By ITC News
GENEVA, Switzerland – The government of Iceland and the International Trade Centre (ITC) signed on July 21, 2021, an agreement that will see Iceland providing $300,000 in funding to support the work of ITC through 2021-2023. The financial support will boost the organization’s efforts to support the economic empowerment of women in developing countries, with special emphasis on assisting small businesses in the most fragile and least developed countries.
The agreement was signed by ambassador Harald Aspelund, Permanent Representative of Iceland in Geneva, and ITC executive director Pamela Coke-Hamilton at ITC headquarters.
“ITC and Iceland share common goals: we want to empower women and girls, add more value to trade and help small businesses move towards greener business models while they recover from the pandemic,” said ITC executive director Pamela Coke-Hamilton.
“At ITC we are thrilled that Iceland has given us a vote of confidence in the important work of our SheTrades initiative for the next three years. Continued funding means more trade opportunities for women-owned businesses, more inclusive growth, more sustainable development, and more job creation. On behalf of ITC and its partners, I thank the people and the government of Iceland.”
Ambassador Aspelund underlined the importance of the renewed partnership. “ITC’s emphasis on women’s economic empowerment is in full alignment with Iceland’s Policy for International Development Cooperation. A gendered approach to trade and economic policies is a prerequisite for achieving the goals of Agenda 2030. With only nine years to go, and the setbacks experienced by the global COVID-19 pandemic we need to strengthen our commitment to achieving SDG5 on gender equality.”
