Economies agreed to work on the update of the Guidelines:

Australia, USA, Philippines, Indonesia, and Canada (though the latter was not present during

the MCM).

A.5. Strategies on mainstreaming gender in the APEC

The following were suggestions related to integrating the gender-perspective in across APEC:

Create a Task Force to make sure that gender perspective is integrated in other

working groups. US did not recommend the creation of a Task Force and, instead,

suggested educating other working groups by having one of the PPWE members

attend these working groups’ meetings. Australia suggested forming a Tiger Team,

wherein a member of another working group is temporarily made part of the PPWE

and vice versa;

PPWE to identify possible “gender allies” in the other working groups, and meet with

them to strategize how the gender perspective can be integrated in their respective

working groups. One successful case is the HWHE initiative wherein there were

champions from the Health Working Group and Human Resource Development

Working Group who pushed for the development of the Toolkit in their own working

groups. In the end, it fostered ownership of the project, including the necessary

follow-through and next steps;

Have gender experts in all the APEC fora to ensure that all working groups

understand what gender is;

Hold a policy dialogue where PPWE can get gender experts to talk about specific

issues based on the five key pillars impacting women’s economic empowerment;

Conduct training on integrating gender perspective with the Chairs of other working

groups;

Get champions among senior officials to espouse gender;

Have a member of a working group brought physically in PPWE and then let that

representative champion the gender issue in the working group later;

As part of PPWE’s monitoring and advocacy strategy, a PPWE member should

always be present during SCE meetings;

Indonesia suggested holding another joint ministerial meeting and enhancing projects

that were already started. The host economy can coordinate with the concerned

working group; and

Think of priorities by themes and have projects follow those themes. This will

encourage a programmatic approach instead of activity-focused.

A.6. Communication platform within PPWE

The Australia delegation suggested having an internal communication platform that

will facilitate easier communication exchanges between PPWE members. Australia

clarified that this platform is not about having a Dropbox account but having a

document management system that will keep track of the different versions of

documents that go back and forth between Economies;

Page 95 of 108

It was suggested to have a repository website for inter-sessional documents in the

APEC website;

The PNG delegation also commented that a communication platform where the

private sector can discuss their issues be also made available; and

The US delegation shared that the existing WE-APEC website is a good platform for

women entrepreneurs and ABAC members to express themselves.

AGREEMENTS: (1) Ms. Romy Tincopa of the APEC Secretariat to hold a meeting with the

APEC Communications group to discuss the creation of webpage for uploading of informal

documents/intercessional documents; (2) Economies to share speeches, IAPs, etc. on a

voluntary basis; (3) APEC website section on documents needs to be populated/updated; and

(4) Utilize and share the WE-APEC website.

A.7. Project funding (PNG-initiated agenda)

It was acknowledged that it is sometimes difficult to acquire funding for PPWE projects. One

strategy to address this is to implement projects through or with other sub-fora/working

groups that have more funds or more funding opportunities.

A.8. GREAT Women Platform

Philippine delegation shared with group that Malaysia is set to replicate the GREAT Women

Platform, and that it is also open to other APEC economies.

B. Plans for 2016 APEC WE by Peru

The 2016 APEC WE will be a 3-day event in Lima, Peru, in June 2016. It will follow

usual schedule: first day will be allotted for the PPWE meeting, 2nd

day for the

PPDWE, and 3rd

for the HLPD. The theme will be “Breaking Barriers to Economic

Integration of Women in the Global Market”; and

The Peru delegation clarified that they will only be able to host one PPWE meeting

next year. Thus, if another Economy is willing to host another PPWE meeting, then

the offer will be gladly accepted.

ACTION TO BE TAKEN: Share the Peru APEC WE 2016 PowerPoint presentation to

other Economies.

V. Closing Remarks

A. Closing Remarks by China delegation

China expressed her appreciation that the gender perspective has already been mainstreamed

in many of the works of APEC but noted that that there is more work to be done. She

encouraged more dialogues to reach PPWE’s goals and the use of internet to share

experiences of each economy.

