Winner of Australian/Indonesia Trade and Investment Scholarship

The Indonesia Business Coalition for Women Empowerment (IBCWE) and Chief Executive Women (CEW) is pleased to announce Velisia Gunawan as the inaugural recipient of the Australia/Indonesia International Trade and Investment Scholarship. She will study a course INSEAD Leading Across Borders & Cultures and join the CEW connect alumni community.

Velisia had 18 years of experience in finance and operation management and held several leadership roles within a global multinational organization. She works for Orica, an Australian-based multinational corporation that is one of the world’s largest providers of commercial explosives and blasting systems for mining. She is the Finance Director for the Asia region in Orica, leading a diverse multicultural team of 22 directly and 50 indirectly.

Velisia said she thought these experiences would help grow her network to connect with the right community to find more opportunities to promote trade between Australia and Indonesia, “I’m very keen to see more Indonesian citizens, especially female talent contribute more to promoting the trade relationship between Australia and Indonesia.”

As the 1st Indonesian and Asian woman that sits at a Senior Regional Management level, it gives Velisia a good platform to make a positive impact on Asia female colleagues in Asia, especially in Indonesia, I am deeply passionate about developing others’ talents and abilities, which aligns with my vision to be an impactful leader who will inspire others and motivate them to reach their full potential and create more leaders.”

Currently, she has 5 female mentees in Orica, across Asia, and across functions to support them to reach their full potential. She is also the contributor speaker and mentor for International Women in Resources Mentoring Program (IWRMP) and Women in Mining and Energy (WIME) Indonesia. Both IWRMP and WIME place a strong emphasis on diversity and inclusion, aiming to reduce cross-cultural barriers by creating partnerships between talented, driven mentees and senior industry leaders committed to the promotion of women in mining.

The Scholarship is funded by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade through the Katalis Women in Leadership Trade and Investment Project, delivered in partnership with CEW, Investing in Women, and IBCWE. An equivalent scholarship is also being offered in Australia.