HYDERABAD: White House Advisor Ivanka Trump’s appearance added a touch of celebrity glamour to the GES 2017 while helping draw attention to women entrepreneurship and the evolving startup culture in the country in general and Telangana in particular. Clad in a green and yellow frock, the real estate heiress and former model, who has been seeking to turn her brand of female empowerment into a specific policy agenda back home in America, was picture perfect as she brought the proceedings alive.
Visibly excited, the 36-year-old and mother of three delivered on all counts, striking the right notes. Her much-anticipated speech was music to the ears of not only Prime Minister Narendra Modi, at whose personal invitation she is here, but also the Telangana government — she didn’t forget to mention T-Hub the start-up incubator and a brainchild of IT minister KT Rama Rao.
Visibly excited, Ivanka, who had a bilateral meeting with the Prime Minister before the GES inaugural, was lavish in her praise of India and did not let any of her father Donald Trump’s America First contradictions surface.
Highlighting America’s efforts for international development, she also singled out three women entrepreneurs for special praise. Sharing their achievements, she cited them as inspirational women who overcame hurdles in their chosen areas.Reyhan Camalova from Azerbaijan, is all but 15 and is already a businesswoman; Rajlakshmi Borthakur from Bengaluru, who ventured into specialty healthcare was propelled by circumstances to make a difference.
“These women represent the vision, ambition, and grit of every entrepreneur here today,” said Trump, who cut a striking silhouette in a statement green-colour floral ensemble paired with pointy black stilettos. “You are saving lives, creating jobs, and bringing hope to our communities. You are transforming our societies one business, and one customer at a time,” she added.
Trump, who has been focused on her father’s controversial tax reform in recent weeks, made women’s economic empowerment central to her West Wing portfolio and is championing women rights and education, workplace training and programmes to encourage female entrepreneurship. She has several feathers in her cap: she’s an author (Women Who Work: Rewriting the Rules for Success), ran her own fashion brand, was a business executive at her father’s real estate firm and was a fashion model walking the ramp for the likes of Vivieme and Thierry Mugler. But, back home in America, surely, her one remark on tax reforms that the Trump Administration is going ahead with “laser focus” will be noted.
Removing poverty with 3-d printers
Dara Dotz from San Francisco spent over a decade working with poor people. She then founded Field Ready to provide life-saving supplies through 3-D printing. Today, her company responds to disasters and delivers aid with cutting-edge technology
Gloves that can sense if you are sick
Rajlakshmi Borthakur from Bangalore started her venture when her son began having seizures. She decided to create her own solution to monitor his health and invented a smart glove that detects & manages different diseases and disorders
Teen who brightens lives of the poor
Reyhan Camalova from Azerbaijan is 15 years old. But that hasn’t stopped her from founding a company that harvests energy from rainwater. Reyhan has a powerful motto – “Light up one house at a time. Each home you light up is illuminating the world.”