B. Closing Remarks by PPWE Chair

The PPWE Chair summarized the agreements made during the MCM. They were the

following:

For Australia, US, Philippines, Indonesia, and Canada to update the Gender

Mainstreaming Guideline;

Explore the creation of Tiger Teams to infiltrate working groups and have gender

issues addressed in other working groups;

Ensure that PPWE Members are invited/present during SCE meetings;

Page 96 of 108

Ms. Romy Tincopa of the APEC Secretariat to conduct a discussion with the APEC

Communications group so that a dynamic webpage for documents is made;

Create an APEC WE (online) communication platform that will encourage public-

private sector dialogues;

Look into other working groups that have funds for funding to support PPWE

projects;

Increase female membership in the ABAC, and ensure that ABAC members, whether

male or female, are gender-responsive; and

Development of a communications plan (as per PPWE Strategic Plan) that will inform

how PPWE engages with ABAC and other working groups.

Page 97 of 108

Annex F: APEC Multi-Year Project: Seminar on Empowering

Women through ICT for Inclusive Growth

Synopsis

The opening speakers are in agreement in the importance of empowering women as catalyst

for social change and economic development. It is in alignment with these mindsets that the

speakers have thus presented several case studies of women entrepreneurs who designed

game-based learning applications, e-tools and programs, and research demographics of

women in areas like Chile, Australia, Philippines, Korea, Peru, and Taipei. The strategic

approaches respond to challenges posed by women in business to address issues about

isolation, of women working from home and not empowered about her capabilities and skills,

the opportunities for her to develop her skills and access capital funds to service and develop

her markets and learn new marketing initiatives, and bridging the digital divide between the

genders. The initial attempt to empower women through inspiring programs that addresses

cultural make-up and processes and how training programs can be designed and be user-

friendly, accessible, affordable, and interesting for women to actually use and apply to their

business.

MORNING SESSION

Opening Remarks

Hon. Joyce Yen Feng Minister without Portfolio, Chinese Taipei Welcomed 171 representatives from 12 economic spectrums with annual projects affirming

the consensus of the importance of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in

empowering women to address capacity building competencies, promote communication

channels in collaboration with public and private sectors and non-government organizations

(NGOs).

Hon. Nora K. Terrado Chair, APEC WE 2015 Fora Undersecretary, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Cited the 3rd year for APEC’s multi-year project on Innovation for Women and Economic

Development by advocating for women’s livelihood development and resilience with ICTs.

To enliven the proceedings they designed an interactive workshop program to generate more

participation and networking through shared experiences and inputs on strategic models.

Guests-of-Honor

Hon. Catherine M. Russell Head, United States Delegation Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues U.S. Department of State Started at the US Department two years ago and observed the inequality of women’s rights in

other countries. Shared what her country has done to bridge the gender gap through policies

on health care benefits, addressed climate control, and promoted women empowerment. She

wanted feedback mechanisms to maximize collaboration and advance the use of the Toolkit.

Page 98 of 108

Mr. Andrey Mukhanov Chair, APEC Telecommunications Working Group (APEC TEL) Adviser to the Minister, Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communication of the Russian Federation Started at the US Department two years ago and observed the inequality of women’s rights in

other countries. Shared what her country has done to bridge the gender gap through policies

on health care benefits, addressed climate control, and promoted women empowerment. She

wanted feedback mechanisms to maximize collaboration and advance the use of the Toolkit.

Keynote Speech

Ms. Aida Jean Manipon Country Program Manager, UN Women Philippines Noted UN’s Goal 5 where global leaders will sign gender equality by 2030 enhancing use of

ICT to promote empowerment, access to resources and financial services and other Goal

targets for resilient infrastructures, foster innovation, accelerate hunger mitigation programs,

global partnerships, etc. 2015 saw the 20th year of the UN World Conference of Women in

Beijing (BPFA: Beijing PlatForm for Action) promoting greater participation of women

especially in the use of ICT to bridge the digital divide and address issues of empowerment

thru education, gender sensitive legal environments, access to financial resources and

improve labor and employment conditions. Cited data: 2.7 billion are online and women

comprise only 40% including the labor force.

30-minute Session Break

PANEL SESSIONS

Session 1

“Innovation for Women and Economic Development”

and Toolkit and Game-Based Learning Application

Moderator:

Ms. Patricia May M. Abejo Director, Department of Trade and Industry, Philippines

Speakers:

Ms. Ching-Cheng Chang Research Fellow at Institute of Economics, Academia Sinica, Chinese Taipei

Discussed the objectives/Key Result Areas (KRAs) of APEC’s Multi-year Project (MYP)

2013-2016 that includes access to new ICT devices and value added services (VAS), to share

best practices on ICT innovations apps for women and identify key elements for successful

women-led businesses. The work plan includes 2 years of inventory, case studies and

newsletters, followed by a year of online learning, surveys, and APP design and another year

of game-based learning and Toolkit design targeted for 2016.

