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EBRD and CIPE support training for women on boards in four EU countries -
Training developed in Croatia will be extended to Bulgaria, Greece and Romania -
Partnership announced at the “Corporate Governance and Gender Diversity on Boards” conference
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) have launched a joint corporate governance training initiative that will promote the participation of women on boards of directors.
The training, developed by Deloitte in Croatia as part of a previous EBRD collaboration in 2020 and 2021, will be adapted to three new markets: Bulgaria, Greece And Romania. It will be offered to business leaders regardless of their gender.
CIPE and the EBRD will work together to support emerging business leaders in Croatia, Bulgaria, Greece and Romania with a wide range of training courses on topics related to board effectiveness. Topics will include consulting services, business coaching, mentoring and networking.
CIPE is a global organization that works to strengthen democracy and create competitive markets in approximately 80 countries. CIPE’s mission is to elevate the voice of business in policymaking, promote opportunities and develop resilient and inclusive economies.
CIPE’s Jeff Lightfoot said: “One of CIPE’s priorities in Europe is to promote women’s leadership in the business sector to support the broader goal of economic inclusion. We are delighted to partner with the EBRD and its rich heritage of promoting gender inclusion in the region to strengthen corporate governance training among women entrepreneurs in South East Europe.
Victoria Zinchuk, from the EBRD, added: “Engaging female talent is one of the smartest things a business can do. In Croatia, we have already implemented training for women on boards of directors. There was so much interest from the business community and the training was so successful that its expansion to Croatia and other countries was a natural step. We are very happy to continue this journey in partnership with CIPE.
The initiative was announced today at a jointly organized conference in Zagreb on “Corporate Governance and Gender Diversity on Boards”, which discussed the requirements of the recently adopted legislation by the European Union on mandatory targets for women on company boards.
The event was opened by Irena Weber, Director of the Croatian Employers’ Association; Biljana Šcekić, regional head of SME financing and development at the EBRD; and Jeffrey Lightfoot, Program Director, Europe, at CIPE. EBRD participants also included Victoria Zinchuk, Regional Director for Central Europe; Pavle Djuric, lead lawyer; and Visnja Mrakovcic Supek, Senior Director, Small Business Advice.
The speakers from Deloitte, the developer of the original training, were Tarja Krehić, Maurizia Anderle Hauke and Corinne Sheriff.
Aurora Volarević (Infobip), Martina Verović (Rimac Automobili), Luka Orešković (MPlus Group), Maja Mandić (Hrvatski Telekom), Tarja Krehić (Krehic and Partners), Deloitte Legal and others presented the point of view of company on the representation of women on boards of directors. around a hundred participants from the business and NGO sectors.
Discover the EBRD Women in Business program for SMEs in Croatia and other countries.