With support from the Criterion Institute, Patamar developed its own gender-lens framework and partnered with Investing in Women to create the Patamar Investing in Women Fund. 62 This blended-finance vehicle provides capital and business support to women-led Small and Medium Enterprises (SME)s. 63 Importantly, Patamar disaggregates impact data by gender across all its funds, a practice that originated with this initiative. 64 To encourage adoption of gender-lens investing, Patamar also created a concise, two-page “conversation starter” to make the framework accessible and actionable for others in the field. 65 Additional Steps In an interview to commemorate International Women’s Day, Professor Yuki Honda of the University of Tokyo was asked, “What efforts do you think are necessary to fix the gender balance issue?” She stated that achieving gender balance will require “drastic and substantial changes in society as a whole that reconnect the divisions between education, work and family.” 66 In her view, this involves not only reforming workplace structures to allow for healthier work-life balance but also expanding public care and education systems to mitigate the disparities stemming from what she terms the “parent lottery.” She elaborates: “There’s a term that I have heard in recent years, ‘the parent lottery,’ which describes how one’s lot in life is affected by the familial environment one is born into by chance. If public institutions can take on the care and education of children outside the home in a way that is more fulfilling in terms of both quality and quantity than the current situation, we will be able to mitigate the effects of this ‘lottery.’” 67 For SIIF, this imperative translates into deepening its efforts to redefine societal roles for women and men through impact initiatives. By leveraging its established networks with banks and corporations, SIIF is uniquely positioned to advocate for gender-lens investing and to amplify the call for equity within the impact economy. However, the real opportunity lies in pushing beyond surface-level interventions. Tackling structural barriers—such as entrenched workplace norms, the lack of shared parental leave policies, and insufficient gender-equity training—could catalyze a broader cultural shift. If these systemic challenges are met with sustained and intentional action, the ripple effects could be transformative, shaping not only today’s workplace dynamics but also dismantling deeply ingrained gender biases across generations. Such a shift would open new avenues for women’s leadership and participation, fostering a more inclusive and dynamic Japanese society.
133
Ten Years in the Making
Powered by FlippingBook