The Association of Business Women and Top Managers in Brasov (Romania) Launches CIPE Publication

The Association of Business Women and Top Managers in Brasov, Romania (AFAFCI) has organized a launch event for a new CIPE publication “Women’s Business Associations, Experiences from Around the World: Central and Eastern Europe”, which is part of CIPE’s Women Paper Series. 

The publication presents findings on the current state of women’s business associations in 14 countries in Central and Eastern Europe (Moldova, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo, Serbia, Albania, FYROM, Croatia, Bulgaria, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Hungary, and Poland). It also includes a case study on the Association of Business Women and Top Managers in Brasov, Romania (AFAFCI).  AFAFCI has translated the case study into Romanian and printed it at its own expense. The translated version is meant to complement the English version of the study.

The event, which focused on women entrepreneurs and the international recognition of AFAFCI’s work, was hosted by Brasov Chamber of Commerce and Industry and featured CIPE Regional Office Program Director Camelia Bulat, as well as the author of the case study, Cornelia Rotaru, as guest speakers. Ms. Rotaru is also President of another prominent Romanian women entrepreneurs’ organization, the Association for the Development of Women Entrepreneurship (ADAF). 

Fifty participants representing business associations and public authorities attended the event, including Adrian Scripcaru, the Mayor of Brasov, Prefect Ioan Gontea, Vice-Prefect Carol Ambrus, Nicoletea Stelea – Representative of the County Council, Ionut Chiaur – VP of the Brasov Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Dragos David – Director at the Metropolitan Agency in Brasov. Two TV stations, Nova and MixTV, featured live interviews from Bulat and Rotaru after the event. The event was sponsored by an AFAFCI member, who owns a pastry shop. Other sponsors were ARC Electronic, Brastar Print (also owned by an AFAFCI member), and Paloma Guesthouse.

AFAFCI was founded in 1997 as a branch of the Romanian Women Managers’ Association and became a separate, freestanding legal entity in 1998. to prove and boost women’s ability to develop and manage enterprises, as well as to facilitate women’s involvement in the development of public policies. AFAFCI walks in the footsteps of the first women’s organization in the country, which was established in 1850. AFAFCI is a founding member of the Coalition of Women’s Business Associations (CAFA), which was created in 2004, with assistance from CIPE. In order to further the interests of its members, AFAFCI engages with local and national authorities, and organizes national events, such as the launch of the “Women of Success” digital toolkits, in partnership with the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE). 

The association’s main project is the Femina VIP Award, which aims to give recognition to the most successful women in the local business community. Launched in late 2000, Femina VIP became a popular event for the local community, with over 350 candidates in five annual events. The project aims to build women’s confidence in their own ability to make a difference in their community. By promoting women’s achievements, the project also aims to further increase women’s participation in society, to support women’s initiatives, and finally, to change the mentality regarding women’s role in contemporary society. Each edition of the Femina VIP Awards is attended by a sizeable audience (a few hundred invitees), including city officials and media. The most recent event, which took place on November 30, 2007, at the Opera House in Brasov, brought together more than 400 people, including candidates, sponsors, media, representatives of the local authorities, and various guests from around the country, including representatives of about 15 women’s associations.

The project was so successful that it was replicated by the Serbian Business Women Association, which has adapted the Romanian experience to the Serbian context, with assistance from AFAFCI. So far, two such events have been held in Serbia.

To read “Women’s Business Associations, Experiences from Around the World: Central and Eastern Europe”, click here.

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