Introduction
The SouthAsia Enterprise Development Facility (SEDF) is a facility established and managed by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group. SEDF is committed to ensuring equitable growth of the SME sector by supporting opportunities for women to become successful entrepreneurs. This translates into assistance to improve the income levels and participation of women as workers, managers and entrepreneurs. Since its inception in October 2002, SEDF has undertaken a number of interventions specifically for women in enterprise development. SEDF recently commissioned a diagnostic study to enable us to accelerate our gender intervention efforts. The initial findings of this study will be presented at the regional forum. The forum will bring together stakeholders from SEDF's four recipient territories; Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and North East India to share experiences, lessons learnt and best practice on issues relating to gender and enterprise development.

Background
Mainstreaming gender into operations of IFC has received top priority in recognition of the contribution of women in Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) development. There is strong evidence that the elimination of gender discrimination has positive effect on economic growth and poverty reduction as well as for the achievement of the UN Millennium Development Goals (MGD). Women comprise between a quarter and a third of SME operators across the world. Yet their productivity is often hampered by legislative, regulatory and administrative barriers. Where gender inequalities are reinforced through practice, there are market distortions relating to participation of men and women in private sector development. Women are more likely to be stuck in the informal sector for reasons associated with specific legal impediments and/or cultural norms restricting female labor force participation and business activity. Additionally, women's lack of formal property rights in many countries impedes their access to finance and ability to start or grow their businesses.

Why Gender Matters in Economic Development
Addressing gender discrimination in investment climate is a prerequisite to unleashing economic growth and making progress towards gender equality and empowerment of women. Conscious of this, the international development community is increasingly making gender a priority. For IFC, gender mainstreaming helps maximize development impact as it ensures that benefits accrue to all segments of the population.

The business opportunities related to gender are also becoming increasingly known and valued. Not only are women a growing percentage of business owners in both developed and developing countries, these businesswomen are creating a high demand for business credit in markets in which they are largely underserved. Many governments, eager to stimulate economic development, are recognizing that promoting gender equality is good for business growth.

The international development community is increasingly making gender a priority. Various donor agencies now require that gender be considered as an integral part of all programs and projects.

The objectives of the Gender Forum

• Bring together regional stakeholders, including women entrepreneurs, government officials, private sector, NGOs and women business organizations to share experiences and best practice.

• Disseminate and validate information on the findings of the diagnostics undertaken by SEDF appointed consultants that reviewed SME and gender related issues in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and North East India.

To sensitize policy makers in the region of the need to mainstream gender in economic development activities.

Department of Women's Studies, University of Dhaka The University of Dhaka was founded in 1921. The Department of Women's Studies, established in March 2000, is committed to create, foster and nurture values that promote gender-neutral social and educational environments and ethos through its carefully designed courses. In addition, the relevance of tertiary education in terms of employability is an important consideration. Courses are designed with a view to equip students with marketable skills and expertise in the context of a developing economy.