Give women equal scope to meet millennium challenges
PM tells high-level Unctad conference session
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina speaks at a high-level event on 'Women in development' on the occasion of Unctad XIII Conference at Qatar International Convention Centre in Doha yesterday. Photo: PID
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday called for giving equal opportunity and space to women to meet the looming challenges of the ensuing millennium as well as to ensure a peaceful world for future generation. "In our fast-changing globalised world spurred by technology and information, the mindset of our women and girls are changing from the ways of the past. So, the sooner we give them equal opportunity and space, the better we will be prepared together to meet the looming challenges of the ensuing millennium," she said. "It would also ensure for our future generations, a more just, equitable, and therefore, a peaceful world," said the prime minister while addressing a high-level session on “Macroeconomic Policy: Does Gender Matter?” at the Unctad XIII Conference held at Qatar International Convention Centre. She, however, said indeed, the world has finally realised that real and sustained development of nations depends on equal partnership of women and men, and equal respect for their roles in family, community, society and the state. Mentioning that macroeconomic policy and gender were closely interlinked, the prime minister said elimination of gender inequalities and ensuring empowerment of women, clearly results in higher economic growth and greater macroeconomic stability. Moreover, Hasina said, poverty has now assumed a feminine face. Today, women and girls comprise 70 percent of the global poor and they lack access to decent work and face occupational hazards and gender wage gaps. "We have been seeking to respond to these inadequacies in our macro-economic policies," she said. The prime minister said women face greater hardship and suffering in adverse situations like economic downturn and during austerity measures as well as disaster and climate change adjustments. "In every critical situation, women are the first to suffer." “In the last few decades, our policies have focused on social development through trade liberalisation and deregulation. But, economic growth did not automatically translate into poverty alleviation and improve the situation of women,” she added. "In 2000, when we adopted the Millennium Declaration, our primary focus was to achieve equality and employment of women through eight internationally-agreed development goals. I am afraid that many of these goals remain unfulfilled," she said. Hasina mentioned that in Bangladesh, the journey of women empowerment began with its independence in 1971, when Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who believed in gender equality, “guaranteed equal rights of women in all spheres of life with Articles 19 and 28 in our constitution”. His tenure as the first prime minister of Bangladesh saw initiation of policies and measures to empower women, she said. As education is the most effective instrument to spur women's empowerment, Hasina said, women's education has been given high priority in the Education Policy of 2010 and "Prime Minister's Education Assistance Foundation" while it is free for girls up to grade twelve. "We are giving stipends to girls too. Our plan is to provide free tuition for girls up to graduation level," she added. To increase the enrolment and to ensure gender parity, she said, her government has increased the number of female educational institutions. "In the primary schools, 60 percent of the teachers are now female." The prime minister said marginalisation of women also results from inadequate access to reproductive health care. "We are trying to rectify this through gender sensitive health programs like the Maternal Health Voucher Scheme and Breast Feeding Program. Healthcare services are being delivered through over 11,000 community clinics in rural areas, each serving 6,000 people, including those vulnerable women.” Hasina said maternal mortality rate has decreased significantly when the UN Millennium Award 2010 is a testament to that success. Bangladesh was awarded South-South Award for use of technology in delivering health service to poor rural women in remote areas. Mentioning that political participation of women is significant in Bangladesh, Hasina said the prime minister, deputy leader of the House, leader of the opposition, five members in the cabinet, one whip, two standing committee chairmen in parliament are all women. "There are 19 female MPs who were directly elected, while reserved seats for women have been increased from 45 to 50," she said. Hasina said apart from politics, women in Bangladesh are gradually becoming visible in all segments of our society -- in business, media, judiciary and government as well as in the non-government sectors. Professor Stephanie Seguino of Department of Economics, University of Vertmont, USA, Vice-Chairman of Qatari Businesswomen Association Qatar Aisha Alfardan and UN High Representative for Alliance of Civilization Jorge Sampio also spoke on the occasion. The prime minister is set to reach home this morning after winding up her four-day official visit to Qatar.
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