NAWBO Delaware had two representatives attend this year's Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP) Conference. NAWBO Delaware Chapter President, Karen Miller, and Public Policy Chair, Cathy Imburgia, recently joined women business owners from around the country in Washington, DC for the two-day annual policy meeting and Economic Summit.
 
WIPP, the voice for women in business in our Nation's Capital - used the opportunity to bring a strong small business message to the White House and to Capitol Hill. In addition, the conference provided a forum to brief and hear from attendees on four key policy areas:  health care, procurement, retirement and energy.
 
At the WIPP/Walmart Economic Summit for Women Business Owners, the Center for Women's Business Research, the National Women's Business Council, WIPP and Walmart released new data with astonishing results about the economic impact of women business owners, including:
 
- Today, women-owned firms have an economic impact of $3 trillion annually.
- Women-owned firms create and/or maintain more than 23 million jobs - 16% of all U.S. jobs!
- If U.S.-based women-owned businesses were their own country, they would have the 5th largest GDP in the world.
 
This is brand new knowledge and the results promise to have significant and wide-ranging impact for policymaking, economic development, and private investment focused on women business owners and their communities.
 
"Women-owned firms, which are growing at twice the rate of all businesses, have enormous untapped potential to provide jobs and create vital communities in the future," said WIPP President Barbara Kasoff. She added, "It makes good business sense for government and local communities to support these firms by providing knowledge, skills and tools for their growth."
 
The study concluded that policymakers and communities seeking to increase the economic power of women-owned firms should focus on developing the next generation of programming, educating and supporting women entrepreneurs on how to grow their firms.
 
In Delaware, we plan to take this message and our positions on two policy areas -- procurement and healthcare ­-- to our federal, state and local government officials.

 
Let your voice be heard by telling us your position on procurement and health care and, most importantly, how these issues impact your business.  Our Public Policy Committee will soon survey our members and select Delaware women business owners so that we can build our position statements and find opportunities to carry our message forward.

 
Contact Chair Cathy Imburgia at cathy@mycreativecommunications.com or

302-791-0765 for more information about NAWBO's Public Policy Committee or how you can let your voice be heard.