The 18th Global Summit of Women (GSW),or informally called the "Davos for Women", opened Thursday afternoon in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, with the attendance of over 900 participants from 72 countries and regions.
Themed "Women and Asia-Driving the Global Economy", the summit, being held at the Melia Hanoil Hotel, offers a window into the dynamic Asia-Pacific economies now leading the 21st century global marketplace, and insight into the women driving business growth in this region as consumers and business leaders.
GSW president Irene Natividad said at the opening ceremony that the summit opens a window to other people and other cultures.
She welcomed the first participation of Myanmar and Libyan delegates in the summit.
Two most important factors affecting the 21st century are Asia and women, she said.
"The center of gravity of business has shifted from the West, specifically from Europe and the United States to the East, specifically to the Asia-Pacific region led by China and India," she noted.
"We will learn doing business in Asia-Pacific region. You learnabout the women in this region through report to be issued tomorrow by Master Card, you will meet the outstanding Asia-Pacific women business leaders," she said.
"We break the stereotype that Asian women work, but they don't lead," she said.
"It is a structural shift of economic control from men to women," she said, adding that in almost every country, women make up half, or almost half of the workforce, whether in the informal or formal sectors.
Women started small businesses at an unprecedented rate, she said, adding that 40.4 percent of small businesses in the United States are owned by women, one-third in Europe and 20 percent in China, 25 percent in Japan.
"Small business is the spine of every economy in the world, and women are driving small businesses everywhere," said Natividad, "that's why women are controlling the economy in the future."
The GSW will run from June 5 to June 7 in Hanoi.
The GSW, a Washington-based non-governmental organization established in 1990, has been held every year since 1997.
The summit is an international forum to connect female entrepreneurs, experts, government leaders from all countries over the world, for the establishment of a global women coalition in order to share the best practices, successful business strategies, to deal with the problems that women are facing with in their business, to raise the role of women not only in business but also in all political-social activities.
The previous GSW was hosted by Berlin, Germany, last June and attended by nearly 1,000 representatives, including 44 women cabinet members, from 95 countries and regions.
The first Global Summit of Women was held in Montreal, Canada, in 1990.
Source:Xinhua
|
Comment
Tell A Friend
Print Format
Save Article