By Teri Coaxum, Region 2 Advocate
I recently met with the Vietnam Women’s Union (VWU) in New York City to talk about the Office of Advocacy, my role as Region 2 Advocate, and Advocacy’s report, “Understanding the Gender Gap in STEM Fields Entrepreneurship.”
VWU was founded in 1930 and its history is closely tied to Vietnam’s independence movement and social and economic development. The VWU has a network that operates throughout Vietnam at central, provincial, district and commune administrative levels and has a total membership that exceeds 13 million women. VWU’s mandate is to protect women’s rights and strive for gender equality. The Vietnamese government was the sponsor for this recent event.
The visit was a part of a series of government visits included in the Syracuse University Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs training program under the direction of Director of Education Programs Steve J. Lux. The program hosted a two-week training program designed for senior staff from the VWU.
The program, “Policy Analysis and Management: Social Development Related to Gender Equality, Children, Family and Society,” included topics such as social policy analysis, health care provision for disadvantaged populations, gender and income inequality, performance management, accountability, and women’s movements.
The group was interested in the different ways the U.S. government assists small business, and they also discussed how business owners in Vietnam could more easily do business with the U.S. In addition, they asked about U.S. policies and regulations that could be duplicated to assist their businesses in Vietnam.
Advocacy’s visit with VWU was a great opportunity to talk to the global community.
Teri Coaxum is the Office of Advocacy’s regional advocate for New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. You can reach her at teri.coaxum@sba.gov.