Engagement Opportunities

WEPs Leadership Award 2014 -- Call for Nominations!

The WEPs are now accepting new nominations for the 2014 Leadership Awards that highlight concrete actions taken to implement WEPs and advance and empower women. Learn more here.

Women Vendors Exhibition and Forum, New Delhi, 19-21 November 2013

Join women business owners and representatives of corporations, governments and trade support institutions at WVEF 2013. This global event provides buyers and sellers in select sectors the opportunity to explore business partnerships, build skills and engage with dynamic public and private sector leaders from around the world. Importantly, the WVEF provides a key opportunity to implement WEPs Principle 5, which calls on business to expand business relationships with women-owned enterprises.

Over 500 women entrepreneurs, buyers, government representatives and trade support institutions from 48 countries attended the WVEF in Chongqing, China (2011) and Mexico City, Mexico (2012) resulting in over US$20m of agreements to transact business.

Please complete and submit your application online by clicking on the following link Seller Application Form . Please provide as much information as possible in order for the organizers to better match your company with potential buyers. The deadline for receiving application forms is Monday 17 June 2013.

Applications are being sought from women owned businesses in the following sectors:

• Information technology, telecommunications and business process outsourcing
• The built environment (Clean & green technology, construction and mining)
• Coffee
• Garments & apparel
• Office products and services
• Suppliers to major international events
• Shipping and logistics

Conditions for application:

1. Applying companies must be 51% or more owned by one or more women.

2. Selections will be undertaken by a selection panel. Successful applicants will be chosen following a rigorous matching process against the requirements of large corporations and other buyers who will participate at the event.

3. The deadline for applications is Monday 17 June 2013, Close of Business Geneva Time.

4. Due to the large volume of applications, only selected applicants will be contacted.

The WVEF is the annual event of the Global Platform for Action on Sourcing from Women Vendors, that brings together Buyers, Trade Support Institutions (TSIs) and Women Vendors to explore business opportunities and benefit from sharing experiences as well as participating in capacity building workshops.  Since 2010, the WVEF has brought together over 650 women vendors, buyers (Multinational Corporations, Medium Sized Companies and Governments) and TSIs from over 48 countries resulting in business agreements valued at over US$20 million.More on WVEF, including an informative video, can be found here: http://www.intracen.org/projects/women-trade/events/wvef-III/

This year the event is organised by the International Trade Centre (ITC - a joint agency of the United Nations and World Trade Organization) in partnership with the Government of India Ministry of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises, the India National Small Industries Corporation, and WEConnect International; and with the support of the United Nations Global Compact, Vital Voices Global Partnerships, International Federation of Business and Professional Women (BPW), the International Women's Coffee Alliance (IWCA), Full Circle Exchange, the Women's International Textile Alliance (SPINNA), Quantum Leaps, the Women’s International Shipping & Trading Association (WISTA), Madhya Pradesh Association of Women Entrepreneurs (MAWE) and the Confederation of Women Entrepreneurs .

WEPs Leadership Awards - Call for Nominations

Learn more about the WEPs Leadership Awards.

Global Consultation on Addressing Inequalities

This multi-stakeholder consultation, co-convened by UNICEF and UN Women and sponsored by the Governments of Denmark and Ghana, is an open and inclusive coversation for represenatives of civil society, academia, governments, business and the UN to discuss what the Post-2015 development agenda should look like. The Women's Empowerment Principles community is encouraged to contribute to this important dialogue and help highlight the important role of the private sector in advancing women's empowerment and achieving gender equality. Learn more here.

Cracking the Ceiling, Raising the Floor

The Women's Empowerment Principles call on companies to assure sufficient participation of women - 30 percent or greater - in decision-making and governance at all levels and across all business areas. Learn more. For a list of related organizations and registers, click here.

Call for Company Examples

Sharing good practices is a key to the WEPs growth.  Help us spread your good practices:  what steps has your business taken to advance and empower women in the workplace, marketplace and/or community? The UN Women/UN Global Compact WEPs team invites companies to share concrete examples of efforts to empower women and advance the goals of the WEPs. Please send a 150-250 word description to the WEPs team at womens-empowerment-principles@unglobalcompact.org. Examples submitted will be added to the Business Practice section.

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