Consul-General Ito Attends SheEO Summit

On Mar. 4, Consul-General of Japan Ms. Takako Ito attended the 2019 SheEO summit at the EverGreen Brickworks in Toronto. The Consul-General also gave remarks as a representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, which co-sponsored the event.

In her remarks, the Consul-General spoke about the 5th World Assembly for Women (WAW!), Japan's initiative aimed at realizing "a society where women shine", which will be held concurrently with W20 – one of the engagement groups of G20 – in Japan this year. The Consul-General also noted the initiatives of the Japanese government to empower women in Japan, including reforming traditional working styles to promote better work-life balance and opening more childcare facilities to encourage women to return to the workplace. A video on STEM women in Japan was also shown. After her speech she introduced three SheEO Ventures going on the first ever Canadian Women-Only Business Mission to Japan in April, organized by the Asia-Pacific Foundation of Canada.

The Hon. Elizabeth Dowdeswell, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario and the Hon. Mary Ng, Minister of Small Business and Export Promotion were also in attendance to speak about the value that empowering women entrepreneurs in our economy.