The International Women’s Entrepreneurial Challenge Foundation (IWEC) celebrated some of the world’s most successful women business owners during the IWEC Conference in Delhi, India
IWEC Foundation 2019 Conference Press Release
New York, NY, November 18, 2019 – The 2019 iteration of the IWEC Foundation Conference and Awards Gala, the organization’s 12th annual event, celebrated the significant achievements of 39 remarkable women entrepreneurs from all corners of the globe.
The conference, named ‘Connecting Women Businesses Globally: Leading the Way to Innovation and Integration’ was sponsored and hosted by FICCI-FLO at their Delhi India headquarters. FICCI-FLO is a long-time collaborator of IWEC and was a cofounder of the organization. The rest of the event sponsors included CaixaBank, Microsoft, IBM, IESE, SDI International Corp., Global Payments, and others.
This year’s conference welcomed Harjinder Kaur, president of FICCI-FLO and CEO of Comvision and Her Royal Highness Princess Noor Asem of Jordan (also an IWEC Board Member) as conference co-chairs, setting a high bar for attendees, and for the speakers who followed. The panels and speakers provided insights into pivotal aspects of global business development, ranging from ‘How to do Business with India’; a panel discussion on the current business environment in India and the economic outlook around the world led by local industry leaders; IT and innovation trends relevant to the business community, leadership challenges, and IWEC partner services.
Nancy Ploeger, Executive Vice President of IWEC, said of this year’s event: “The 12th annual conference is a significant milestone for us because this year IWEC introduced two curated networking sessions between current and past awardees and local and global companies interested in expanding commerce to other regions and developing opportunities in India. Fostering connections and global business development are two of our most important pillars.”
Other speakers included: Denise Evans, VP of Women & Diversity at IBM; Carmen Castillo, President and CEO of SDI International Corp.; Roser Xalabarder , Barcelona Chamber of Commerce; Fernando Hernandez, VP Global Diversity at Microsoft; Ibukun Awosika, Chairwoman of the First Bank of Nigeria and newly named president of the IWEC Foundation and Mar Santana Rollan, CaixaBank. The intensive 3-day agenda was curated by Master of Ceremonies Michele Ruiz, Emmy Award-winning former anchorwoman and CEO of Ruiz Strategies and Sudha Shivkumar, FICCI-FLO.
A very special guest, who opened the conference, was Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, a prominent Indian spiritual leader.
Ruth A. Davis, Chairwoman at IWEC, stated: “IWEC understands that providing access, resources, and support to help enable the success of female entrepreneurs is key to guaranteeing women’s active, sustainable participation in the global economy, and contributing to close the gender gap. We provide a global forum to exchange knowledge, experience, and connectivity among women business owners, setting the stage for education, disruptive business opportunities, roads to joint ventures, and promoting social dialog among women entrepreneurs and business leaders.”
This year’s 39 awardees come from Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East and the Americas, representing multiple industries and generating a combined annual revenue in excess of US$5.7 billion.
Local awardees included Mamta Narula, CEO, Ultimate Media from Princeton Junction, NJ and Elizabeth Berman, CEO, IncaKola, Clifton, NJ.
IWEC announced that the 2020 Conference will be hosted in Bahrain by the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce & Industry. To learn more about IWEC’s work and Annual Conference and Awards Gala, go to www.iwecfoundation.org
About IWEC Foundation
IWEC Foundation is a New York-based international economic empowerment organization exclusively for women business owners, formed in 2007 with the assistance of the U.S. Department of State. In addition to the State Department, its founders include the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce, Manhattan Chamber of Commerce (MCC), FICCI/FLO Chamber in New Delhi. IWEC’s mission is to develop a global business network for successful women entrepreneurs, helping them gain and expand access to international markets by presenting a platform to exchange knowledge, experience and connections, and to promote dialogue among women entrepreneurs and business leaders throughout the world.
Contact IWEC Foundation: Nancy Ploeger, Executive Vice President, IWEC: nancyp@iwecfoundation.org