Women’s Empowerment: The Case for Business Action

Date and Time

March 24, 2015
3:00 pm-5:00 pm

Location

Stockholm, Sweden

Topic

Women’s Empowerment

BSR, CSR i Praktiken, and UN Women's Nordic Office will hold a conversation and networking reception in Stockholm on women’s empowerment.

Investing in women and girls is critical to socioeconomic development and poverty alleviation—and to corporate performance. There is mounting evidence that gender equality is correlated directly to enhanced productivity and economic growth, that women’s empowerment spurs innovation and sales, and that companies with high representation of women in leadership positions are more likely to outperform those with fewer women at the top.

Ensuring the inclusion of women’s talents, skills, and experience requires intentional actions and deliberate policies. This is why more than 850 business leaders around the world have demonstrated their commitment to and leadership on gender equality through the Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs). An initiative of UN Women and UN Global Compact, the WEPs provide a set of considerations to help companies put a gender lens on their corporate policies and operations.

We will discuss, in English, the following questions:

• How do investments in women support economic growth, business competitiveness, and human development?
• What is the role of the private sector in advancing women’s empowerment?
• How can companies use the WEPs to mainstream gender throughout their business?

We invite you to take a look at related BSR content:

• Empowering Women in Global Supply Chains
• Q&A with Mary Ellen Iskenderian, Women’s World Banking
• Creating a Safe Space for Women’s Economic Empowerment
• Incorporating Women's Health into Workplace Assessments
• Five Steps for Companies to Make Gender Equality Mainstream