The Workforce Development Agency (WDA), Ministry of Labor held a workshop today, June 28, entitled "Women’s Economic Empowering, New Media Digital Upskilling (WEDU): Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion: The Keys to Success in Digital Marketing". The workshop brought together experts in gender policies and digital marketing training from Asia-Pacific region. This hybrid workshop enables participants to discuss on how to design and implement gender-inclusive digital marketing training programs, as well as sharing best practices and case studies.
The WDA stated that in 2019, to promote women’s economic empowerment and to echo APEC priorities of "Digital Society", it proposed the project "Women’s Economic Empowering, New Media Digital Upskilling (WEDU)" and received funding from the APEC. The above-mentioned workshop held this year marks the third phase of the project. It invited Zhao Li, the Lead Shepherd of the APEC Human Resources Development Working Group (HRDWG) from the United States, and Rosanna A. Urdaneta, he Coordinator of the Capacity Building Network (CBN) from the Philippines, to deliver speeches. Leong Wai Yie, the Vice President of the International Network of Women Engineers and Scientists (INWES), also attended the workshop as a speaker and a panelist. Experts, scholars, and government officials from related domestic ministries and APEC member economies engaged in mutual exchanges, focusing on exploring how to meet the talent demands of the future digital economy through inclusive talent cultivation.
The WDA stated that since the launch of the project WEDU in 2020, it has received extensive support from APEC member economies. The project has held international forums, workshops, and surveys to understand the skill demands and training practices of economies in the digital economy, explored the trends of women's participation in the digital economy, and collected best practices from APEC economies. In 2021, the WDA developed the " Training Package: Gender Power in Online Marketing", and in 2022, despite the challenges posed by the global COVID-19 pandemic, successfully conducted a 7-day "Gender Power in Online Marketing International Training Program". The program assisted 20 participants from 9 economies to finish the courses, yielding fruitful outcomes.
The WDA emphasized that this year, it is launching the third phase of the project within APEC, integrating the achievements and experiences from previous years' projects to develop "The Toolkit for Developing Digital Upskilling Training Program in New Media from the Gender Lens". During this workshop, the toolkit framework was introduced to APEC member economies, and discussions of experts, scholars and practitioners focused on the values and applications of diversity, equality, and inclusion in the digital economy. Through cross-fora and cross-cutting discussions and exchanges, the WDA aims to promote the integration of gender perspectives in the training of digital marketing professionals, deepen the core principles of skill development, and incorporate international resources and experiences into policy planning. This effort seeks to make a positive contribution to talent cultivation in the digital age and women's economic empowerment in Asia-Pacific region.