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Call to Action

Connecting 1 million women entrepreneurs to market by 2020

Women-owned businesses represent between one quarter and one third of enterprises in the world. However, they are prevalent in less productive sectors, and are largely invisible in global value chains and in corporate and government supply chains.

If you want to help change this paradigm and unlock the potential of women entrepreneurs, join us!
See the full document : Call to Action - One million women-owned businesses in the market by 2020

This year, in São Paulo, Brazil on 1 September 2015, thought leaders from around the world gathered for the Trailblazers Summit and issued a five-year Call to Action to bring one million women entrepreneurs to market, thus growing the global economy through women’s participation in trade. Video from the Trailblazers Summit:

Policy makers, institutions, business and thought leaders from around the globe are encouraged to identify and implement strategies and policies fit for the 21st century that leverage technology, foster conducive business environments, establish supportive institutional frameworks and increase the competitiveness of women-owned businesses.

The Call to Action is based on eight key pillars, strategic areas for women’s economic empowerment through trade. You can be part of this powerful movement by making your commitments here below.

First name ^*
Last name ^*
Email ^*
Country ^*
Topics of interest
Professional title
Company / Organization *

Overall commitment:

Name of institution
commits to take to the market by 2020

Data collection, analysis and dissemination
1. Collect and share sex-disaggregated data and baselines related to the economic participation of women in business
  ownership
2. Measure and publicly report on progress to achieve gender equality, as for example outlined in Principle 5 of the United Nations
  Women’s Empowerment Principles.
3. Contribute to global trade databases that capture a significant share of the women-owned businesses that exist, including but not
  limited to the percentage and amount of budget and spend allotted for doing business with companies owned by women.
4. Please specify
Trade policy
1. Integrate gender awareness and consideration of gender into trade policies and agreements.
2. Support institutions to play a leading role in accelerating women’s engagement with international markets.
3. Offer mentorship, training about legislation, policies, taxation and service/product/solution gaps that generate opportunities for
  women-owned businesses; evaluate, monitor and report on the effectiveness of efforts and initiative.
4. Please specify:
Public procurement
1. Adopt inclusive procurement policies in line with international best practices and standards, including preferential policies,
  with the aim of impacting corporate supply chains.
2. Set a minimum 10% public procurement target from businesses that are certified to an accepted standard definition of ownership,
  management and control by one or more women. The minimum target should be reached by 2020.
3. Remove demand side barriers, including those found in tender design, qualification and requirements, and access to information
  on tender opportunities and payments.
4. Address supply side constraints by facilitating or supporting training, mentoring and capacity building to enable more
  women-owned businesses to access contracts and sell to governments.
5. Support participation in international trade agreements related to government procurement, such as the WTO Agreement on
  Government Procurement (GPA).
6. Please specify
Corporate procurement
1. Conduct a baseline study to understand from where your institution is procuring its goods and services, and the percentage that is
  going to women’s business enterprises.
2. Make supply chains inclusive, and set a minimum 10% procurement target from businesses that are certified to a standard definition
  of ownership, management and control by one or more women. The 10% minimum target should be reached by 2020.
3. Share knowledge and experience of successful policies, processes and tools for women-owned business inclusion in corporate
  supply chains.
4. Build capacity of women-owned enterprises as suppliers, through supplier development programmes, corporate mentoring and
  mentor-protégé programmes, aggregators, and tier 1 and 2 initiatives.
5. Formulate incentives for the private sector to source from women suppliers, such as policies relating to subcontracting of public
  tenders to tier 2 suppliers.
6. Please specify
Certification
1. Establish or work with existing certifying bodies that can conduct assessments with annual reviews, to validate the ownership,
  management and control of women-owned businesses around the world.
2. Apply a standard definition of a women- owned business in industry seminars, mentoring sessions and procurement documents,
  and ask for proof of eligibility/ certification.
3. Please specify
Address supply side constraints
1. Develop strategies and deliver tailored capacity and skills development for strengthening entrepreneurial and leadership skills to
  enhance women' s participation in trade and public procurement, and to measure and report on the efficacy of these interventions.
2. Identify key entry points for women in target value chains, to ensure woman entrepreneurs' integration and market readiness.
3. Apply a gender lens to addressing non-tariff measures that affect, often disproportionately, the ability of women- owned businesses
  to benefit from full participation in trade.
4. Embrace innovation as well as information and communication technologies to increase the competitiveness of women-owned
  businesses, and to fuel growth.
5. Please specify
Financial Services
1. Provide enabling infrastructure and connectivity, and to craft a legal and regulatory environment where access to and control of
  financial services can be delivered effectively to women.
2. Promote the business case to financial institutions to develop targeted offerings for women-owned businesses from micro
  enterprises to high growth entrepreneurs.
3. Provide non-financial services such as mentorships, financial literacy classes and business coaching on financial planning and
  business management targeting women entrepreneurs.
4. Gather sex-disaggregated data and analyse consumer profiles based on gender, income, etc.
5. Offer short term trade finance, which would benefit both men and women, but can specifically lower capital barriers for women.
6. Please specify
Ownership Rights
1. Undertake legislative and administrative reforms to guarantee women’s rights to full and equal access to ownership and control over
  resources, including the right to inheritance and land titling, credit, financial services, and the right to enter into contracts.
2. Please specify
Verification ^* Please enter the text from the image below.

^*= Required fields

After registering your commitment(s), an email will be sent to you and ITC will provide you with further information related to the implementation of the Call to Action!

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