The Middle East and Islam Program Department of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation (SPF) recently welcomed Ms. Josée Touchette, Executive Director at the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), to the foundation on November 26, 2019, for an event entitled “Women’s Empowerment in International Organizations.” During her keynote remarks, Ms. Touchette outlined the state of women’s empowerment writ large, informed by the latest OECD research as well as her own experience beginning as a young lawyer working in government to her current leadership position in the OECD.
Nobuo Tanaka, Chairman of SPF, opened the event by introducing the breadth of projects underway at the foundation focusing on women’s empowerment or gender-related issues. These activities include
collaborative research between SPF and Iran, the establishment of the
Asia Women Impact Fund to support women entrepreneurs in Southeast Asia, and a project considering the role of
men and masculinity in the context of gender equality.