IVANKA Trump is making a significant solo outing by headlining a business conference in India, but her trip is highlighting questions about whether her message of empowering poor women matches her actions.
Trump landed in the southern city of Hyderabad yesterday to make the opening address at the Global Entrepreneurship Summit.
“Thank you for the warm welcome,” Trump tweeted. “I’m excited to be in Hyderabad, India for #GES2017.”
The city cleared away beggars and filled potholes ahead of the visit by Trump, who is senior presidential adviser to her father, President Donald Trump.
Indian prime minister Narendra Modi joined her at the opening and hosted her for dinner at the luxurious Falaknuma Palace Hotel.
“Women entrepreneurs help drive innovation and job creation, as well as address the world’s greatest and most critical challenges,” Modi tweeted.
Many in India are excited about Trump appearing at the conference, co-hosted by the US and India, and have marvelled at the improvements made around Hyderabad, where more than 1,200 people are expected to attend the three-day conference.
But not everyone is thrilled.
“It’s now being called Ivanka Trump’s summit. It totally overshadows all our work,” said Sangeeta Agarawal, the chief executive of US start-up Helpsy Health. “We feel that it’s become more about her.”
The conference’s focus on female entrepreneurs raises questions about some of the commercial decisions made by Trump and her namesake brand.
Critics have accused her of failing to use her leadership role to call out labour and human rights abuses, particularly in China, where the bulk of her US merchandise ships from, and they point out that she has failed to take a public stand on alleged abuses in her brand’s own supply chain.
Trump stepped back from day-to-day management of her brand before taking on an official role as White House adviser, but still retains an ownership interest.
Abigail Klem, president of the Ivanka Trump brand, has called supply chain integrity “a top priority”, but the brand has not joined the growing number of companies that publicly identify their manufacturers. The brand has said supply chains are the responsibility of its licensees.
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