The first phase baseline survey findings on how ICT can empower women by creating an

environment to participate in community-based activities, create business and employment

opportunities for women, create business-enabling networks that address women’s needs.

Introduce innovative ICT solutions to solve issues of financial literacy and family consent,

provide e-commerce platform and cost effective package to assist micro businesses break

Page 99 of 108

market limitations, boost the confidence for entrepreneurship, and build networks to enhance

leadership qualities.

The second phase on online training addressed pre and post business concerns for monitoring

and guidance and collected data on personal background. It involves 20 participants, 20 hours

of online business tutoring over 100 course topics, examine the functions of e-learning

platform, explore participants’ expectation and satisfaction and study the interaction between

mentors and participants. The Phase 2 survey results reveal the preferred topics (human

resources management, financial literacy, marketing skill, access to market), behavioral

support and stable infrastructure service. The findings and recommendations reveal the

women’s unfamiliarity with utilizing ICT for market information, high level of ICT literacy

does not assure the ability to access market information or how to translate them to benefit

their business.

Recommendations include encouraging women specializing in ICT or women in ICT-related

businesses to design e-learning programs tailored for women’s needs and to help women

entrepreneurs overcome the challenges.

Ms. Hsiao-Mei Lin Co-Founder and CEO of HEX, Inc. / Thunder Sensing Inc., Chinese Taipei Started her business with her husband as partner. Working on the principle that gamification

engages people on an emotional level to achieve their goals they then developed fingertip

gaming app on entrepreneurship, global app downloads, “WE boss” (Women Economy). The

objective is to educate women to develop skills using game applications while addressing

limitations on time, cost and space. The fun and user-friendly application educate and train

women in startups in an interactive way allowing them to gain competence and learn to

SWOT (identify strengths, weakness, opportunities, threats), and provide translations into

different languages to close the communication gap between people from urban cities to

those from villages/provinces.

Question & Answer

1) What about idiom?

Response: Ms. Hsiao-Mei Lin offered options in the App that can integrate settings

for access to different languages/dialects.

2) There was a comment that availability and reliability of Wi-Fi connection and IP

concerns must be addressed to make this effective. It was mentioned that

infrastructure issues will be addressed in another session later.

Session 2

Successful Cases of Women’s Economic Empowerment by Economy Presentation

Moderator:

Ms. Ching-Cheng Chang Chinese Taipei

Page 100 of 108

Speakers:

Ms. Carol Hanlon CEO of Belmont BEC, Australia

Presented their experience in online training and development to empower women in

Australia thru BPW Business Incubator. Creating non-profit initiatives to assist women

entrepreneurs (25,000 were assisted and 10% in SMEs) they developed simple data gathering

requiring basic yes/no answers, monitored skills requirements and needs by asking “do they

need the skills?”, provided 9100 topics with free webinars, addressed demand and support of

SMEs, SWOT emotional attachments, financial feasibilities, activated sponsorships and

networking, personal mentoring, provides 24/7 online support. She shared actual participants

experience profile.

Ms. Yunkeum Chang Director of the Institute of Leadership and General Education at Sookmyung Women’s University

Presented ICT programs in the Republic of Korea and shared actual cases using the Gyeonggi

Women’s Development Center (GWDC) and Women’s Enterprise Supporting Center

(WESC) startup incubator. They developed programs for women as leaders and used ICT as

KRA. The Informatization Promotion Basic Law in 1995 initiated the emergence of Cyber

Korea 21, eKorea Vision 2006 and Broadband IT Korea Vision 2007 Converging. They

addressed the gender digital divide by providing internet classes for a million housewives in

2001 which doubled in 2003, ande-Business for women in 2004. Women’s education is one

of the greatest contributors to development. The percentage of women internet usage in

Korea vary from age levels from 99% for ages 40 below and decreased to 41% for seniors

(60 and up).

GWDC has managed 22 women entrepreneur annually since 1999, with 48 startups with

public academic partnerships. WESC has 14 branches in multiple cities operating 171 women

business incubators since 2007.

