Involvement of women in business gives a positive impulse to the country’s economic development
The one-day conference gathered together successful women entrepreneurs and other sectors to discuss the legal barriers in the realization of the potential of women in the process of economic development, the importance of their participation in economic development projects, and the support of the Assembly Speaker Kadri Veseli and Minister Blerand Stavileci was confirmed.
In the opening of the conference, Minister Blerand Stavileci said that this conference will allow for the presentation of ideas of women regarding institutional policies and change the approach to ensure women’s empowerment.
“Not only here, but also elsewhere in the world, if there is participation of women and if they are given leading roles, changes will take place, changes in governance at the central, local level and in policy and sector reforms,” stated Stavileci, mentioning as a success story the WOW – Women in Online Jobs Project, where women’s involvement in the sector has given positive results.
Stavileci also underlined the success in the agricultural sector where the involvement of women’s human capital increased the productivity by 20%, and added that such involvement would also affect other sectors.
The President of the Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo, Kadri Veseli, said that the inclusion of women in the society and institutions is a prerequisite for us to have a functioning democratic state, a developed economy and social welfare for our citizens.
“We must support Kosovo women, subsidize their projects, to support manufacturing and service industries, as well as investment loans, as well as support women in education, science and healthcare and help them become successful managers of human resources, equal doctors with their European counterparts, professors who display a positive image with their presentations in international scientific workshops, successful entrepreneurs in the private sector, etc.”, stated the Assembly Speaker.
He said that the country’s economic transformation can never be complete without the active role of women in all areas of life, as the success of women in the society is the best guarantee that the society and the state are progressing in the right direction.
Arbene Shehu, Chairwoman of the Chamber of Kosovo Notaries, considered that despite the fact that the country has good legislation regarding equal treatment of both genders, more needs to be done in the area of inheritance to raise the citizens’ awareness on women’s right to property. She added that we need to change the approach and strengthen further women in the society, including economy.
On the other hand, Roberta Bajrami, representative of the On Touch Company, shared her experience, the difficulties to open the company, and encouraged young women to realize their ideas and thus achieve the economic empowerment of youth and young women.
Blerta Thaçi, representative of Girls Coding Kosova, said that the barriers to thinking that the information technology belongs to men have already been shattered, and added that girls today have become creators of many new ideas in this area, which has changed the mentality and has proven that women can be part of every process, particularly in the field of information technology.
“The Role of Women in Kosovo’s Economic Development: Overcoming Barriers” Conference was organized in four separate panels, addressing women’s empowerment opportunities in business and their role in economic development.