WECONNECT INTERNATIONAL HOSTS BUSINESS CONNECTIONS FORUM IN JAKARTA

WEConnect International partnered with the US Mission to ASEAN and IWAPI to host a business connections forum for women-owned businesses and large corporates in Jakarta on November 28. The successful event was made possible by the ongoing support of WEConnect International corporate member ExxonMobil. The event convened over 45 women-owned businesses. Sessions included discussions around the challenges being faced across urban and rural Indonesia in accessing sustainable market opportunities and how the WEConnect International network and platform can help.

The event included a presentation by Iftida Yasar from IWAPI on outsourcing practices and vendor management across large corporations in Indonesia. The session highlighted that women-owned businesses in Indonesia are mostly MSMEs who are in the start-up and early growth phase of their journey and that they are hampered by several socio-economic barriers that make it difficult to scale.

WEConnect International’s Mrinalini Venkatachalam gave an overview of the global work and impact of its network and certification. The day wrapped with a pitching session with WEConnect International corporate member representatives, which resulted in an RFP opportunity from MSD to three attendees.