Indonesia to increase gender-responsive procurement in the private sector through ITC SheTrades and Unilever Indonesia Partnership
(Geneva/Jakarta) – The International Trade Centre (ITC) and Unilever are holding a virtual launch event today to celebrate their partnership to increase gender-responsive procurement and advance women’s economic empowerment in Indonesia.
The launch event will convene high-level representatives from government, leading corporations, and women-owned businesses to discuss bottlenecks to women’s participation in the economy and to promote public-private partnerships that can advance solutions.
Attendees will gain an overview of the partnership’s goals and upcoming activities, which will be implemented through ITC’s SheTrades Initiative in collaboration with the Womanpreneur Community. The event will also explain how businesses owned and led by women can apply to become Unilever suppliers.
Under the partnership, the businesses will also have the opportunity to increase their competitiveness by attending technical training sessions on sustainable and ethical business planning, and on financial readiness.
In addition to aligning with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the partnership will also advance ITC and Unilever's commitment to sustainable and inclusive economic recovery.
Nurdiana Darus, Corporate Secretary and Head of Sustainability and Corporate Affairs, Unilever Indonesia explained, ‘One of the pillars in ‘The Unilever Compass’ strategy is to contribute to a fairer and more inclusive society. We do this through various initiatives, which includes helping to improve the standards of living of all parties in our value chain, including our suppliers. One of Unilever's commitments is to ensure that at least €2 billion is allocated annually to grow a business ecosystem that represents diversity and inclusiveness in our supply chain.’
Anna Mori, SheTrades-Unilever Partnership Manager, International Trade Centre, commented, ‘Indonesia is a priority country for both Unilever and SheTrades, with a large number of active women entrepreneurs. Micro, small and medium sized enterprises (MSMEs) contribute to 57% of the country’s GDP, with over 50% of MSMEs being owned by women. Expanding economic opportunities for women-owned and led businesses through procurement can expedite post-pandemic recovery and yield great benefits for the economy. “Today’s panel will provide a multi-stakeholder perspective of the barriers that prevent gender inclusive procurement. Our collaboration with Unilever can unlock the potential of women-owned and led businesses so that their businesses can thrive while contributing to a stronger, fairer Indonesia in the future.’
To register for the launch event, please visit: Webinar Registration - Zoom
To learn about the requirements for businesses to participate in this collaboration, please visit: https://www.shetrades.com/#/publicpartner/29
About Unilever: Unilever is one of the world’s leading suppliers of Beauty & Personal Care, Home Care, and Foods & Refreshment products, with sales in over 190 countries and products used by 2.5 billion people every day.
We have 149,000 employees and generated sales of €50.7 billion in 2021. Over half of our footprint is in developing and emerging markets. We have around 400 brands found in homes all over the world – including iconic global brands like Dove, Lifebuoy, Knorr, Magnum, OMO and Surf; and other brands such as Love Beauty & Planet, Hourglass, Seventh Generation and The Vegetarian Butcher.
In Indonesia, PT Unilever Indonesia Tbk has been operating since 1933 and became publicly listed in 1982 and its shares are recorded and traded on the Indonesia Stock Exchange. Unilever has more than 4,000 employees, and nine factories, which are located in Cikarang and Rungkut.
Unilever is highly committed to keep moving forward with Indonesia. For the period ending September 30, 2022, Unilever Indonesia's net sales reached Rp31.5 trillion, consisting of HPC and F&R sales of Rp20.8 trillion and Rp10.7 trillion, respectively. Meanwhile, the Company's net profit reached Rp4.6 trillion.
Our vision is to be the global leader in sustainable business and to demonstrate how our purpose -led, future-fit business model drives superior performance. We have a long tradition of being a progressive, responsible business. It goes back to the days of our founder William Lever, who launched the world’s first purposeful brand, Sunlight Soap, more than 100 years ago, and it’s at the heart of how we run our company today.
‘The Unilever Compass’, our sustainable business strategy, is set out to help us deliver superior performance and drive sustainable and responsible growth, while:
- Improving the health of the planet;
- Improving people's health, confidence and wellbeing; and
- Contributing to a fairer and more socially inclusive world.
While there is still more to do, we are proud to have been recognised in 2020 as a sector leader in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index and for the tenth-consecutive year - as the top ranked company in the 2020 GlobeScan/SustainAbility Sustainability Leaders survey.
For more information about Unilever and our brands, please visit www.unilever.com and our social media, Twitter and Instagram @UnileverIDN, Facebook Unilever ID and Youtube Unilever Indonesia.
About the International Trade Centre: The International Trade Centre is the joint agency of the World Trade Organization and the United Nations. ITC assists micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in developing countries to become more competitive in global markets – thus contributing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. For more information, visit www.intracen.org. Follow ITC on Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram | Flickr
About ITC SheTrades
The International Trade Centre’s (ITC) SheTrades Initiative targets all stakeholders across the trade and business ecosystem to create the right conditions and capacities for every woman, everywhere, to realise their full economic potential. We provide women entrepreneurs and producers with access to key knowledge, resources, and networks, support policymakers on inclusive policy reforms, and leverage public and private partnerships to amplify the impact of our work.
For more information, please visit SheTrades.com: www.shetrades.com
Media contact
Susanna Pak
Senior Strategic Communications Officer
International Trade Centre (ITC)
E: pak [at] intracen.org or press [at] intracen.org
T: +41 (022) 730 0651