The Times’ Forum Honors Women’s Role In Leadership

PHILIPPINE Commission on Women Commissioner Myrna Yao stressed the crucial role of women in political and economic leadership during The Manila Times Economic Outlook Forum, titled “Enhancing Asean partnerships, improving Philippine leadership,” at Dusit Thani Manila on Wednesday.

”No regional leadership is credible if it does not unlock the full capacity of its people; and no Asean future will be truly competitive if women are not shaping it,” Yao said in her speech.

The sole female speaker at the forum, Yao emphasized the importance of gender equality and women’s empowerment as an economic strategy.

”Across Asean, women serve as the primary engines of economic growth. They run micro-enterprises in rural communities. They anchor global supply chains in manufacturing hubs. They dominate service industries. They are entering digital platforms at accelerating rates,” she said.

Yao noted that women’s participation in the labor force remains uneven, their access to finance restricted, their leadership in high-growth sectors limited and their unpaid care burden invisible in national accounts.

”If we are serious about enhancing Asean partnerships, then we must confront this reality. The greatest untapped growth multiplier in Southeast Asia is women’s full economic leadership,” she said.

”Closing gender gaps in employment and entrepreneurship does not merely improve social indicators; it increases productivity, expands consumer markets, strengthens supply chains and stabilizes economies during crises. In a region projected to become one of the world’s top economic blocs, leaving women behind is not just unjust; it is irrational,” Yao added.

She noted that the Philippines’ designation as Asean’s Vision Lead for Gender Mainstreaming is a recognition of the country’s substantive leadership in advancing women’s empowerment in the region. Yao stressed that the Philippines must champion a new standard where gender-responsive policymaking becomes synonymous with modern economic governance.

”Through our engagement in the Asean Committee on Women, we continue to push for gender mainstreaming across regional mechanisms. But we must now ensure that women’s economic empowerment is not siloed in social discussions; it must sit at the center of trade, digital economy, infrastructure and recovery dialogues,” she said. “Leadership is not about attending tables; leadership is about reshaping them.” She said Asean stands at a pivotal crossroads, with the Philippines at a defining moment of leadership.

”We can choose incremental change, or we can choose structural acceleration. We can maintain women’s participation or we can unlock women’s power. When women move from the margins of markets to the center of decision-making, economies do not just grow, they evolve — stronger, smarter, more resilient,” Yao said.

”Let us remember: The future of Asean will not be determined solely by trade volumes or investment flows; it will be determined by whether we had the courage to unleash the economic force of our people, and that includes, unequivocally, the leadership of women,” she added.

Meanwhile, The Manila Times CEO Anna Marie Ang-Thompson said the objective of the forum is to align stakeholders against economic slowdown.

”It is alignment between government and enterprise, alignment between domestic priorities and regional ambition, and most importantly, alignment between leadership and accountability. At The Manila Times, we believe that convening the right voices at the right moment can elevate the national conversation. And when the conversation rises, so, too, does the country,” she said.

The Manila Times President and COO Blanca Mercado took the opportunity to wish participants a happy Lunar New Year of the Fire Horse.

Another distinguished guest was Spanish Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the Philippines Executive Director Ascencion Lillo, who said women make good leaders in business and society because they care for people at home, bringing that same heart and emotion to business and leadership positions.