IFC and NEPSE to partner for gender equality

Kathmandu, Mar. 25

International Finance Corporation (IFC) has forged partnership with the Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) to ‘Ring the Bell for Gender Equality’ with an aim to raise awareness for gender equality.

The annual global event highlights how women’s participation in the economy can spur sustainable private sector development. 

The World Bank organisation has joined hands with the NEPSE for the first time.  

"The event comes at a critical moment, as the economic and social consequences of COVID-19 continue to disproportionally impact women — who make up 39 per cent of global employment but account for 54 per cent of the overall job losses due to the pandemic," said the IFC in a statement on Thursday.

Chairman of NEPSE Dr. Laxman Neupane said the organization was excited to take part in the call to action for gender equality together with more than 100 stock exchanges around the world through the ‘Ring the Bell for Gender Equality event’.

"Fostering greater participation of women in our workforce, economy, and capital market is not just the right thing to do – it also makes strong economic sense," he said.

Accelerating the pace of gender parity could lead to important economic, environmental, social, and governance gains in emerging and frontier markets. Despite some progress, women remain underrepresented in business leadership with only 17 per cent holding board seats globally, said the IFC.

 "As economies around the world struggle to recover from a global pandemic, increased participation of women can help accelerate the recovery process—making it more inclusive,” said Pradeep Man Vaidya, President of United Nations Global Compact Network Nepal.

In Nepal, women representation on corporate boards is extremely low. A recent IFC study in the country’s power sector shows that out of 132 board members from 20 companies, only 12 (9 per cent) are women. Despite Nepal’s Companies Act 2066 BS requiring at least one or more female shareholders, only three out of 10 public companies have women on their boards.

"I have been encouraged by 18 power sector companies joining IFC's Powered by Women Initiative to address some of these gender disparities," said Babacar S. Faye, IFC Resident Representative in Nepal. "But clearly, much more needs to be done to increase the participation of women on corporate boards in Nepal. Our research with stock exchanges in South Asia has shown that companies with higher gender diversity on their boards experience better financial returns.”

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 26 March 2021.