Ms. Olga Pizarro Stiepovic Professor of Del Desarrollo University, Chile Presented demographical data of women entrepreneurs in Chile: 25% women entrepreneurs

with 71% doing it for opportunity and 29% out of necessity. SWOT analysis include cultural

conditions where more women are educated than men but women lack the confidence to start

a business or afraid of failure. Women in Chile tend to prioritize their children and husbands

with the latest gadgets and settle with older gadgets for themselves or not have gadgets at all

which limits their digital connectivity. There is also a language barrier because most of them

do not know the English language. There are efforts to promote entrepreneurship by the state

and in the academe but needs sustainable support from personal mentoring. Actual cases of

successful women entrepreneurs were presented.

Ms. Chiqui Escareal-Go President, Mansmith& Fielders, Inc., Philippines

Study on an online training and mentoring program. Shared 5 actual cases of women

entrepreneurs although 1 backed out in the course of study. The criteria for their selection

include diversity, have no previous engagement with existing program organizers and do not

require them to be “internet savvy.” SWOT analysis include human to ICT infrastructure

factors (affected by internet speed, type of computer, time management) and human-to-

human concerns like need for personal mentoring and peer engagement. They found the

Page 101 of 108

course training helpful but had difficulty with language barrier affecting comprehensibility,

time factor affected viewing flexibility, while expectations ranged from improved business or

to build their business confidence, 75% satisfaction rating against 25% unsatisfied who will

not recommend this training to others.

Lunch Break

AFTERNOON SESSION

Presentation on the APEC Women’s Participation in the Digital Economy

Dr. Patrice Braun Adjunct Professor, Collaborative Research Network Federation University, Australia

Presented WEF 2015 Agenda on women as prime movers of inclusive growth. To address

this there is a need to enhance women-led SMEs competitiveness, strengthen women’s

presence in regional and global economy, target skills and capacity development approaches,

and consider the enabling environment that women operate within. He posits scenarios like

how does one keep up with the pace of technology and the connectivity of devices,

integration and globalization of and through ICT (telephony, technology roadmaps,

ecosystem support, etc.) and possible disruptions. Human-centered thinking should be

considered in all phases. Working IN the business is different from working ON the business.

Every ecosystem is unique, and women are only as good as their enabling environment.

Presentation on “Interaction of Women Friendly App”

Ms. Hannah Chou Co-Founder of Our City Love Social Enterprise, Chinese Taipei Presented survey App targeting People with Disability (PWD). 80% of PWDs surveyed were

women reliant on family (husband or children) to assist them in operating the app on gadgets.

Reported SWOT analysis using actual scenarios of PWDs’ concerns like locating PWD

friendly establishments, career opportunities for PWDs, etc. The use of ICT as a powerful

tool to assist PWDs navigate the real world maximized ICT’s potential and relevance to all

sectors of society. “It’s not people who are disabled; it’s the environment that is disabled.”

Presentation on the Project Toolkit / Overview of Breakout

Facilitators:

Ms. Rosario M. Gruet, Philippines

Dr. Ching-Cheng Chang, Chinese Taipei

Introduced the objectives and discussion rules, the topics, the moderators, the timetable, and

presentation module after. The four topics for discussion and the moderators are as follows:

1) Capacity Building – Dr. Patrice Braun (Australia)

2) Entrepreneurship – Dr. Olga Pizzaro Stiepovic (Chile)

3) Infrastructure – Dr. Yunkeum Chang (Republic of Korea)

4) Public-Private Partnership – Ms. Chiqui Go (Philippines)

Page 102 of 108

BREAKOUT SESSION & PRESENTATION

I. CAPACITY BUILDING Moderator:

Dr. Patrice Braun, Australia

The development and enhancement of skills and knowledge from the grassroots level to

marginalized groups, from training and workshops to enhance character build up and proper

structures to empower women not only in the macro economy but also from small home-

based initiatives, address language barrier and other communication concerns, provide

technical support and infrastructure will address business and financial literacy, provide

access to jobs or business ideas, peer teaching/counseling.

Members of this discussion group include representatives from Russia, Chile, Peru,

Philippines and Spain.

