News
WEPs implementation training for companies and civil society organizations: results of the third wave
02 February 2024
Ukraine Investment and Trade Facilitation Center conducts a number of training events within the framework of the Empowering Women in Business Initiative aimed at supporting and stimulating companies to ensure the economic empowerment of women. The training is aimed at implementing the Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs) in private and public companies, business associations and civil society organizations, which are developed by the UN Global Compact and UN Women.
How was the training
The participants got acquainted with the main aspects of WEPs and successful cases of their implementation in private companies and business associations, as well as learned about the projects of public organizations aimed at supporting women.
During the training, the organizers used a gamification approach through the game "Women IN: Leadership and Business", which allowed to expand their own knowledge about the achievements of women and increase the "visibility" of their contributions at various levels of social life. At the end of each day, participants joined networking to discuss the topic of supporting women and developing new partnerships in the field of their economic empowerment.
The most discussed were the challenges of creating favorable conditions for women and men at the workplace during martial law and achieving a career-life balance. The issue of using gender-sensitive marketing materials in the work of businesses, business associations and public organizations, as well as their own choice of brands that do not use sexist advertising, also caused a stir.
Who participated
The training took place from January 31 to February 2, 2024 in the city of Ternopil. 25 participants of the third wave of training represented business, state and private companies, public organizations and business associations from Vinnytsia, Donetsk, Zhytomyr, Zakarpattia, Kyiv, Lviv, Odesa, Poltava, Rivne, Ternopil, Kharkiv and Khmelnytskyi regions.
Among them, 4 companies are signatories of WEPs, namely: NEC "Ukrenergo", PJSC "Ukrhydroenergo", Intellias and Aurora Multimarket.
Participants of the third wave of training implement their activities in various sectors of the economy: design and fashion, service services of public organizations and associations, agriculture, IT sphere, hotel business, processing industry, trade, education.
What motivated you to participate
Among the main goals of participation in this training, the participants named the following:
- expanding one's own knowledge and skills regarding the implementation of WEPs
- finding new acquaintances for building partnerships and collaborations
- implementation of effective women's support programs and formation of a corporate culture of equality in the company
- building an effective business model through ensuring gender equality in the workplace
- support and promotion of women leaders at all levels of management
What is the relevance of training
According to Deloitte's Women at Work: Global Perspective 2023 survey, 44% of female respondents reported microaggressions in the workplace to their employer. This is a significant increase compared to 23% in 2022.
"If I thought that I had already heard all the business topics at training, now I realized that there are many more special topics that will change me, make me a different, unique leader and a confident woman," says Olena Tsiva, CEO of Lika Comfort LLC.
At the same time, the survey shows that women who work in organizations that support gender equality are more motivated, have a higher level of well-being and job satisfaction. They also feel a stronger connection with their employers and are much more productive at work. At the same time, organizations supporting gender equality help women establish a balance between work and personal life and provide support for career growth.
"The total number of signatories of WEPs in Ukraine is currently 30 companies. Our mission is to increase the number of companies that will commit to WEPs and support women in the workplace. For us, it is valuable to involve private companies in the implementation of programs that contribute to the achievement of gender equality and the economic empowerment of women in the workplace," says Iryna Tytarchuk, executive director of the Ukraine Investment and Trade Facilitation Center.
Disclaimer:
Training on the implementation of the Principles of Women's Empowerment (WEPs) is implemented within the framework of the Empowering Women in Business Initiative, which is carried out within the framework of the Project "Transformative approaches to achieving gender equality in Ukraine", which is implemented by UN Women with the financial support of the Government of Sweden in cooperation with the Office Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine
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Information about the Workshop "Synergy of cooperation between business and public organizations to improve the situation of women in Ukraine" and Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs) in social networks:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/itfcua
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Backgrounder:
The Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs) are a set of seven principles that are a tool to guide businesses in promoting gender equality and empowering women in the workplace, labor market and society. Thanks to their implementation, companies are changing their approach to supporting women, protecting their rights and treating them fairly in the workplace.
Empowering Women in Business Initiative is an initiative to raise awareness, conduct training and provide information support to representatives of the private sector to improve their professional skills in implementing the Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs) and implementing women's empowerment programs, as well as promoting new partnerships with private companies, business associations and public organizations to promote gender equality and women's economic empowerment.
UN Women - United Nations Framework for Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment. The leading body that coordinates the work of the UN system on the issue of gender equality. It is a subsidiary body of the UN General Assembly, created by the Assembly's decision in 2010 with the aim of accelerating progress in meeting the needs of women around the world, increasing the efficiency of using available resources, and unifying the mandates and functions of individual units of the UN system that were exclusively engaged in issues of gender equality and empowerment of women.
Office Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine - ensures the implementation of the state policy of ensuring equal rights and opportunities for women and men in Ukraine
Ukraine Investment and Trade Facilitation Center is an independent non-profit organization that specializes in supporting the development of small and medium-sized businesses, facilitating the implementation of initiatives on women's economic empowerment, trade and export.