LocationsWomen Shaping Industry: From a Three-Year Journey to a New Model for the Future
September 18, 2026
The “Women Shaping Industry: Designing an Equal and Sustainable Future” International Networking Event, held in Istanbul on 16–17 September, brought together more than 40 panellists, from senior representatives of international organisations and industry leaders to academics and experts in transformation and equality, around a shared agenda: Equality in the green and digital transformation.
Istanbul, 18 September 2026 - The Developing Women Empowerment Models in Manufacturing Industry Project placed women at the heart of transformation at a time when digitalisation and the green transition are reshaping the future of industry. The results of the three-year initiative were shared at events held in Istanbul.
Funded by the European Union, the project was implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Turkish Confederation of Employer Associations (TİSK), in cooperation with the Ministry of Industry and Technology of the Republic of Türkiye, across nine provinces: Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Manisa, Kocaeli, Tekirdağ, Bursa, Adana and Gaziantep. The project strengthened women’s access to the skills required by the transforming industrial sector and to new employment opportunities while contributing to the development of an approach that integrates equality into companies’ digital and green transformation processes.
The future of industry discussed in Istanbul
The “Women Shaping Industry: Designing an Equal and Sustainable Future” International Networking Event, held in Istanbul on 16–17 September, brought together approximately 200 participants from Türkiye and other countries. Representatives from the public and private sectors, international organisations, financial institutions, academia and civil society joined women “Change Agents” and “Operators” involved in the project, mentors and participating companies in sharing their experiences.
Over the two-day event, discussions focused on the Equality in Twin Transformation (ETT) Model, a future-ready workforce, inclusive workplaces, private-sector leadership, policy, governance and finance. Participants explored how the experience gained in Türkiye could be transferred to different countries and sectors, while the people-centred and inclusive dimension of green industrialisation was also brought to the fore ahead of COP31.
TİSK Secretary General Akansel Koç is delivering his speech.
In his opening remarks, TİSK Secretary General Akansel Koç emphasized that women’s empowerment and the transformation of companies are not separate agendas. “When we launched our project, our first priority was to understand the realities on the ground. To this end, we conducted a needs assessment covering 2,000 companies, more than 800 young STEM talents and 200 institutions across nine pilot provinces. We then implemented and tested solutions on the ground. Drawing on the expertise of our MEXT Technology Center, we assessed the digital and green maturity of 100 companies and developed tailored transformation roadmaps for them. Through our project, we equipped more than 400 women with digital and green skills and supported the employment of more than 300 women. At the same time, we worked on workplace practices to create more inclusive workplaces and support women’s career development. The results from the field also validated the holistic approach we adopted at the outset of our project. Our research found that companies employing women were also more likely to implement digital and green transformation practices. This finding is particularly meaningful to us,” Koç said.
Nick René Hartmann, UNDP Deputy Assistant Administrator and Deputy Regional Bureau Director, Europe and Central Asia is delivering his speech.
“As digitalization, artificial intelligence and the low-carbon transition are reshaping how companies compete and produce in Türkiye and across Europe and Central Asia, women must be not only beneficiaries of industrial change, but its designers and leaders,” said Nick René Hartmann, UNDP Deputy Assistant Administrator and Deputy Regional Bureau Director, Europe and Central Asia. “The Equality in Twin Transformation Model embeds equality in how industrial transformation is planned, financed, implemented, and sustained. Therefore, Türkiye offers a tested framework that can be adapted to different industrial and labour-market contexts, and UNDP can support this exchange by connecting national experience with regional knowledge and partnerships. This discussion is also timely as Türkiye prepares to host COP31 in Antalya. Our experience sends a clear message: green industrialization will be sustainable only if it is inclusive. Equal access to emerging occupations and decision-making is an essential part of a just transition. Together we can ensure women have a decisive voice in their career choices. Together, let us ensure that the industries of the future are greener, more digital and more equal.”
Delegation of the European Union to Türkiye shared the following statement: “EU–Türkiye trade in goods reached a record €217.6 billion in 2025, and the European Union remains by far Türkiye’s largest goods trading partner. The transformation of Turkish industry matters directly to Europe’s competitiveness, resilience and climate goals. This project gives practical expression to that partnership: companies assessing their digital and green readiness; women gaining skills as change agents and operators; and a practical model for integrating equality into the twin transition. The next step is to carry that experience further: to more companies, sectors, provinces and women. The lesson is straightforward: competitiveness, decarbonisation and equality are not separate agendas. They are ONE industrial agenda. The European Union will continue to work with Türkiye to make that agenda real through investment, skills, innovation and equal opportunity. Together, we can make the twin transition not only greener and more digital, but more competitive because it is more inclusive.”
Hande Merçan Aygen, Deputy Director General for EU and Foreign Affairs at the Ministry of Industry and Technology of the Republic of Türkiye, is delivering her speech.
Hande Merçan Aygen, Deputy Director General for EU and Foreign Affairs at the Ministry of Industry and Technology of the Republic of Türkiye, said in her opening remarks:
“We see women’s stronger participation in industry not merely as an employment issue, but as an important element of Türkiye’s productive capacity, technological capabilities and global competitiveness. One of the most important outcomes of the Developing Women Empowerment Models in Manufacturing Industry Project is the Equality in Twin Transformation Model, which emerged from the work carried out under the project. The model offers a holistic approach that addresses women’s empowerment in industry together with digital transformation, green transformation, skills development and employment policies.
In the coming period, our goal is to extend the experience gained through the project to more businesses, more women and a broader industrial ecosystem. Together, we must build a production ecosystem where women are not the exception but strong and integral actors; where they benefit equally from the opportunities created by the digital and green transformations; and where they have a greater voice in the technologies of the future. We believe that an industry where women are empowered means a stronger Türkiye. I hope that the Equality in Twin Transformation Model we are presenting today will contribute to Türkiye’s industry and technology policies and reach more businesses and more women in the period ahead.”
Results of three years of transformation
Under the project, 488 women completed training, 351 women were placed in employment and 515 mentoring sessions were delivered. In addition, 100 digital maturity assessments and 25 green maturity assessments were conducted to identify companies’ transformation needs, and roadmaps have been prepared for these companies.
“Change Agent” and “Operator” women applied their newly acquired skills across production, technology and transformation processes, while mentors supported women’s professional development. Participating companies, meanwhile, had the opportunity to approach digitalisation and sustainability together with human resources, workplace conditions and inclusion, and to advance in these fields.
The third dimension of digital and green transformation: equality
Developed on the basis of three years of field experience and stakeholder consultations, the Equality in Twin Transformation (ETT) Model adds a third dimension to the digital and green transformation of industry: equality.
The Model brings together actions for a more equal industrial transformation, ranging from women’s access to future skills and employment opportunities to inclusive workplaces, company practices, and policy and financing mechanisms. It positions women not merely as beneficiaries of transformation, but as active shapers of change.
From closure to the future: more digital, greener, more equal
The project’s three-year journey concluded with the “Women Shaping Industry: Designing an Equal and Sustainable Future” International Networking Event, in which the project’s key results and the work developed over the course of its implementation were presented.
Spanning training, employment, mentoring and company transformation, the three-year experience also brought forward a shared message for the future of industry: Real transformation is only possible when it is equitable.