Women’s empowerment, an essential factor to achieve sustainable and inclusive growth We share the G20 leaders’ view that “Gender equality and women’s empowerment are essential for achieving sustainable and inclusive economic growth.” In Japan, if the securities industry, which employs about 90,000 executives and employees, endeavors to promote working reforms, enhance productivity, and become an environment conductive to a diverse range of human capital, it has the potential to contribute greatly to improvement of working conditions as a whole. With this in mind, the JSDA has conducted a number of initiatives starting with the survey to grasp the current status of working conditions in the industry. The survey revealed some current challenges to gender equality in the workplace, such as the lack of female workers at managerial level, lack of diverse role models, and the unconscious bias among workers. To address these challenges, the JSDA began a series of measures including: • Establishing the “Women’s Network” for the securities industry • Signing the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) *See Page 9 for details