Women Economic Empowerment in PH Featured in UNCTAD’s Women’s Day Event 

Deputy Permanent Representative Maria Teresa T.  Almojuela (first from left) underscores the important role of women in the Philippine economy especially in the micro, small and medium enterprises sector, at the International Women’s Day event of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development in Geneva, Switzerland. (Geneva PM photo)

GENEVA 11 March 2019 – The Philippine Permanent Mission to the United Nations in Geneva, represented by Deputy Permanent Representative Maria Teresa Almojuela, joined in the celebration of International’s Women Day by serving as High Level Panelist at an event organized by the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) entitled “Dress Up for Sustainable Labels”, held at the Palais des Nations on 07 March 2019.

The event featured a multinational panel to discuss the promotion of sustainable labels, followed by a fashion show presenting designs from African international trends market Afrodyssée.

In her remarks, Ambassador Almojuela stressed the critical role of women’s participation and empowerment in the Philippine economy, placing emphasis on the micro-, small- and medium-scale enterprises (MSMEs) sector, where the majority of registered Philippine business establishments are female-led.

The Philippine Deputy Permanent Representative highlighted the focused support being provided by the government to women entrepreneurs, underpinned by a robust national policy framework on women economic empowerment in the Philippines.

On sustainability standards, Ambassador Almojuela pointed out that the vast majority of Philippine MSMEs are micro-enterprises, which makes it very important for the government to establish an enabling environment to assist enterprises in securing sustainability certifications and realize long-term gains, as part of the programs to support them in accessing international markets and global value chains.

The Deputy Permanent Representative cited the ongoing collaboration with UNCTAD on fostering “green” exports, particularly in helping Filipino farmers and entrepreneurs gain organic certification for virgin coconut oil products.

UNCTAD is undertaking a wide range of technical cooperation projects, assisting small-scale producers in developing countries such as the Philippines meet the rapidly-growing global consumer demand for sustainable products, which is driving growth in trade and ensuring benefits for all stakeholders. END

For more information, visit www.genevapm.dfa.gov.ph or https://www.facebook.com/PHinGenevaUN/.