Kamoshida Naoaki, Minister/Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of Japan in Sri Lanka, visited women entrepreneurs in Mannar District who have received assistance through the “Pathways to Peace: Realizing the National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security in Sri Lanka” project as part of an ongoing initiative to promote women’s economic empowerment.

The project, initiated by UN Women in partnership with Chrysalis and with generous support from the Government of Japan, has been making great progress in strengthening women-led businesses across conflict-affected areas, namely Anuradhapura, Batticaloa, Mannar and Mullaitivu. With the help of $ 1.7 million by the Government of Japan, approximately 500 women entrepreneurs have successfully enhanced their capacity through a series of training in business planning, financial literacy, and product innovation. These specialized trainings have helped them to develop their business models, further reinforced by training to increase access to markets, and technology transfer to encourage sustainability in their operations.

Talking at the event, Minister / Deputy Head of Mission Kamoshida Naoaki, stated, “By equipping women with necessary skills and by unleashing their potentials, we could catalyse positive changes that reverberate across communities and could create a new driving force for economic growth. Japan remains committed to empowerment of women and sustainable, inclusive development of this country”.

This partnership builds on Japan’s longstanding commitment to gender equality and inclusive development and reflects shared priorities under the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Women, Peace and Security Agenda. By creating pathways to economic empowerment, the initiative contributes to sustainable peace and development in Sri Lanka.