UN women and Srikandi BUMN signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen collaboration in accelerating gender equality and women’s empowerment in the business sector.

Operating under the guidance of Indonesia’s Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises (KBUMN) and the Indonesian Human Capital Forum (FHCI), Srikandi BUMN is a women’s community of State-Owned Enterprises dedicated to fostering an inclusive and equitable work environment for women in BUMN. Building on Srikandi BUMN’s commitment and UN Women’s universal mandate to advance gender equality, the MoU will leverage synergies that aim to enhance businesses’ efforts to drive positive change for women in Indonesia.

The MoU was signed by Ulziisuren Jamsran, UN Women Indonesia Representative and Liaison to ASEAN, and Fikha Lutfi, the Chairwoman of Srikandi BUMN. Concurrently, three state-owned enterprises—ANTAM, BTN, and WIKA—also signed the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) to demonstrate their commitment as leaders in achieving gender equality.

Advancing gender equality in Indonesia could add USD 135 billion to its annual GDP, 9 percent above business as usual. Companies with three or more women in senior management roles consistently outperform across all organizational dimensions. Minister of State-Owned Enterprises, Erick Thohir set a target of 25% of women in leadership roles within BUMN, reinforcing the importance of gender equality. In line with this, Srikandi BUMN commits to become the catalyst in achieving the targeted number of women in State-Owned Enterprises’ Board of Directors.

“It is time for Indonesian women to advance through collaboration across various sectors and embrace opportunities with all stakeholders. Through Srikandi BUMN, we champion women’s leadership by fostering an inclusive, collaborative work environment that prioritizes shared progress. By adopting positive workplace practices and building synergies, we can set a strong example and have more women leaders advancing BUMN performance,” said Fikha Lutfi, Chairwoman of Srikandi BUMN, as quoted from a written statement.

The cooperation between UN Women and Srikandi BUMN emphasizes stronger investment in women’s empowerment, which is expected to contribute to Indonesia’s inclusive economic growth.