The National Centre RUSSIA hosted the opening of the II BRICS Women's Entrepreneurship Forum

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The II BRICS Women's Entrepreneurship Forum has commenced at the National Centre RUSSIA. The business event, held in Moscow, will bring together 1,400 delegates from 50 countries. The forum’s key theme is the development of regional cooperation between BRICS and countries in the Asia-Pacific region, Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, and the CIS. The agenda also includes the creation of a barrier-free environment for women's entrepreneurship, exchange of experience and technologies, development of special economic zones, support for creative industries, and projects in energy, sustainable development, and healthcare.

At the opening ceremony, speeches were delivered by Galina Karelova, Chair of the Council of the Eurasian Women’s Forum under the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation; Imaan Suleiman-Ibrahim, Minister of Women’s Affairs of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; Rodrigo de Lima Baena Soares, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Brazil to the Russian Federation; Nazih Elnaggari, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Arab Republic of Egypt to the Russian Federation; José Antonio Morato Tavares, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus; and Anna Nesterova, Chair of the Russian Chapter of the BRICS Women’s Business Alliance (WBA), founder of the Watchmaking Manufactury Palekh Watch.

A welcoming video message to the forum participants was delivered by Sergei Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.

"Building comprehensive cooperation within the BRICS format is among our unconditional foreign policy priorities. At the same time, we pay special attention to supporting new ideas and initiative in the economy, sustainable finance, digitalisation, and transport interconnectivity. Women’s entrepreneurship is one of the key factors in achieving progress in these and other areas. Your determination, innovative approaches, and leadership qualities create additional opportunities and, overall, open new horizons for the development of the economies and social spheres of our states. Today’s forum is an excellent opportunity to exchange best practices, establish and strengthen business contacts, and agree on specific projects of practical cooperation. The initiatives developed here will definitely be taken into account in preparation for the XVII BRICS Summit in Rio de Janeiro on July 6 – 7 and will contribute to the common treasury of our association," said Sergei Lavrov, concluding by wishing the participants engaging discussions.

Maxim Reshetnikov, Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation, in a welcoming video address to the forum participants, noted that today in Russia 6.5 million women run their own businesses — more than 40% of the total number of individual entrepreneurs and self-employed persons.

"Thanks to their openness, our women entrepreneurs successfully operate in the international market. They contribute to the development of not only Russia’s economy but also those of partner countries in APEC, ASEAN, BRICS, and we support their efforts. Today’s forum is part of this large-scale work. I hope it will become a focal point for bright business ideas, a platform for exchanging best practices and launching projects that will contribute to the development of our country’s economy," said Maxim Reshetnikov.

At the opening ceremony, welcoming remarks were addressed to the forum participants by Valentina Matviyenko, Chairwoman of the Federation Council of the Russian Federation. She emphasised that the economic, investment, and technological potential of the BRICS countries is truly inexhaustible, and the initiatives of women entrepreneurs can give an additional impetus to the implementation of the practical agenda of the association.

"Women play a significant role in regional development, successfully apply advanced technologies in industrial and agro-industrial enterprises, actively implement economic projects, and make a substantial contribution to culture, science, and art. The forum unites precisely these women — true leaders, heads of organisations engaged in a wide range of fields," noted Valentina Matviyenko.

In turn, Sergei Ryabkov, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, added that the work within BRICS is aimed at ensuring favourable conditions for the development of trade and investment ties. According to him, the introduction of additional and reliable instruments for settlements primarily in national currencies will contribute to increasing the efficiency of the entire global financial architecture and the economic security of BRICS states.

"We can already speak of quite good results. In 2024, the share of national currencies other than the US dollar in Russia’s operations with BRICS countries reached 90%," said Sergei Ryabkov.

On their part, the Minister of Women’s Affairs of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Imaan Suleiman-Ibrahim, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Brazil to the Russian Federation Rodrigo de Lima Baena Soares, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Arab Republic of Egypt to the Russian Federation Nazih Elnaggari, and Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus José Antonio Morato Tavares emphasised the importance of developing cooperation within BRICS and the role of women entrepreneurs as drivers of the economies of the association’s countries, unanimously noting the contribution of the Russian Chapter of the BRICS Women’s Business Alliance and, in particular, Anna Nesterova, in organising the platform for dialogue and exchange of views in the format of the II BRICS Women’s Entrepreneurship Forum.

As Anna Nesterova noted, the wide international representation of participants at the forum in Moscow is a clear testament to the economic attractiveness of BRICS cooperation.

"Today we have with us 1,400 participants from 50 countries around the world. Besides BRICS countries and partners, business representatives are present from the Asia-Pacific region, Africa, Latin America, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and the CIS. In just one year, the Women’s Entrepreneurship Forum has grown more than twice," said Anna Nesterova.

She added that alongside the expansion of BRICS, interest in the association from the business community is also growing, and mentioned that this year the II BRICS Women’s Entrepreneurship Forum introduced a new format — a youth programme, operated by the Directorate of the World Youth Festival.

"The programme is intended to become a bridge between generations, where the experience of women in our community will serve as a support for the bold ideas of young women entrepreneurs. Together with colleagues, we are already developing and will soon launch an initiative for mentoring programmes for young women entrepreneurs from BRICS countries, which will be organised under the aegis of the BRICS Women’s Business Alliance. This will become a system in which leading entrepreneurs, mentors, and experts from 19 countries will support, train, and accompany founders creating businesses in the modern realities of BRICS countries," concluded Anna Nesterova.

 In turn, Dmitry Ivanov, Director General of the Directorate of the World Youth Festival, noted that organising the youth programme was another important step in supporting young innovators and creating a community of socially responsible entrepreneurs.

"Together with the Women’s Business Alliance, we are also launching a mentoring programme in BRICS countries involving experts as a long-term mechanism to support those taking their first steps in business. Every young founder will receive a personal guide who will help take their business to the next level. We expect the first successful cases already this year," said Dmitry Ivanov.

The general partner of the forum is PJSC PhosAgro. The operator of the youth programme of the II BRICS Women’s Entrepreneurship Forum is ANO "Directorate of the World Youth Festival" (DWFY).