Joint US – Japan press release: First APEC women’s entrepreneurship summit

Under the auspices of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and on the margins of the APEC Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Ministerial Meeting, the United States and Japan will co-host the APEC Women’s Entrepreneurship Summit (WES) in Gifu City, Japan, on October 1st 2010. APEC WES aims to galvanize the Asia-Pacific community to unleash the potential of women entrepreneurs and business leaders to boost economic growth and development in this region. In addition to official delegations to the SMEs Ministerial Meeting on October 2nd and 3rd, the WES will support women entrepreneurs from each of the 21 APEC economies, bringing together 150 international participants in Japan.

The Summit is comprised of several panel discussions and interviews featuring high-level political and business leaders, as well as break-out sessions tailored for women entrepreneurs to enhance their understanding and practical skills to gain better access to markets, networks, financial services, technologies, and training. We anticipate that, through policy discussions, networking, advocacy, and capacity building activities, senior government officials and private sector participants will help inform innovative strategies to strengthen women entrepreneurs’ participation and contributions to the region’s economic growth

Read More