International Forum on Women in Business
Laico Regency Hotel, Nairobi, Kenya, 14 December 2015
FOSTERING INNOVATION, INTERNATIONALIZATION AND SCALE OF WOMEN-OWNED BUSINESSES
The International Forum on Women in Business will be hosted by the Government of Kenya and the International Trade Centre (ITC), in conjunction with the 10th WTO Ministerial Conference in Nairobi. Policymakers, the business community and representatives of Women Business Organizations will convene to discuss policies and actions to increase the participation of women in trade.
What would happen if women were participating in the global economy at the same rate as their male counterparts? What are the private sector and governments doing to support inclusiveness and equality in business? Advancing women’s equality can add $12 trillion to global growth by 20251, and enable economies to unlock their full potential. The Forum looks to ensure that trade leads to sustainable development, resilience and inclusive growth. Technology as a tool to leverage, innovate, and scale SMEs will be a major theme of the day’s program.
The ITC-led ‘Call to Action’ to bring one million women to market by 2020 will feature in the discussions; a publication analyzing data on women exporters will be launched; and technology as an enabler of trade will be featured through a new application connecting women to markets developed by the Kenyan woman-owned company GreenBell Communications, the winner of the Women Vendors Exhibition and Forum 2015 (WVEF) Tech Challenge.
If you want to know more about the event, please contact ITC’s Women and Trade team: womenandtrade@intracen.org
Programme
07:00–09:00 |
Registration and welcome coffee |
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09:00–09:30 |
Official Opening Ceremony
H.E. Ms. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, President of Liberia
H.E. Mr. William Samoei Ruto, Deputy President of Kenya
And with
Ms. Sahle-Work Zewde, Director General United Nations Office at Nairobi
Mr. Mukhisa Kituyi, Secretary-General of United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
Mr. Yonov Frederick Agah, Deputy Director-General, World Trade Organization
Ms. Arancha González, Executive Director, International Trade Centre
Launch of ITC publication: Unlocking Markets For Women To Trade
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09:30–11:00 |
Leveling the Playing Field
H.E. Ms. Maxine McClean, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Barbados
Mr. Markku Keinänen, Director General, External Economic Relations, Ministry for Foreign Trade and Development, Finland
Ms. Diariétou Gaye, Country Director (Kenya, Rwanda, Eritrea, Uganda) World Bank Group
Ms. Carole Kariuki, Chief Executive Officer, Kenya Private Sector Alliance
Mr. Frank Matsaert, Chief Executive Officer, TradeMark East Africa
Dr. Gülden Türktan, President W20, Official engagement group of the G20
Ms. Rosa Whitaker, Chief Executive Officer, Whitaker Group
Moderator: Ms Bibi van der Zee, The Guardian
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11:00–12:30 |
Innovating to Compete
H.E. Mr. Morten Høglund, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Norway
Ms. Juliana Rotich, Co-Founder, Ushahidi, Co-Founder, BRCK
Ms. Rapelang Rabana, Founder / Chief Executive Officer, Rekindle Learning
Ms. Ife Osaga-Ondondo, Legal Counsel, Sub Saharan Africa, Google
Ms. Ally Angula, Group Managing Director, Leap Investments
Ms. Nansalmaa Sanjmyatav, Director, Nans Cashmere Company
Ms. Sneha Shah, Managing Director Africa, Thomson Reuters
Moderator: Peninah Karibe, CCTV Africa
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12:30–13:30 |
Lunch |
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13:30–15:00 |
Unlocking Markets
H.E. Ms. Margaret Mwanakatwe, Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry, Zambia
Mr. Chris Barton, Director of International Affairs, Trade Policy & Export Control, United Kingdom
Ms. Eva Walder, Director-General for Trade, Sweden
Ms. Leila Janah, Founder/Chief Executive Officer, Sama Group
Amb. Richard Sezibera, Secretary General, East African Community
Ms. Susan Mboya-Kidero, President, Coca-Cola Africa Foundation
Moderator: Peninah Karibe, CCTV Africa
Unveiling: The SheTrades App
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15:00–16:30 |
Presidential Conversation
H.E. Ms. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, President of Liberia
H.E. Mr. Uhuru Kenyatta, President of Kenya
And with
H.E. Ms. Lilianne Ploumen, Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, Netherlands
Mr. Jeremy Awori, Managing Director, Barclays
Moderator: Ms. Arancha González, Executive Director, International Trade Centre
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Partners

Media partners
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