A woman’s struggle for empowerment should not end with her success.
While a significant number of women have risen up the ranks, defied double standards and stereotypes, and have taken on chief roles previously filled by men, there are women elsewhere in the world whose rights are stifled, languishing in poverty and inequality. The so-called inequality gender gap may have narrowed, but the reality is, the gap still exists.
Thus, women’s fight for gender equality continues to this very day in every corner of the world.
This is a fact that even former Foreign Secretary Delia Domingo Albert has acknowledged by saying that “nowhere in the world can women claim to have the same rights and opportunities as men.”
Wage inequality
“Majority of the 1.3 billion absolutely poor people in the world are still women. In some countries, many receive 30 to 40 percent less pay than men for the same work. And as we are aware, women continue to be victims of violence all over the world,” Albert said during the second Future Talks “Great Women” session hosted last week by PLDT SME Nation, PLDT-Smart Foundation and Business and Professional Women (BPW) Makati.
Albert noted the speech of Patricia Arquette when she received her Oscar award for best supporting actress.
Arquette had dedicated her award to “every woman who gave birth, to every taxpayer, to those who fought for everybody else’s … right to wage equality.”
This “spontaneous outburst” received a vigorous applause and a thumbs up from fellow actresses who, according to Albert, only proved that even in the glamorous world of Hollywood, wage inequality exists.
But in the Philippines, gender equality is reported to be more apparent, if the global surveys are to be cited.
Albert pointed out that in the World Economic Forum’s Gender Equality Index, the Philippines consistently ranked among the top 10 economies since 2006. The country’s ranking was based on a set of criteria such as women’s state of health, state of education, and participation in both politics and economy.
True enough, the local business environment boasts of a significant number of female CEOs and top ranking executives who have successfully steered, and contributed to the growth of, their respective companies and businesses.
Critical mass
Albert further noted that the Philippines is also known to be a global leader on women’s rights, having signed up to almost all important legal instruments on gender equality. As early as the 1960s and 1970s, the women from the Department of Foreign Affairs had crafted the first draft of the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women.
“However, … there are a number of Filipino women who continue to leave their families, becoming victims of violence and trafficking,” Albert said.
And there is a corresponding image that came out of this, Albert said, describing what she saw and experienced during her stint as a diplomat how Filipino women had been typecast as nannies.
“There is more than just nannies in the Philippines. There are women like you who lead societies and communities and entrepreneurial endeavors,” she told the forum participants.
“Thus, women must create critical mass to make a difference … I hope we can offer an alternative to our women, especially the overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) for which we are being branded, if you want to call it that way, and engage them in entrepreneurial activities in the country. That’s the message … You have to be conscious of the fact that there are Filipino women who want to come home if there are jobs … Perhaps you can create those jobs.”
One of the initiatives meant to further empower women was the GREAT (Gender Responsive Economic Actions for the Transformation of Women) ICT platform, which was launched during the forum.
Under the GREAT Women ICT, women entrepreneurs will be connected to various sectors, such as SMEs and government agencies, enabling society toward economic empowerment.
‘A special place in hell’
“In our effort to enable SMEs through ICT, PLDT SME Nation is proud to take part in this meaningful program which underscores women’s role in shaping and driving enterprises in the Philippines,” said PLDT first vice president and head of SME Business Kat Luna-Abelarde. “We highly support this initiative which can impact and empower other women to become more economically competitive and successful.”
GREAT Women is an integrated platform that will address gender issues in micro and social enterprise development.
The goal is to deliver a truly inclusive economic development and help women ascend the supply and value chain by empowering them.
The long-term direction is to expand industry and professional groupings via the online platform, allowing women to nurture and grow their own value or supply chain for their businesses or professions.
This initiative falls under the GREAT Women Program, which started in the Philippines in 2006 as a convergence of national and local government agencies, women’s groups, and private sector organizations aimed at improving local business policy, projects and services for women in business.
Ending her rally for women to help other women in their fight for gender equality, Albert quoted former US Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright: “There is a special place in hell for women who accept recognition but do not share credit. But a bigger message to all of you, again from Albright, is that there is also a very special place in hell for women who do not help other women.”