The UK and Japan hosted a dynamic full-day forum at the UK
Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, focused on advancing Women's
Economic Empowerment through trade, leadership, and
entrepreneurship.
On 8 August 2025, the UK and Japan hosted an event at the UK
Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, for women entrepreneurs in
trade. This event forms part of a continuing programme of
collaboration under the Women's Economic Empowerment chapter of
the UK-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA),
reaffirming our shared commitment to reducing systemic barriers
for women seeking to trade internationally and promoting
inclusive economic growth. It was also an opportunity to
demonstrate our joint commitments for cooperation in support of
Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) seeking to trade
between our two nations.
The day began with opening remarks from Carolyn Davidson, UK
Commissioner General for Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, setting the
tone for a series of engaging sessions. The first panel explored
how to create societies where women can thrive, featuring senior
leaders from the UK and Japan, including Michiko Achilles, Board
Director, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, Misako Hamamura, VP and
General Manager, Japan Alexion Pharma GK, Tina McKenzie MBE,
Policy Chair, Federation of Small Businesses and June Miyachi,
Regional Director President & CEO, Cartier Japan, who shared
insights on leadership and inclusion.
A speed mentoring session followed, where participants engaged
directly with senior women in business across sectors – from
finance and pharmaceuticals to hospitality and innovation. This
interactive format fostered meaningful dialogue and practical
advice sharing.
The spotlight then turned to women entrepreneurs and SMEs across
the UK and Japan. Moderated by Kate Maxwell from the UK
Department for Business and Trade, the session highlighted the
opportunities and challenges faced by women-led enterprises, with
speakers including Ayana Misawa, Head of Viticulture and
Oenology, Grace Wine, Erika Kanai, Senior Associate, ANRI and
Keiko Yata, VP of Business Development APAC, TTP plc, sharing
their journeys and strategies for success.
The final session offered practical guidance on accessing current
business opportunities, featuring contributions from Sarah
Backley, Executive Director British Chamber of Commerce in
Japan and Rachna Ratra, Managing Director of the Tokyo office
Robert Walters.
The event concluded with remarks from Shige Watanabe, Ambassador
for Economic Diplomacy at Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
followed by a networking reception that encouraged further
exchanges and collaboration.
Empowering women economically is a catalyst for innovation,
resilience, and sustainable growth. Increasing women's
participation in the economy not only strengthens gender
equality, but holds huge potential for boosting economic growth.
Trade can dramatically improve women's lives, creating new jobs,
enhancing consumer choices, and increasing women's power in
society. We are proud that our UK-Japan CEPA was the first UK FTA
to include a dedicated chapter on Women's Economic Empowerment.
Where women business owners do participate in trade, they are
most likely to be concentrated in SMEs. SMEs make up a high
proportion of UK businesses exporting to Japan and are important
to the UK economy as they make up 99.8% of the UK business
population. There is substantial scope to increase the proportion
of SMEs and therefore women led businesses that engage in
exporting, and the value that SME exports generate.
We will continue to proactively cooperate with our partners
including Japan to break down barriers to trade for women and to
support women-owned businesses to access the opportunities of
trade.
Carolyn Davidson, Commissioner General for the UK at Expo:
“I was proud to host the Women's Economic Empowerment
Forum at the UK pavilion at Expo 2025
Osaka Kansai, which was a powerful reflection of the
UK's expo theme: “Come build the future”. By connecting
trailblazing female entrepreneurs from across the UK and Japan,
our event created new opportunities for trade and investment
between our countries, supporting inclusive economic growth and
deepening our people-to-people connections”
For more information on the first UK-Japan Women's Economic
Empowerment seminar, please follow this link.
For more information on the second Japan-UK Women's Economic
Empowerment seminar, please follow this link.
For more information on the UK-Japan Comprehensive Economic
Partnership, please follow this link.
For more information on the UK's presence at Expo 2025 Osaka,
Kansai, please follow this link.
