Ambassador Melanne Verveer

Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues  

Internews 

July 17, 2011 

Internews:  My first question is why did you decide to have this symposium here in Kyrgyzstan?   

Ambassador Verveer:  I came because this is a very important gathering of women in business throughout the region, and an opportunity for them to grow the economies of their countries and make a greater contribution to progress in the region. 

We know that when women grow small- and medium- sized businesses, they are great accelerators of jobs creation and economic growth in their countries.  We also know that when women can participate more equally in the economy, in the work place, in running businesses, those countries are more prosperous.  So this will be an opportunity for women here from all the countries that have been invited to be able to grow their network and their own opportunities to make greater contributions. 

Internews:  That's the reason you chose Kyrgyzstan?

Ambassador Verveer:  It is in Kyrgyzstan as a regional hub.  This is a gathering that takes place here, but it is for the whole region.   

Internews:  As for the objectives of the symposium, what do you expect to see by the end of the symposium? 

Ambassador Verveer:  The symposium is not just a one-day meeting or two-day meeting.  It is the beginning.  It is going to unleash many supports, internships, access to finance, training programs, mentoring programs, all of which can make a difference to support the women in their own countries. 

The embassies of the United States government have been very active in helping to support this effort.  They will have staff from all of the countries here and they will work closely with the women when they go home. 

Women face many barriers in trying to start or grow their business.  Some of those barriers have to do with inadequate training or no mentors as they grow their business, or a network so they can know each other and learn from each other.  Also, access to finance is a very very big problem as well as access to technology and other things that they need to be able to be successful.  Sometimes they have laws or regulations that make it difficult for women in business.  So they can become better advocates to bring about the kind of changes that will enable economic opportunity to be more possible. 

This hopefully will be the beginning of a process to grow women's economic participation.  I have no doubt that the investments that are made in the women who are coming, they will take that investment and they will become better, but they will also share all of their knowledge and learning with others and grow that investment. 

Internews:  Throughout the world, women are facing a variety of challenges in the economic sector. For example, in the United States women face different economic problems than those in Kyrgyzstan. What makes them different? What makes them common? What issue can be considered global for women?   

Ambassador Verveer:  Many of these barriers that I discussed are global challenges for women in the economy, particularly access to finance.  In the United States, for example - even in a difficult economy, women-run small- and medium- sized businesses are growing at twice the rate of businesses that men are running.  But there are many programs to help women to learn good business practices, to access the financing that they need, to have the other kinds of tools that they need to be successful. 

But your question is a very good one because many of these barriers are similar, whether one is in Central Asia or one is in the West.  That's why if women can come together  and learn what will make a difference, they become that much more successful.  Everyone benefits, because when women can flourish economically, their families benefit, their communities benefit, their countries benefit. 

Internews:  Everyone is scared of symposium and roundtables where women come together. For some reason, they think that it is a " feminization of the society" and that the main focus is on women and that men will be left out.  

Ambassador Verveer:  I don't think this is an issue about men being better than women, or women being better than men.  This is about everybody being able to have their potential tapped because no country is able to get ahead if half of its people are left behind.  Today, there is a body of research and data and all kinds of studies that show that investments in women have high yield results in poverty alleviation, that countries are more prosperous.  If you look at countries where men and women are farther apart, less equal, those countries are not doing very well.  

So if we tap the potential that women bring to the table, as you said, their talents, their experiences, their education, and unleash that potential, everybody is going to be stronger. 

Internews:  Thank you. 

Ambassador Verveer:  Thank you.