Expert Opinions & Stories
For Shristi Shrestha, in addition to the challenges of registering her business and accessing finance, a major challenge she has had to overcome as a woman entrepreneur has been that of societal…
In a world grappling with climate change, innovative solutions are the need of the hour. BillionCarbon, an Indian climate tech start-up founded by siblings Ankita and Nikhil Vijayvergiya, is at the…
33-year old Laom Ry started her roadside noodle shop with just US$20 – the sum of the monthly rent she pays for the small plot of land on the outskirts of Siem Reap City, Cambodia. Alongside…
Access to finance transforms a struggling driver into a thriving business owner in Kathmandu
Since moving to Nepal’s capital of Kathmandu ten years ago, 33-year-old Sumita Rai has experienced her share of ups and downs. Starting her new life in the city as a cleaner, the young mother found…
Woman entrepreneur with disability overcomes stigma and carves out a livelihood in Cambodia
For Ou Sokphanna, who lost her leg to a landmine explosion when she was young, opportunities for income generation have always been limited, with widespread discrimination preventing her from…
33-year-old Rina Akhtar, hailing from Dhaka, Bangladesh, found herself grappling with adversity when her husband deserted her, leaving her to raise their two daughters alone.
Undeterred by the…
In 2019, Sonika Manandhar and Tiffany Tong teamed up to found Aloi – a Kathmandu-based fintech company that supports informal micro entrepreneurs in Nepal to overcome difficulties in accessing formal…
Nourin Haque Ridi is CEO and co-founder of Dark Kak – a Bangladeshi tech start-up that produces smart jewellery designed to protect women from gender-based violence and crime through innovations in…
In the dynamic economic environment of the Asia-Pacific region, a significant investment opportunity is emerging: institutional investors' capacity to champion gender equality through gender-lens…
Following a casual conversation with a friend who happens to be a blind software engineer, Tran Khanh Dung was enlightened to the multiple obstacles to digital accessibility faced by individuals with…
A closer look at gender lens investment: Paving the way for women-led businesses to innovate and thrive
Globally, it is estimated that over 70 per cent of women-owned businesses are either financially underserved or unserved. This gender finance gap deprives women and women-led businesses of crucial…
Inclusive business empowers women micro-entrepreneurs in Bangladesh’s beauty industry to thrive
Romoni is an on-demand online beauty services and products platform in Bangladesh that allows customers to search, compare, book and review services offered by the company’s verified network of women…
Unleashing our region's most untapped potential: Harnessing the digital age to empower women and girls
New technologies and innovations are reshaping our world and its future, often at a dizzying pace. Yet women and girls continue to be left behind in this burgeoning digital universe. How, then, can…
Advancing Gender Equality through Foreign Direct Investment – Often an Overlooked Avenue
As countries in Asia and the Pacific build back from the COVID-19 pandemic, they have a unique opportunity to empower women and advance gender equality by putting women at the heart of the recovery…
Disappearing businesses and the long road to recovery: catalyzing women’s entrepreneurship
As COVID-19 restrictions have started to ease in Bangkok, I stepped out this morning to get my usual stock of vegetables and fruits. As I walked down the street, I noticed that three businesses, all…
Can women entrepreneurs drive recovery and sustainable development in the Asia-Pacific region?
As we celebrate this year’s Women’s Entrepreneurship Day on 19 November, we do so with the awareness that our region is still far from creating an environment where women entrepreneurs can flourish…
Taking conversations to scale in Viet Nam - Reimagining the role of policymaking for women entrepreneurs
Ms. Hong leads the Cuu Long Coconut Product enterprise in Ben Tre Province in Viet Nam. She explained that, as orders from traditional export markets stopped during the pandemic, their production was…
The Asia-Pacific region is home to some of the most advanced and fast-moving digital economies in the world. In countries such as China, the Republic of Korea and Singapore, the COVID-19 pandemic has…
Last year, the Asia-Pacific region recorded its worst economic performance in decades. With the pandemic far from over, the region’s recovery is slow, fragile and highly uneven both across and within…
Agile in Response: How a Bangladeshi start-up is revolutionizing digitization in the farming sector
With nearly four million cases worldwide, the impacts of COVID-19 have been devastating. Particularly in low and middle-income countries, the effects have had significant social and economic impacts,…
