Bangkok, Thailand – International Labor Organization (ILO), the United Nations agency that promotes social justice and internationally recognized human and labor rights, has partnered with Google, as well as its International Training Center (ITCILO) to further expand its program for upskilling women entrepreneurs called ‘ILO’s Rebuilding Better: Fostering Business Resilience Post-COVID-19 Project’. The pilot initiative was hosted last November 2021.

The initiative aims to support women in Thailand, Malaysia, and the Philippines to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and adopt more sustainable and resilient business models, and also works to strengthen women entrepreneurs’ access to vital support services.

Through the expansion of the initiative, ILO has launched three new training programs, which are now available to women entrepreneurs who are seeking new skills for their business and personal growth. It can be accessed in the Google Primer learning app as free, quick, and easy-to-understand lessons on how to manage a business, strengthen its online presence, and create a more supportive workplace which are available in both English and Thai language. 

Dragan Radic, ILO’s head of SME Unit of Enterprises Department, shared that the organization has worked for over 30 years to support SMEs to start, grow, and sustain their businesses, as well as strive to seek new and innovative methods and partnerships to deliver impactful solutions.

“The partnership with Google is a prime example of a collaboration that is enabling us to leverage our own strengths while also benefiting from our partner’s extensive online learning and technology capacity,” said Radic.

Ryan Rahardjo, Google’s head of public affairs for SEA, said, “Through this collaboration and our free Google Primer app, we hope more entrepreneurs in the region will be able to learn new skills, grow and expand their businesses both locally and internationally.”

ILO shared that at least 2,000 women entrepreneurs have been the first beneficiaries of the innovative new pilot to deliver digital training via Google Primer.

Interested learners may access the courses at the ILO Peer Learning Hub for APAC.