Mr. Speaker, as chair of the Prime Minister's task force on women entrepreneurs, I am delighted to announce that Mayor Mel Lastman has proclaimed May 16 as Women Entrepreneurs Day in Toronto.
In celebration of the day, the Women Entrepreneurs of Canada has proudly joined forces with the National Association of Women Business Owners from the United States to co-host an international conference in Toronto. In 2001 members of the international organization, Les Femmes Chefs d'Entreprises Mondiales, first began to lobby the United Nations General Assembly to officially declare a world day for women entrepreneurs for the third Friday of May.
In Canada women are creating businesses at twice the rate of men, and last year we contributed over $18 billion to the Canadian economy, and our task force will be making recommendations on how to enhance this contribution.
We believe supporting women entrepreneurs is good economic policy and sound economic development. Please join me in celebrating Women Entrepreneurs Day.