Women in business to grow
Friday, 22 June 2007
Clive Freeman
In a powerful display of womanpower, more than a thousand businesswomen from 91 countries took part in the 17th Global Summit of Women in Berlin over the weekend. The central theme was "Global Opportunities and Challenges."
That this was a gathering of strong-minded, fast-moving career women was underlined when summit president Irene Natividad, hailed as one of the 100 most powerful women in the United States a few years ago, told delegates they were today's leaders who would help transform the 21st century economy.
"In one generation alone we have moved from a population of women who were far less educated and represented in the workforce than men to a 21st century reality that now has 40 to 50 percent of women working worldwide," Natividad, who is of Philippines descent, said at the opening ceremony.
Rising women's employment has been the main driving force of business growth over the past couple of decades, she said. Women may still not be paid on average as much as men, but that would not halt their progress, she said.
"Women keep working. They are persistent and, as a result, they have increased their purchasing power. We are now major consumers of financial services. And what that has done is create new markets and new businesses that did not exist before."
Fifty government ministers attended the conference. Asian participation was strong, with Vietnam and China especially well represented.
Vietnamese Vice-President Truong My Hoa who headed a 52-member-strong delegation, told IPS that the summit's "global marketplace" theme had great significance for Vietnam. Her country, she said, had just become a member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), which meant that Vietnam was now "very much connected to the main challenges of the world, including globalisation and market competition.
"We have to identify where are the challenges, where are the opportunities and I think our businesses should get a very good understanding of these challenges, so that they are well equipped to overcome difficulties and take advantage of the good points of globalisation and integration."
Asked about the role of women in Vietnam today, and whether they enjoyed wage parity with men, she said: "During the time of war Vietnamese women contributed towards our struggle for independence and during the time of peace they have made contributions to our reforms and our economic development."
But she conceded that men have "better access to education and training than women, so they get better jobs and better pay." This was particularly the case in high-tech areas where men made up the majority of employees, she said.
Millionaire South Korean sales entrepreneur Sung-Joo Kim was a star at the event. When her rich father died a decade or so ago she inherited little of his wealth -- most of it went to male members of the family.
"Unfortunately South Korea is very male dominated," she told IPS. "So that is what motivated me to start from scratch alone in business.
That is one of the reasons why I became so pro-women, trying to help other women from my experiences."
Today, Sung-Joo Kim heads heads the MCM group in Seoul and abroad. Originally MCM was a Munich-based operation, but that folded up in a swirl of controversy.
"Meanwhile, the Korean MCM grows healthy under my leadership and two years ago became a 100 million dollar business with 500 employees and more than 100 outlets in the handbag and leather product area."
In London, her company's leather goods are prominently displayed at Harrods and other upmarket stores. "Since I bought up the brand we certainly cleaned up the market with a completely new look," she said.
The women's global summit, she said, was "a form of female solidarity. Men have their big boy clubs, so why not women a big girls club."
Internet
In a powerful display of womanpower, more than a thousand businesswomen from 91 countries took part in the 17th Global Summit of Women in Berlin over the weekend. The central theme was "Global Opportunities and Challenges."
That this was a gathering of strong-minded, fast-moving career women was underlined when summit president Irene Natividad, hailed as one of the 100 most powerful women in the United States a few years ago, told delegates they were today's leaders who would help transform the 21st century economy.
"In one generation alone we have moved from a population of women who were far less educated and represented in the workforce than men to a 21st century reality that now has 40 to 50 percent of women working worldwide," Natividad, who is of Philippines descent, said at the opening ceremony.
Rising women's employment has been the main driving force of business growth over the past couple of decades, she said. Women may still not be paid on average as much as men, but that would not halt their progress, she said.
"Women keep working. They are persistent and, as a result, they have increased their purchasing power. We are now major consumers of financial services. And what that has done is create new markets and new businesses that did not exist before."
Fifty government ministers attended the conference. Asian participation was strong, with Vietnam and China especially well represented.
Vietnamese Vice-President Truong My Hoa who headed a 52-member-strong delegation, told IPS that the summit's "global marketplace" theme had great significance for Vietnam. Her country, she said, had just become a member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), which meant that Vietnam was now "very much connected to the main challenges of the world, including globalisation and market competition.
"We have to identify where are the challenges, where are the opportunities and I think our businesses should get a very good understanding of these challenges, so that they are well equipped to overcome difficulties and take advantage of the good points of globalisation and integration."
Asked about the role of women in Vietnam today, and whether they enjoyed wage parity with men, she said: "During the time of war Vietnamese women contributed towards our struggle for independence and during the time of peace they have made contributions to our reforms and our economic development."
But she conceded that men have "better access to education and training than women, so they get better jobs and better pay." This was particularly the case in high-tech areas where men made up the majority of employees, she said.
Millionaire South Korean sales entrepreneur Sung-Joo Kim was a star at the event. When her rich father died a decade or so ago she inherited little of his wealth -- most of it went to male members of the family.
"Unfortunately South Korea is very male dominated," she told IPS. "So that is what motivated me to start from scratch alone in business.
That is one of the reasons why I became so pro-women, trying to help other women from my experiences."
Today, Sung-Joo Kim heads heads the MCM group in Seoul and abroad. Originally MCM was a Munich-based operation, but that folded up in a swirl of controversy.
"Meanwhile, the Korean MCM grows healthy under my leadership and two years ago became a 100 million dollar business with 500 employees and more than 100 outlets in the handbag and leather product area."
In London, her company's leather goods are prominently displayed at Harrods and other upmarket stores. "Since I bought up the brand we certainly cleaned up the market with a completely new look," she said.
The women's global summit, she said, was "a form of female solidarity. Men have their big boy clubs, so why not women a big girls club."
Internet