By the Parthenon's ruins

Sitting majestically for almost 2,500 years, high up on the ancient Acropolis in Athens, Greece, is the Parthenon, a world icon of antiquity. It was built as a thanksgiving temple to the goddess Athena the Virgin to spare the city during the Persian Wars. The Parthenon has stood on, despite the ravages of time and pollution. Under the late afternoon shadows of the ancient ruins, looking into the spectacular 360-degree view, I stood in awe at finally seeing it and being there. After years of study of classical art and culture, spending time teaching it, being enriched by it, I equated Greece with my love for classical art, Greek food, the humanistic spirit and man’s central role in the universe.

Yet I was in Greece during the country’s most difficult economic and political time, reeling at the brink of financial insolvency and caught in the vortex of negative international media exposure. But it was perfect “to be here, now,” I told myself, as I drank in the beauty of classical architecture, staring at the Porch of the Maidens at the southern side of the Erechtheum (a smaller temple in the Parthenon complex). Here, the Caryatids or the temple priestesses stood through time, carrying the roof’s portal above their heads with such grace and femininity. Yes, it was fitting to be here… for women held up the roofs of life, held up the spirits of men, and nurtured life. I was there to attend the Global Summit of Women (May 31 to June 2), an annual gathering of women (this year, close to 800 from around 70 countries) who come to network, build business alliances, learn and inspire. But more so, this was an international gathering that sought to give voice to the feminine power arising.

“Women go where they are needed,” stated power-woman and summit president Irene Natividad at the opening ceremony. And Vietnam’s Vice President Nguyen Thi Doan echoed this sentiment in her speech when she underscored the need to show solidarity with Greek women. This year’s theme was Women: The Engine of Economic Growth. Our informal Philippine delegation was led by former Ambassador Delia Albert, now a senior adviser for Ernst & Young-SGV. Others with us were Aurora Garcia from the Women’s Business Council, our ECHOstore partner Reena Francisco, Irene Bencito, the only woman provincial board member of the seventh district of Cavite, and Zamboanga del Norte Mayor Flora Villarosa. I was fortunate to have been invited as a panelist to discuss ECHOstore’s direction of building partnerships for business growth while Chit Juan spoke in the green business panel.

Supporting and working for women’s economic empowerment is key to shift the whole cycle of energy and power in our world today. One megatrend cited by Michael Halbye, McKinsey’s leader for Europe, Middle East and Africa, was that emerging economies will be the driver for growth in this century. And women are crucial to this as their influence is felt not only on this generation, but on their children who they nurture into the next generation. Improving the lives of girls and women include a whole gamut of issues: healthcare; the need to break from traditional roles that inhibit skills, talents and voices to be heard; education and skills training to get them out of poverty and into livelihood productivity; higher entry into the labor force; enabling laws and policies that include gender sensitivity; breaking gender stereotypes in the workplace; and financial access to capitals.

The push for more women in leadership positions — as board members, government leaders and heads of institutions — has been a conscious and recurring discussion during these summits. Networking and alliances built during the summit work towards this direction all year round. World data on women (given to me by friends from WEConnect International, a corporate-led non-profit organization that empowers women business owners to succeed in global markets) shows that 70 percent of the world’s poor people are women. Women have a disproportionally positive impact on poverty more than men especially when income streams are concentrated in the hands of women, which will positively impact their children’s lives. In the Philippines, micro-financing statistics show that when money is loaned to women, there is a 100 percent payback as compared to a lower rate for men. One hundred percent! This is reflective of the value and discipline women place on the little capital they can access.

Filipino delegation speakers at the summit: Chit Juan, former Ambassador now Ernst & Young-SGV senior adviser Delia Albert and the author.

If we have an enabling environment to push for women or women-led businesses (of any scale — MSMEs, SMEs, big businesses) to thrive and be as productive as men’s, there is enormous potential for enhanced economic growth and poverty reduction. The key direction is to move women businesses into higher growth sectors. But because majority of women business are small or concentrated in sectors with low productivity, they need help.

Locally, at the ECHOsi Foundation, in partnership with the Philippine Commission for Women, and under the Canadian International Development Agency’s sponsored Great Women Program, we have started a nationwide women’s economic empowerment program specifically on upvaluing women-MSMEs’ products so they can access better markets. We are only focusing on packaging and new designs for products so we can help them sell these at ECHOstore and other markets that have pledged to help with retail distribution. Insights from the ground show how much women hunger to do more business and how to be financially independent from their spouses. Majority are caught in the balancing act of family and livelihood, often forgetting their own health and well-being.

We trumpet the success stories of empowerment whenever we can because these inspire other women, and men, too, to see the positive changes they can do to the home, the family and the community. As an emerging economy, the Philippines is poised for sustained economic growth. It will be to our country’s advantage to economically empower our women.

The gathering at Athens was the second Global Summit of Women that I have attended and all I can say is that it continually inspires me. Add to this all the international linkages I have created. I wish more Filipino business (or non-business) women would join us. The next host for the June 2013 summit is Malaysia. Hopefully, we would have a bigger delegation next year as it is much closer to home.

As I sort my photos of my trip to Greece, I am reminded of the many side conversations I had with the Greek women I connected with. And despite their depressed outlook then, I have no doubt that these businesswomen will be the force to steady their country. They only need to take inspiration from the quiet, steady, graceful Caryatids that stand at the shadows of the Parthenon.