IFC, Colombo Stock Exchange and Global Partners Ring the Bell for Gender Equality, Signaling the Urgent Need to Increase Women’s Corporate Leadership in Sri Lanka

For the ninth consecutive year, IFC partnered with the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) and global partners to ‘Ring the Bell for Gender Equality.’ Aligned with International Women’s Day, the annual global initiative promotes women’s participation in the economy for inclusive and sustainable growth.

Increasing women’s economic participation and achieving gender parity in leadership are two key levers to address broader gender gaps in households, societies and economies. In Sri Lanka, IFC’s research has highlighted that the top 30 CSE-listed companies with higher gender diversity perform better financially, including return on equity, return on total assets, and price to earnings ratio.

Despite the clear business case for more women in leadership, there has been a concerning decrease in the share of women board directors in CSE-listed boards, dropping from 10.1 percent in 2023 to 8.7 percent in 2024. While women have made notable strides in breaking through the glass ceiling in recent years, this setback raises questions about the commitment to diversity and inclusion in corporate leadership.

“Investing in women has evolved from being the right thing to do to being the smart thing to do. Studies show that an organization’s success increases by as much as 34 percent if you have a more diverse team. Corporates need to understand the value of diversity and the wealth of results that can be generated from it,” said Dilshan Wirasekara, Chairman of the CSE. “I am proud to say that the CSE has excellent gender representation in our workforce, with over 47 percent of women in our staff cadre. We see that representation translating into a strong presence of women on a leadership level, comprising 44 percent.”

In an encouraging move, 13 Sri Lankan companies pledged last year to boost female representation at the board level and in management to a minimum of 20 percent by 2025. These businesses are taking intentional measures to strengthen their female talent pipeline and embed gender-inclusive policies that withstand economic uncertainties and contribute to long-term sustainability.

IFC is committed to promoting gender equality and has a strong focus on expanding access to finance for female entrepreneurs and increasing the number of women in leadership roles.

“Addressing barriers to women’s advancement in boards and leadership positions require collective, coordinated, and bold action by both private and public sector to accelerate progress towards gender parity, ignite renewed growth and greater resilience,” said Alejandro Alvarez de la Campa, IFC Country Manager for Sri Lanka and Maldives. “We know that integrating women into business operations can increase companies’ profitability and contribute significantly to shared prosperity. So, let’s recommit to mobilize the economic power of women – as employees, as entrepreneurs, and as leaders – for a better future for all.”

IFC Women on Boards and Business Leadership program has been an active champion for corporate women leaders in Sri Lanka, creating market awareness on the business case for gender equality, capacitating partners to support professional women’s career development, and providing market level technical expertise, including facilitating the launch of the Sri Lanka chapter of the global group, Women Corporate Directors.

This year’s International Women’s Day theme of Investing in Women, Accelerating Progress is a clear call to action. Stock exchanges can help improve transparency and disclosure of gender-related data, promote access to finance, and encourage women to invest in public markets. Exchanges can also help develop new products, such as sustainability-linked bonds with gender criteria, and adopt gender equality listing criteria.

“Women’s contributions will be instrumental in reviving our economy. Women being the dominant earners of foreign exchange in our country, contributing significantly to sectors such as apparel, tea, and remittances, their equal representation in corporate leadership is long overdue,” said Ayodhya Iddawela Perera, Managing Director of Sampath Bank. “As we navigate the challenges and opportunities ahead, let us remember that when women succeed, we all succeed.”

Reiterating the urgent need to increase women’s corporate leadership, a panel discussion on the business case for gender diversity on boards was also organized as part of the event. Panelists include Chinthaka Mendis, Director General, Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka; Dilshan Wirasekara, Chairman of Colombo Stock Exchange; Aroshi Nanayakkara, Chairperson of Sri Lanka Institute of Directors; and Thamali Rodrigo, Co-Chairperson of Women’s Chapter of Directors, Sri Lankan Chapter, moderated by Aarthy Arunasalam, Country Lead Gender and Economic Inclusion Department at IFC.

The Ring the Bell for Gender Equality Initiative – a global partnership that includes IFC, United Nations Global Compact, UN SSE, UN Women, and The World Federation of Exchanges – advocates for the full and equal participation of all people to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and create a world free of poverty on a livable planet.