II. ENTREPRENEURSHIP Moderator:

Ms. Olga Pizarro Stiepovic, Chile

The major challenges affecting women entrepreneurs are cultural differences and practices,

economic status of their country and their family which affects financial viability, biased

gender roles and expectations, limitations to legal avenues and capital funds, support group to

build business confidence and share skills and knowledge, economic sanctions, and inability

to utilize ICT to source, build, access markets.

An enhanced program for sustainable entrepreneurship status for women through ICT must

have regional cooperation and shared vision to seek support and push their agenda from their

government to support women-led businesses, access to loans and simplified loan process,

provide baseline data and other data source, create a pilot program, develop ICT learning

tools and capabilities to access market and develop ideas.

Members of this group include representatives from Russia (Larisa Ivanisova), Chile (Maritza

Lafertte), Thailand (Dr. Monthip Spiratana), Philippines (Hazel Marizella Yap, Dr. Venus

Genson) and USA (Tong), Taipei and Papua New Guinea.

III. INFRASTRUCTURE Moderator:

Dr. Yunkeum Chang, Republic of Korea

The active presence of government support in activating its authority to make ICT accessible

and effective is crucial. This participation requires the appointment of an ICT Specialist who

can provide knowledge and vision in improving connectivity and activating robust

networking programs. For marginalized countries with limited funds for proper infrastructure

support, the support and assistance of regional groups like APEC may provide the proper

channels to activate and enhance connectivity weakness. The provisions of incentives for

sponsorships and donors and additional support from pooled private organizations and

institutions must also be tapped. There is also a clamor for active online support to push

infrastructure agenda and get government support and funding. Infrastructure support

includes up-to-date hardware devices, internet access even outside of the city, daycare

Page 103 of 108

centers, online learning programs with well-designed courses and system compatible

platform, affordable internet infrastructure and equitable access to ICT.

Members of this group include representatives from Australia (Carol), Indonesia (Indra),

Russia (Karina), New Zealand (Wendy) and the Philippines (Tina, Dina, Mitch) and Dr.

Chang from Korea.

IV. PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP Moderator:

Ms. Chiqui Escareal-Go, Philippines

The dynamics of the support coming from PPPs in terms of scholarships, private

collaborations, government incentives, proper policy and implementation support,

economic/capital funding, and exchange program, women empowerment programs, can

enhance the proper network and cooperation in different countries and the regions. But the

crucial and integral part is how to be able to harness these partnerships. And how can

initiatives convey proper support channels and meet the needs and demands of women

especially in SMEs.

The recommendations presented were to network directly with government or political and

authority figures conversant and sympathetic to the cause of women to aggressively push the

agenda of crafting legislation, support effective language translation and technical support

and pass effective policies and proper implementations of laws that will allow easy access to

women-led initiatives in grants funding and organizational support. Another is to create a

portal for regional cooperation of women to seek assistance, redress and support.

Members of this discussion group include representatives from the USA (Marily Mondejar),

Korea (So Young Lee), Philippines (Luna Fojas, Milagros Lacson), Peru (Jessica Soto,

Lorena Sandoval), Chile (Mateo) and Taipei (Hannah Chou).

Page 104 of 108

Annex G: APEC Women’s Business and Smart Technology Seminar:

Including & Leveraging Smart Technology for Empowering APEC

Women Entrepreneurs

Summary Report

15 September 2015 | 02:00 PM – 06:00 PM

Summit HallsE and F, Philippine International Convention Center


Host: Asia Pacific Women’s Information Network Center (APWINC) of

Sookmyung Women’s University, Republic of Korea

Department of Trade and Industry, Philippines

Organizer: Global Women’s ICT Network (GWIN), Republic of Korea

TeamAsia, Philippines

Support: Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, Republic of Korea

NS Home Shopping, Republic of Korea

SAMSUNG, Republic of Korea

Co-sponsors: Australia, Chinese Taipei, Viet Nam

Participants: Total 110 participants composed of APEC Delegates (12 economies), women

entrepreneurs, government officers and academic scholars

Objectives:

To promote women-owned businesses using smart technologies and to inform them of

current trends such as smart services (3D printing, big data, etc.) and sharing of best

practices and useful resources for launching start-ups.

To share experiences and business models of successful women businesses based on

smart technologies in APEC economies.

To formulate policies and develop strategies for leveraging smart technology. The

results will be reported to PPWE, WEF, or other related Fora, Policy Partnership on

Science, Technology and Innovation (PPSTI).

