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Solomon Islands | 18 October 2024

Women in Business Leadership report Launched in Solomon Islands

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The proportion of women in business leadership in Solomon Islands has seen a significant increase, according to speakers at an event held in Honiara last night to mark the launch of a new report from the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB’s) Pacific Private Sector Development Initiative (PSDI).

 The event, hosted by PSDI in partnership with the new organization, Women in Executive Leadership Solomon Islands, convened a crowd of Solomon Islands’ government, business, and civil society representatives, to discuss the findings of the report, Leadership Matters 2024: Benchmarking Women in Business Leadership in the Pacific.

 The report found that the proportion of women in business leadership in Solomon Islands has grown since the 2021 report. Between 2021 and 2024, the proportion of women directors in Solomon Islands rose from 11% to 21% and the proportion of women CEOs rose from 7% to 24%.

“In Solomon Islands, we collected data from 38 organizations and also heard from business leaders, through our interviews and surveys,” said report author and PSDI Economic Empowerment of Women Expert, Sarah Boxall. “Those conversations uncovered how many promising strategies are being implemented in organizations across Solomon Islands and across the region to increase the number of women in leadership roles. As these initiatives start to yield results in the coming years, we can only expect the representation of women in these roles to continue to grow.”

The event featured a panel on the theme of Women at the Helm: Leading Change in Solomon Islands’ Executive Arena. Panelists Ms Delilah Kekea-Homelo (Chief Executive Officer [Acting], Solomon Power), Ms Riby Tupiti (Human Resources Manager, Guadalcanal Plains Palm Oil Limited [GPPOL]), and Dr Luke Forau (Governor of the Central Bank of Solomon Islands) discussed the factors that support and restrict women’s leadership in the private sector and their own experiences as business leaders in Solomon Islands.

His Excellency Jonathon Schwass, New Zealand High Commissioner to Solomon Islands; Emily Flahive, Economic Counsellor, Australian High Commission; Elmar Elbling, Senior Energy Specialist, ADB; and Sarah Boxall, Economic Empowerment of Women Specialist, PSDI also spoke at the event.

The event also served as the launch of Women in Executive Leadership Solomon Islands (WELSI), an organization established with the vision of becoming Solomon Islands’ leading organization dedicated to advancing women in executive leadership by providing relevant training and in the course of its work, raising awareness of barriers that hinder women’s progress. WELSI is a joint initiative between Solomon Islands Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Solomon Islands Women in Business Association, and the Institute of Solomon Islands Accountants.

“Beyond the statistics and the research, we know the power of women in leadership because we have seen it firsthand,” said Pamela Naesol Alamu, Institute of Solomon Islands Accountants CEO and President of WELSI. “We know the mothers, daughters, and sisters who run households, manage budgets, solve crises, and inspire hope. We have seen women work tirelessly in our communities, leading with courage and compassion. It is time for this leadership to be fully recognized and reflected in our boardrooms, our public institutions, and every sector of society.”

Ms Sarah Boxall speaks at the event

PSDI Economic Empowerment of Women Specialist, Ms Sarah Boxall, speaks at the launch of Leadership Matters 2024.

Group photo of panellists and speakers.

Panelists and speakers at the launch of Leadership Matters 2024 in Solomon Islands.

Image of panellists speaking at the launch

L-R: Ms Gina Kekea , Dr Luke Forau, Ms Riby Tupiti, and Ms Delilah Kekea-Homelo speak at the launch of Leadership Matters 2024 in Solomon Islands.

Speakers at the launch.

L-R: Ms Pamela Naesol Alamu and Ms Atenasi Ata at the launch of Leadership matters 2024 in Honiara.