PCW-GREAT Women Project joins delegation in Asia-Pacific Women and Economy Forum



The Philippine Commission on Women-GREAT Women Project officials, together with Department of Trade and Industry, Women’s Business Council of the Philippines, ECHOSI Foundation and leading women entrepreneurs, formed the Philippine delegation to the 2013 Ministerial Meeting on Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) and Women at the Women and Economy Forum at the Third Women and Economy Forum (WEF) of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) last 6-8 September 2013, in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia. The Third WEF is a follow-through event of the Women and the Economy Summit 2011 in San Francisco, and the WEF 2012 in St. Petersburg.

PCW Chairperson Remedios Rikken presented the Philippine Experience in Empowering Women Small and Medium Enterprises with the GREAT Women Project being the banner program and the Great Women brand as featured initiative. She was joined by Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Undersecretary Nora Terrado in the Joint Ministerial Statement at the 2013 High Level Policy Dialogue on Women and the Economy in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia.

The Third Women and Economy Forum (WEF), with the main theme “Women as Economic Drivers”, initiated nine panel discussions with 77 speakers on issues concerning capital and business opportunities for women entrepreneurs. Some 806 participants from various ministers, heads of delegations, officials of central and local governments, business associations, women leaders, and academics participated joined the forum.

Recommendations were sought on structural reform, women and information and communication technology (ICT), infrastructure and human capital resources for women’s businesses that will be inputs to the Policy Partnership on Women and the Economy (PPWE). The APEC PPWE effectively acts as an institutional mechanism to integrate gender considerations into APEC activities and provides linkages within the APEC to advance the economic integration of women in the Asia-Pacific region.

“Through our participation in the discussions during this forum, we hope to contribute substantially in the collective efforts to advance women’s role and participation to achieve gender equality in economic development in the Asia-Pacific region,” Undersecretary Nora Terrado explained.


DTI, PCW, Women’s Business Council of the Philippines and ECHOSI Foundation contributed inputs to various WEF sessions. These institutions are the prime movers in organizing the country’s hosting of the APEC Women and the Economy Forum slated this 2015.