The 2022 Global Summit of Women (GSW) in Bangkok is set to highlight opportunities for women in the new reality that is filled with opportunities despite uncertainties.
Irene Natividad, the president of the Washington-based Global Summit of Women, said that this year's summit will deliver a strong message that women's power can give rise to an economic revolution, especially during volatile times such as now.
The gathering, to be held from tomorrow until June 25 at Centara Grand Hotel and Bangkok Convention Centre, is the first large-scale international summit to be held in person in the country for two years. There will be more than 1,000 participants in the event from over 60 countries.
NEW REALITY
The summit used the theme "Women: Creating Opportunities in the New Reality". Ms Natividad explained the new reality is a volatile economy that faces great uncertainties ranging from the pandemic, inflation, rising fuel prices, conflicts in Europe to a new style of working.
"You must create opportunities in the new reality. That new reality requires new skills, thinking creatively, and being agile and versatile," she said.
One area that witnessed significant growth is e-commerce. Businesses have adapted and integrated new technologies to survive and maximise opportunities. As a result, engaging with technology is a necessity.
"So how can women business owners be part of the e-commerce world in a vital way? What are the new ideas that we should think of adopting? How can we use technology better?"
As a result, the summit will showcase interesting and groundbreaking ideas from both female and male business leaders. It will also touch on how businesses can engage in new and sustainable ways within the digital economy to protect and maximise their growth. Other interesting areas include how older or traditional businesses survive and thrive and how businesses use environmental, social and governance metrics to run their operations while giving back to the community more efficiently.
THAILAND AN IDEAL VENUE
Ms Natividad said Thailand is a suitable venue for this summit because leading executive positions are held by women and these strong leaders can come together with their peers from other parts of the world to share their experiences and learn from one another.
"Thailand has such a big and vibrant economy. It invests in other countries. Thailand also has a large cauldron of women business leaders and it always ranks high on the World Economic Forum Index for gender equity in the economy," she said, adding that 40% of Thai business leaders are women.
"When people hear about Thai women talking about the respective companies that they run, they are going to leave with a totally different view of Thai women than they had before."
Ms Natividad also feels proud that the summit will be the first carbon-neutral conference for the group. This means that activities at the summit will be monitored for their carbon footprint and emissions ranging from energy use, participants' travel and catering to waste management.
She said there will also be a meeting between the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce, the Thai Chamber of Commerce and women entrepreneurs from both countries.
Ms Natividad said she is working with the Stock Exchange of Thailand to provide additional language to the Corporate Governance Codes of Thailand, so that gender diversity on boards will be considered to be a component of good corporate governance.
