VZCZCXRO7065
OO RUEHIK
DE RUEHSM #0011/01 0131412
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 131412Z JAN 10
FM AMEMBASSY STOCKHOLM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5040
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 STOCKHOLM 000011 
 
SIPDIS 
 
EUR/PGI FOR JIM KUYKENDALL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KWMN KISL KTIP SW
SUBJECT: SWEDEN: EUR ENGAGEMENT ON WOMEN'S ISSUES 
 
REF: A. 09 STATE 124579 
     ¶B. 09 BRUSSELS 1567 
     ¶C. 09 STOCKHOLM 784 
     ¶D. 09 STOCKHOLM 633 
     ¶E. 09 STOCKHOLM 624 
 
STOCKHOLM 00000011  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. Summary: Embassy Stockholm integrates women's issues in 
our International Visitor Leadership Programs in support of 
women's health, career advancement and leadership 
opportunities.  Post also engages the Swedes on global 
women's issues such as gender-based violence and women's 
empowerment in Africa and the Middle East.  Trafficking 
features into our work, both in consular interviews with 
Swedish au pairs who will work in the United States and in 
consultations with law enforcement officials who monitor sex 
trafficking patterns.  We assess new opportunities for 
engagement with women in the areas of green entrepreneurship, 
trafficking in persons, and in our ongoing engagement with 
women from minority communities.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. The following is Embassy Stockholm's response to ref A 
request for information on engagement on women's issues. 
 
¶3. Women in Sweden enjoy a high standard of living.  Sweden 
ranks fourth in the 2009 World Economic Forum's Global Gender 
Gap Index, receiving high marks along with its Nordic 
neighbors for women's economic participation, educational 
attainment, health and political empowerment.  While post had 
no FY09 grants specifically for women's issues or 
organizations, 15 of 22 nominees for FY09 IVLP programs were 
female and were made in support of critical women's issues 
including Breast Cancer Awareness and Women in Law 
Enforcement.  For FY10, 6 of 21 nominees are women, of which 
one woman will participate in a program for Young Muslim 
Leaders. 
 
¶4. Sweden has one of the largest assistance programs in the 
world and allocated approximately $4.3 billion for 
international development cooperation in 2009.  There are 
notable areas for bilateral engagement on development 
assistance that target women's issues in Africa and the 
Middle East.  In September 2009, Special Envoy Howard Wolpe's 
visit to Stockholm highlighted the common goal of combating 
gender-based violence in the African Great Lakes region (ref 
E).  Empowering women and girls is also a key part of 
Sweden's development efforts in Afghanistan and is often 
cited by the GOS as one of the reasons Sweden is involved in 
the international efforts there.  A visit by USAID Acting 
Administrator Alonzo Fulgham to Stockholm in November 2009 
for the European Development Days conference further 
underscored the Swedes' commitment to development cooperation 
in Afghanistan (ref B). 
 
¶5. Sweden is one of the world's leading per capita providers 
of au pairs to the United States.  Approximately 98% of au 
pairs are women between the ages of 18 and 24.  Pursuant to 
consular regulations following the implementation of the 
William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection 
Reauthorization Act (WWTVPRA) of 2008, the consular section 
provides all au pairs and domestic servants with information 
related to U.S. labor trafficking rules and regulations as 
well as emergency contact information.  In the last fiscal 
quarter (October to December 2009), Stockholm processed 
approximately 250 female au pair applicants and provided them 
with this information as well as posting information on our 
webpage and in our waiting room.  During our busiest summer 
period (May to July), we will process twice as many au pairs 
and will provide them with the same information. 
 
¶6. Sweden is a destination, and, to a lesser extent, a 
transit country for women trafficked from Romania, Russia, 
Nigeria, Albania, Tanzania, Thailand and Estonia for the 
purposes of commercial sexual exploitation.  In October 2009, 
Swedish Justice Minister Beatrice Ask met with G/TIP Amb Luis 
CdeBaca in Washington to review Swedish efforts to combat 
trafficking and to exchange best-practices.  Going forward, 
Post will continue to monitor Swedish law enforcement efforts 
to address both sex and labor trafficking, and post will 
reach out to programs in Sweden that support victims through 
rehabilitation, heathcare, vocational training and legal 
assistance. 
 
¶7. Post assesses a new opportunity for engagement on women's 
entrepreneurship emphasizing clean/green-tech initiatives. 
In Sweden, women start and run businesses to a lesser extent 
than men.  Just 25% of all businesses in Sweden are run by 
women, and only 32% of all start-ups in 2008 were headed by 
women.  As a result, the GOS adopted in July 2009 a 
sixty-point strategy to boost new entrepreneurship by women 
with a goal of increasing the proportion of women starting 
new enterprises from 35% to 40% by 2010.  Post has supported 
 
STOCKHOLM 00000011  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
this effort by sending two participants in recent years for 
IVLP programs on business development for women business 
leaders.  As part of Post's ongoing effort to increase U.S. - 
Swedish partnerships on clean-tech and environmental issues, 
we will work to identify and support female-run initiatives 
that incorporate innovative green technology. 
 
¶8. Post recognizes the need for continued engagement with 
immigrant women from minority communities, who represent 
approximately 7% or 661,500 of Sweden's 9.3 million 
inhabitants and who suffer from steep barriers to the Swedish 
labor market (ref C).  In the coming year, the GOS aims to 
increase access to employment services through special 
programs aimed at immigrant women from Iraq, Somalia and 
Afghanistan.  Through our minority outreach and visitor 
exchange programs, we will continue to target leadership and 
entrepreneurial opportunities for this population (ref D). 
SILVERMAN