To create an APEC “in-house online accelerator support system for start-ups” by

partnering with regional entities that can then be leveraged by women entrepreneurs

when launching their start-ups.

< Session Highlights >

Opening and Welcome Remarks

Moderator: Ms. Maria Montserrat Hamlin, President of TeamAsia, PH

Opening Remarks: Dr. Yong Ja Kim, Vice President of GWIN, ROK

Welcome Remarks: Hon. Nora K. Terrado, CHAIR, APEC WE 2015 FORA, Undersecretary (Usec.),

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), PH

Congratulatory Remarks:

Page 105 of 108

Ms. Min Jai Lee, CHAIR of Korean Women Entrepreneurs Association, ROK

Ms. Myrna Tang-Yao, President of Business & Professional Women (BPW), PH

Ms. Joeng Ae Bang, Internal Auditor of Credit Guarantee & Investment Facility, Trust Fund of Asian

Development Bank, PH

Keynote Speech Session :

Highlights of the Current Issues and Trends for Women Entrepreneurs

Moderator: Dr. Paul Chao-Chia Huang, Managing Director, LoFTechnology, Inc. Chinese Taipei

Speakers:

Hon. Nora K. Terrado, CHAIR, APEC WE 2015 FORA, Usec, DTI, PH

Highlights that “As an enabler, Technology can help us steer our businesses to

success. It is vital to development. The two are closely tied. But we need to

properly manage technological advancement in a way that is inclusive, facilitates

our continuing integration in the global supply chain, and leads us to sustainable

growth and development”.

Dr. Kio Chung Kim President of GWIN, ROK, Dr. Myonghee Kim, Director of APWINC, ROK

Current Status of Women (emphasizing that women’s empowerment is also a smart

strategy for national development)

Introduction of 3 Disruptive Technologies that can bring empowerment for women:

Mobile, IoT (Internet of Things), 3D Printer

Support System for APEC Women Entrepreneurs (e.g., partnering with regional

accelerator programs)

Dr. Lorna Wright, Executive Director of Centre for Global Enterprise, Schulich School of Business,

York Univ., Canada

Smart technology: challenges and opportunities for women-owned business.

Challenges faced by businesses and companies due to the smart technology trends:

“7 billion connected mobile devices in the world today (more than one for every

human being). Consumers want more convenience and intelligence and less hassle

– want connection in real time”.

Advantages of smart technology for women-owned business (ex. Increase margins,

lower costs, easier to connect with customers, sup pliers, like-minded people).

What companies, women, government need to do in order to overcome the challenges

and take away opportunities in the digital world.

Session on Sharing of Best Practices

Moderator: Dr. Patrice Braun, Adjunct Professor, Collaborative Research Network,

Federation University Australia

Speakers:

Ms. So Young Lee, Chief Vice President of Korea Information-Technology Business

Women’s Association, ROK

Bio-3D-IT convergence for smart women’s business

Emphasis on the endless evolution of Smart ICT convergence: In the 1990s, IT

industry consisted of mass production and replication of ITs such as personal

computers and internet and during 2000, custom made production and IT

convergence so called smart and green has emerged. The next generation of IT

industry is collaboration production of IT Co-evolution.

Page 106 of 108

Introduction of Bio, ICT, 3D convergence for human life : 1) Bio 3D scanning and

printing for anti-aging/injury therapy; 2) Bio 3D ink for patient specific care

system; 3) Bio 3D printing for affected area on optimization

Dr. Donald Patrick Lim, Chief Digital Officer of ABSCBN, PH

Sharing his ideas on how women can make use of technology to generate more

income and be more inclusive in the digital world.

Sharing homegrown successes on YouTube channel like Kids Toys which trumps

ABS-CBN in viewership.

The Philippines is one of the top consumers of YouTube with a significant number of

Filipino YouTube personalities penetrating the video-sharing website including

‘Kid’s Toys’ channel that features two young girls unboxing toy after toy that their

father bought them. Their unboxing video of ‘Baby Alive’ has already reached a

whopping 90 million views, their most watched video so far.

Ms. Magdalah Racine-Silva, President & Chief Executive Officer, DMS International,

USA

Emphasizes that educational and experience diversity among women is a complement

to using technology to solve problems

Underlines that new 21st century leader traits are needed for global success.

