Sri Lankan Women Empowered Through E-commerce Training

In December, the UNESCAP South and Southwest Asia Office, the Sustainable Development Council of Sri Lanka, and the Women's Chamber of Industry and Commerce Sri Lanka collaborated to organize a two-day training program. Through specialized e-commerce training, the initiative aims to empower and equip female entrepreneurs with the skills needed to integrate into the global supply chain.

The program, which was aligned with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5.b, focused on harnessing enabling technologies, particularly information and communications technology, to boost women's empowerment. Chamindry Saparamadu, Director General of the Sustainable Development Council, underlined the necessity of allowing small and medium-sized firms (SMEs) to reach the export market as a critical aspect for their resilience and growth in the face of present economic problems.

Gayani de Alwis, Vice Chairperson of the Women's Chamber of Industry & Commerce (WCIC), emphasized the WCIC's commitment to closing the digital divide among Sri Lankan women businesses. She stressed the possibility for exponential economic growth by boosting women's labor-force and economic involvement.

Dr. Rajan Sudesh Ratna, Deputy Head of UNESCAP South and South-West Asia Office, emphasized the training's significance in empowering over 3000 women entrepreneurs across South Asia. Chiyo Kanda, the World Bank's Country Manager for the Maldives and Sri Lanka, emphasized the transformational power of gender, entrepreneurship, and digitization. This emphasis is reflected in the Sri Lanka Country Partnership Framework (2024-2027), which focuses on laying the groundwork for a more inclusive recovery that tackles the gender gap in economic participation.