Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — Women and small enterprises took center stage during Friday (October 2) morning’s briefing of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.
Trade officials shared gains from the APEC Women and the Economy Forum held in Manila last week, and the Small and Medium Enterprises Ministerial Meeting held in Iloilo last September 25.
Trade Undersecretary Nora Terrado said that around 60 percent of micro, small, and medium enterprises in the region are owned and/or led by women.
But she added that around $47 billion dollars have been lost from the lack of women participation in business opportunities in APEC.
To address this, officials of the APEC Women and the Economy group came up with a platform connecting women business leaders to service providers the region through a website.
Also launched was the APEC Women and the Economy Dashboard — a tool to gauge progress in women’s participation in economic activities. It will have nearly 80 indicators including access to capital and markets, skills and capacity building, leadership, and innovation. It is already available on the said website.
Meanwhile, the trade ministers group shared progress from their talks in in Iloilo City, on how APEC seeks to help small businesses play a bigger role in global markets.
Ministers proposed more innovative financing measures for small businesses, such as governments serving as guarantors of small businesses applying for loans.
These are part of a framework called the Iloilo Initiative: Growing Global MSMEs for Inclusive Development. It will be presented — along with the Women and the Economy Fora Statement — to APEC’s economic leaders during their summit this November.
CNN Philippines’ Miro Capili contributed to this report.