Comparison between perceptions of women’s traits versus traits needed for success.

She quoted that “Tenacity/Resilience, Drive/Passion and Work Ethic” rank among

the Top 3 traits cited as most attributing to our success. Thus, mindset is what really

matters for success, with technology breaking down the unconscious bias that

women can’t be as good as men.

Session on Overcoming Challenges in Launching your Business

Moderator: Dr. Yunkeum Chang, Director of Institute of Leadership & General Education,

Sookmyung Women’s University, ROK

Speakers:

Ms. Sheila Lirio Marcelo, Founder, Chairwoman & CEO of Care.com, USA

Points out that some companies just focus on their business model and think of brand

as the pretty pictures, colors and taglines. Thus, underlines that your company’s

brand is your authentic relationship with your employees, clients and stakeholders.

In order to be a successful women entrepreneur she needs to surround herself with a

team that she shares values with, be careful of choosing an investor and think big

and then engineer the company for scale

Dr. Chonchanok Viravan, President, Pathanasomdoon Company Limited and former

President of Business Professional Women (BPW International), Thailand

To launch Start-up business, one can start with social media like Facebook because

social media is the quickest and most affordable way to create online presence of

your business. This can later help build content for future website. By doing so an

entrepreneur does not have to jump right into opening online shop and understand

the expense and risks involved in starting online businesses.

Ms. Teri Jayun Ham, Founder of H Network Consulting Group, Director of International

Development, GWIN, USA

Underlining the use of Start-up accelerators which offer discounted or free resources

to help entrepreneurs launch their businesses. Some of the services offered include:

mentorship, training and other educational components, and business support

(technical, HR, design, communications, marketing, call centers, etc).

Page 107 of 108

Call for collaborating APEC women entrepreneurs to launch the APEC Women

Entrepreneur Start-up Accelerator Program (AWESAP) pilot: 1) for start-up

accelerators who would be willing to become program partners and allow our pilot

participants to leverage their services and tools to launch their start-ups; 2) for

corporate/business partners who would be willing to train our pilot participants to

help give them the skills and development they need to be more effective and

competitive.

Results of the Seminar

The speakers covered a wide range of issues connected with women entrepreneurs and smart

technology, which participants found most informative and inspirational. Participants were

encouraged to comment on what they were learning throughout the session and upload these in real

time to the GWIN website (www.gwin.or.kr). These comments were organized around three

questions:

1. What are the opportunities using smart technologies?

2. What are the challenges using smart technologies?

3. What are your key takeaways from today’s event?

Opportunities

1. Crowdsourcing

2. Crowdfunding

3. Business having real time interaction with customers and suppliers.

4. Establishing linkages

5. The potential for 3D printing to allow anyone to develop innovative products inexpensively.

6. Have government invest in training start-ups so they can better access smart technology

connecting people.

Challenges

1. Lack of training and knowledge about smart technologies

2. Lack of information on what is available

3. Disconnect between what is needed and service delivery.

4. Technology is changing too rapidly. One can’t keep up.

5. Connectivity issues (e.g., speed, access, cost, stable connections)

6. Logistical problems in exporting, particularly on how to handle different regulatory issues.

7. Getting people to trust

8. Charge back risks

9. Women facing technology related violence.

10. Calculating ROI from use of social media.

Key take-away

1. Female traits of leadership are needed in the 21st century.

2. Biotech and 3 D printing are the most important technologies (Chile)

3. Need to promote a more entrepreneurial mindset in women.

4. In building a brand need to be authentic. Authenticity and passion will make business

sustainable.

5. Smart technologies are diverse and disruptive.

6. Smart technologies are great equalizers. You don’t need the huge capital investment required

in bricks and mortar business.

7. Trust and reputation are critical for business success.

8. You can make money from YouTube total views.

9. Technology is critically important in this era. The willingness of APWINC to extend their

hand in helping women entrepreneurs is appreciated.

http://www.gwin.or.kr/

Page 108 of 108

Recommendations

1. Develop an APEC/WEF Portal of Trade and Exchange

2. Develop an APEC accelerator program for women start-ups

3. Develop training programs to teach women avenues for generating income – e.g., how to use

free technology to make money (e.g., You Tube) or how to link to the “gig” economy to

monetize spare resources, such as a spare room or a car sitting idle most of the day (e.g.,

through Airbnb, Uber)