On the picture from left to right: Ms. Sheila Gemin, President Professional Women’s Network (PWN) Amsterdam, Ms. Nita Korsten, Co-Lead Mentoring Programme , PWN Amsterdam, H.E. Adia Sakiqi, Ambassdor of Albania, Ms. Angela Gest-McCall, Co-Lead Mentoring Programme , PWN Amsterdam and Ms. Diana Eggleston, Consultant, Member PWN Amsterdam.
By Angela Gest-McCall.
On the evening of Thursday 30th August, H.E. Adia Sakiqi, Ambassador of Albania to the Netherlands and Permanent Representative to the OPCW, joined an inspirational group of twenty women and men for a Networking event in Amsterdam. They were preparing to travel to Skopje for an exciting new International Mentoring Program in Skopje, led by the Macedonian Mentoring Network (MMN) in partnership with The Professional Women’s Network (PWN) Amsterdam, and sponsored by the Dutch Embassy in Macedonia.
Ambassador Sakiqi generously shared key insights into Albania’s business culture and diversity agenda, helping to shape expectations for the team of Netherlands-based mentors.They heard that there are great hopes for the future of Albanian business, that women play a key role in shaping this future, and that the younger generations in particular are visibly energized by the potential for greater entrepreneurialism.
They learnt about the challenges faced by smaller geographic regions in attracting investment from larger companies, and some of the key differences in how business practices such as networking and communication can potentially lead to misunderstandings, without attention to common cultural expectations. Ambassador Sakiqi’s talk was energizing, and the team of Netherlands-based mentors ended the evening with high expectations.
On 21-22 September 2018, the teamjoined a2-day kickoff event to this innovative International Mentoring Program in Skopje with the aim of building powerful peer mentoring partnerships committed to empowering women entrepreneurs and professionals from Macedonia, Kosovo and Albania.
The program got off to a roaring start during an inspiring panel discussion with H.E Ambassador Wouter Plomp (Netherlands Embassy in Skopje), Danela Arsovska (Macedonian Chamber of Commerce), Ardita Seknaj (International Chamber of Commerce, Albania), Lumnije Ajdini, (Association of Kosovar Business), Slavica Nikolovska (Macedonian Mentoring Network) and Sheila Gemin (President, Professional Women’s Network Amsterdam).
And during a jam-packed 2-day conference that included an evening event hosted by the Dutch Embassy in Skopje, we witnessed the birth of some unique mentoring relationships expected to result in mutually beneficial outcomes and the progression of potential business growth opportunities across and between the regions. We certainly look forward to hearing about some of the exciting growth opportunities to come!
