World Expo, Dubai

As the post-Covid recovery gathers pace in both the EU and the GCC, digitalization is comprehensively transforming lives, communities, and even identities. On 24th October 2021, the European Union, through its EU-GCC Dialogue on Economic Diversification project, and the European Centre for Women and Technology, will bring together key experts, businesses, and governments at EXPO 2020 to explore how digitalization can boost women’s involvement in the technology sector.

Press Release – The post covid recovery and the fourth industrial revolution provide an opportunity to enhance women’s involvement in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEAM) sector, especially as part of the move to knowledge-based economies in the GCC countries. On 24th October, at EXPO2020, the event Women’s Path to Ikigai; Technology, Entrepreneurship, Self-Development, and Agility” will explore how the ‘Ikigai’ concept and innovation for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Sustainability (DEIS) are keys to the next generation of women founders and how to initiate new partnerships between EU and GCC actors for new moonshots supporting the female talents.

The event will build on the Japanese concept of ‘Ikigai’ as a central theme in exploring the personal motivation of event participants in starting and establishing tech businesses. In particular, it will outline key factors needed for successful tech entrepreneurs and provide recommendations for a joint EU-GCC move towards a fruitful digital transformation. In line with EXPO 2020’s theme ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future, it will provide a platform to share experiences on the challenges and opportunities for European women to enter the GCC technology sector and possible solutions on how to address them. It will also offer unique networking and collaboration opportunities on technology between the EU and the GCC.