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Annex A: Current PPWE Initiatives

Annex A: Current PPWE Initiatives

    Measurement of Change

  1. The Women and the Economy Dashboard is a set of 75 indicators on the status of women in APEC’s member economies. The Dashboard is a tool to track, measure, and communicate progress in reducing barriers to women’s economic participation across our five key pillars.: (a) Access to capital and assets; (b) Access to markets; (c) Skills, capacity building, and health; (d) Leadership, voice, and agency; and (e) Innovation and technology. The APEC Policy Support Unit reported on the indicators under the Dashboard for the first time in September 2015, using highly credible international data sources such as the United Nations, the World Bank, the International Labor Organization, the World Economic Forum, and the World Health Organization. The Dashboard’s indicators will be assessed and reported on for the second time in 2017.

    2. Women’s Entrepreneurship

  2. The Women's Entrepreneurship in APEC (WE-APEC) initiative, which was launched in 2014, examined each economy's efforts with respect to business networks, private-sector initiatives, and government services in support of women's entrepreneurship. The findings of a far-reaching WE-APEC gap analysis offered a detailed view of the landscape for women entrepreneurs in the APEC region. Summaries of all 21 economies, including details about their respective networks, initiatives, and services, can be accessed and enhanced to strengthen eco-systems that support women's entrepreneurship. The WE-APEC online platform (www.we-apec.com) shares this dynamic directory of service providers for women-owned businesses across APEC and provides a way for governments, the private sector, business networks and entrepreneurs to connect to each other.

    3. Women’s Leadership

  3. Among various issues related to women´s empowerment, gender gap in companies’ leading positions, corporate boards and senior management level has been one of the most important challenges for all APEC economies. Following the 50 leading companies for women in APEC 2014, the Good Practices on Gender Diversity in Corporate Leadership for Growth project focus on the impact of gender diversity on boards and in senior management level and picks up and compile companies’ best practices to achieve corporate growth by promoting women’s leadership. 
  4. The “Individual Action Plan (IAP) for the Enhancement of the Ratio of Women’s Representation in Leadership” project was launched to promote women's participation in the economy in all levels, particularly in leadership, decision-making and management. The IAPs will serve as mechanisms for measurable and aspirational voluntary goals which economies could work toward by the end of 2020, with a view to assessing progress of ratio of women's representation in leadership. In order to further promote women´s representation in leadership and accelerate the voluntary goals and the momentum of the initiative of each economy, the project will explore and stock take of good practices of the policies as well as actions taken for promoting women´s representation in leadership both in public and private sectors through the mid-term review study and Public-Private Dialogue (PPD) in 2017 which will be held in Vietnam.

    5. Women in STEM:

  5. Launched in 2016, the APEC Women in STEM initiative involves a range of activities, including an APEC-wide survey of initiatives aimed at strengthening the presence of women in STEM educational programs and careers. The framework that has emerged from this activity thus far encompasses four areas that impact future prospects for women and girls across the Asia-Pacific region: the Enabling Environment, Education, Employment, and Entrepreneurship. Following the presentation of initial results at APEC’s Women and the Economy Forum, the final study will be shared later in the year as part of a workshop that engages high-level APEC government officials and private-sector representatives. The workshop will specifically address regional gaps and seek direct commitments toward increasing the representation of women and girls in STEM education and careers. A “STEM” camp, which focuses on STEM as well as the Arts, for adolescent girls will engage experts and private sector leaders to inspire the next generation of STEM leaders.

    6. APEC BEST Award

  6. Launched in 2016, APEC BEST Award is the first contest for women-entrepreneurs across the APEC region. Taking into account that gender differences impact significantly on women’s employment in real sectors of the APEC economies and in organizational structures of enterprises where a priority is given to men, the task of creating and development of women’s business ideas and women-owned SMEs is important and prospective. Spreading the best practices of women-owned SMEs among APEC economies provides an opportunity to attract a larger number of women into SMEs founding, create new jobs in different industries, and support economic growth and development by applying promising business models based on domestic success stories.  APEC BEST Award will provide an opportunity to internationalize women-run businesses, attract international partners and potential investors from the APEC economies as well as contribute to building a network among women-entrepreneurs, consultants, mentors and investors across the APEC region.

    7. WE boss

  7. The “Innovation for Women and Economic Development: Facilitating Women’s Livelihood Development and Resilience with ICTs” multi-year project (2013-2016) was initiated to identify the key elements on promoting the economic involvement of women with technology and innovative IT tools. Following the project analysis, it presented an innovative learning application “WE boss” and toolkit as an innovative package for both public and private sector stakeholders. The conclusive meeting to be held in September, will provide better understanding on how inclusive economic growth and development can be turned into practical and implementable strategies.