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Thursday Dec 12, 2024
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“Our National Enterprise Development Authority has integrated women entrepreneurship well to many of their on-going programs. Sri Lanka’s SME women segment is a considerable force driving our economy” said Minister of Industry and Commerce Rishad Bathiudeen on 12 November in Colombo.
Minister Bathiudeen was addressing the Commonwealth Business Women’s (CBW) initiative’s delegation that met with Minister Bathiudeen on 11 November evening in Colombo. Members of the CBW meeting Minister Bathiudeen were Commonwealth Business Council and CW Business Women Senior Advisor, Corporate Governance and South Asia Arif Zaman, President of the International Federation of Business and Professional Women Freda Miriklis, Quantum Leaps President, CEO and Co-Founder Virginia Littlejohn, National President of the British Association of Women Entrepreneurs Deborah Leary and Commonwealth Secretariat Interim Director, Social Transformation Programs Division Esther Eghobamien.
Also present were Strategic Advisor Neela Marikkar, Advisor to Minister Bathiudeen Himali Jinadasa, National Enterprise Development Authority (NEDA)Chairman N.M. Shaheid and, Department of Commerce Deputy Director D.W. Jinadasa
“We thank CBW for its interest to uplift our women entrepreneurs. More and more women entrepreneurs need linkages in our new growth phase. Post-war, more women entrepreneur activities are seen.
“The National Enterprise Development Authority (NEDA) under my Ministry focuses on all SME players including women. Our NEDA has integrated women entrepreneurship well to many of their on-going programs.
“Sri Lanka’s SME women segment is a considerable force driving our economy. We have many women’s chambers of commerce across the country and associations with activities for self-employed women such as ‘Gamata Obina Vyaparaya’. Your arrival is a boost to them,” said Minister Bathiudeen, addressing the delegation.
Commonwealth Business Council and CW Business Women Senior Advisor Corporate Governance and South Asia Arif Zaman, addressing Minister Bathiudeen said: “We can see that Colombo’s atmosphere is buzzing by the minute due to CHOGM activities. We want the Lankan women entrepreneurs to be big players in the world market.
“We are working on empowering women and formation of the platform called Commonwealth Women Leadership Forum. We would like to see all Sri Lankan women under one umbrella as well. “The time and the need and the opportunity for women’s economic empowerment for Sri Lanka and across the Commonwealth is now.”
International Federation of Business and Professional Women President Freda Miriklis, apprising Minister Bathiudeen, stated: “My organisation has 30,000 women members from 98 countries and a major contributor in this filed. We enjoy the highest status any NGO has within the UN system-General Consultative status (with UN’s ECOSOC).
“We have links with the International Trade Centre of the UN and the World Trade Organisation (WTO), which improves business in less developed countries. This is where we see opportunities for Sri Lankan women entrepreneurs.
“Our membership power is the $ 700 billion multinational supply chain that we have access to. We find women owned, run and operated biz of any scale to be able to sell to the supply chain. This Thursday 12 November we are moving forward in a key way, with the agenda ffor women’s economic empowerment in the Commonwealth, with Sri Lanka playing a key role with the Sri Lanka initiative - the Commonwealth Business Women (CBW)-Sri Lanka Leadership Group. ”
Each of the other members of the delegation took turns to address Minister Bathiudeen, explaining the uniqueness of their organisation, each of their mandates and of their visions on empowerment of women entrepreneurs during the consultation meetings held with the Minister on 11 November at the Ministry.
