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It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to today's broad consultation, with the sole aim of accelerating the promotion of gender equality in our country. The promotion of equality between women and men is one of the cross-cutting priorities of the President's and his own personal governance programme.
We are well aware that the full guarantee of women's human rights is an important issue and a prerequisite for the social and economic development of all states. Gender equality means that the needs and human rights of both women and men should be considered equal, as well as their obligations. Women and men have biological differences, which should be taken into account when designing legislation, policies, actions and measures, while men and women should participate equally in the decision-making process, free from stereotypes and prejudices based on their gender.
Through a holistic approach, the aim is to promote the active participation of women in society by creating a gender-sensitive political, economic and social context, a gender-friendly and welcoming environment for women and men. To achieve this goal and to create the right conditions in all sectors, targeted actions and policies are formulated and the tool of gender mainstreaming in government policies and actions is used.
At the same time, equal sharing of responsibilities regarding the care economy, the active participation of women in the labour market and in decision-making positions and the strengthening and creation of new structures to facilitate parenting are promoted. To this end, actions are designed and implemented to consolidate a culture of gender equality and to break down anachronistic stereotypes and prejudices.
At the same time, gender equality is being consolidated with different tools and at different speeds. It is recognised that the horizontal integration of the gender dimension in a state's policies helps to establish equality between men and women, as gender is taken into account in the design and formulation of legislation, policies, actions and measures. Any policies, actions and measures cannot be achievable without taking the views of civil society, all of you, experts and partners, partners.
Our country is ranked 22nd among the Member States of the European Union in terms of gender equality. Per the world, among 146 countries, we are ranked one hundred and sixth. It is no coincidence that the UN Secretary General talks about regression in terms of gender equality and according to the European Institute for Gender Equality (2020), at the rate we are going, it will take more than 60 years for equality in the European Union, while globally it will take 300 years. Let us not deceive ourselves, however, as the issue of gender equality is affected by external factors such as global crises and population movement. Global economic crises and challenges, such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the coronavirus pandemic, have further highlighted gender inequalities:
During the pandemic period, the social roles we assign to women and men have become even more pronounced, with the majority of women observed combining family/personal life and work life from home, to the detriment of their personal time. At the same time, during the same period, there was a significant increase in the number of female victims of domestic violence. The Russian invasion of Ukraine highlighted the different needs of refugee women and children, the increase in sexual violence and trafficking of women and children for sexual exploitation. At the same time, the climate and energy crisis affects men and women differently and the equal participation of both genders in decision-making centres to address them is imperative. However, I want to emphasise that in the field of equality there is no 'them and us, us and them'. Gender equality - or rather, gender inequality - is a global issue and we should all be in this fight together, emphasising that promoting equality is not the problem but the solution, and the role of multilateralism in this direction is crucial. For this reason, the integration of the gender dimension in foreign policy is required.
In this context, establishing a culture of gender equality is a key priority and an urgent objective of our Office, which is being upgraded, strengthened and assuming a role, among other things, in the preparation and coordination of the new Strategy for Gender Equality 20024 - 2026, always in cooperation with all ministries and deputy ministries. Our task is complex and certainly not easy. Changing attitudes requires perseverance and strategic effort, which we are all making together.
At this point, I would like to refer to specific relevant institutional reforms. On 28 March 2023, the President of the Republic, at an event on the occasion of Women's Day, referred to the institutionalization of the Office and its strengthening.
We are working on a relevant bill to institutionalize the Office, while recognizing the long-standing contribution of the National Women's Rights Mechanism and its members, whom I personally thank for their cooperation and with whom we are in consultation to safeguard it, the Office has also been strengthened with human resources.
By its decision, the Council of Ministers authorized the Office of the Gender Equality Commissioner, in cooperation with all ministries and deputy ministries, to prepare, monitor and evaluate the implementation of the new Gender Equality Strategy 2024-2026. The aim of the strategy is to integrate the gender dimension into the policies and actions of all ministries and sub-ministries. In order to ensure better coordination, gender equality officers have been appointed in each ministry and sub-ministry. These are professionals who share the same vision and want to be part of this effort, so that together we can accelerate the promotion of equality between women and men. We are working closely with them and are in coordination to prepare relevant gender actions and policies in ministries and sub-ministries. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all our functional partners and collaborators for this close cooperation and for sharing our vision. With the above, friends, we are laying the institutional foundations to proceed with coordinated actions related to the competences of our Office.
Allow me to refer to some specific policies and actions already implemented by the Office in the last seven months alone. A very important development since this is a necessary product, not a luxury product.
- Our efforts, in cooperation with the Minister of Transport, Mr. Vafeadi, the President of the Licensing Authority, Mrs. Americanou, and the guilds SSEK, PEO, DEOC, to solve the problems faced by women bus drivers.
- Our efforts, in cooperation with the Minister of Transport, Mr. Vafeadi, the President of the Licensing Authority, Mrs. Americanou, and the guilds SSEK, PEO, DEOC, to solve the problems faced by women bus drivers. As a result of our consultations, 40 women were activated and showed interest in returning to the profession.
- The new partnerships with the Cyprus Basketball Federation, through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding covering, among other things, the training of coaches on issues of equality in sport.
- The actions started in cooperation with the KEBE to promote gender equality at work and eliminate the pay gap.
- The re-establishment of the gender mainstreaming unit at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with Ms Koula Sofianou as Ambassador for Equality.
I should also mention the appointments of the President of the Republic, which demonstrate the importance he attaches to gender equality.
I should also mention the appointments of the President of the Republic, which demonstrate the importance he attaches to gender equality. The representation of women amounts to 46.1% in the first appointments of the Government, while in the Council of Ministers (Ministers/Deputy Ministers) the percentage reaches, for the first time, 41.17%.
At the same time, after consultation with the President of the Union of Municipalities, 29 municipalities have appointed equality officers, which I note with great satisfaction, since the Office's cooperation with local government is also strengthened. With the support of our Office, they are proceeding with an annual action plan for equality, with a small number of actions, which are nevertheless substantial. It is foreseen, for example, the creation of a breastfeeding room, in which a refrigerator will be available for storing breast milk in town halls; adequate lighting in municipal parking lots and in parks belonging to communities to enhance the sense of security of citizens, especially women, especially during the evening hours; the creation of parking spaces in municipal theatres for families with infants and baby carriages, as well as facilities for infant care (diaper change) in men's sanitary facilities.
In addition to the above, we proceeded to create an online library on issues related to gender equality and the history of the women's movement in Cyprus. I have noticed, for years now, that our history has been shaped through the eyes of men. This is obviously due to the position that women and men have historically held in our society and the fact that it was mainly men who had access to public life. There have been many studies and surveys, we have women's testimonies, we know about the women's movement through narratives, which while documented have been left in 'invisibility'. With the e-library, the aim is to have the material collected on a platform that can be easily accessed by stakeholders. Through this effort we will also support the Minister of Education, Youth and Sports, Mrs. Michaelidou, in her new project for the modernization of history books, so that our children will know about the contribution of the women of Cyprus over time. I have no illusions that in the next few years we will eliminate inequalities, which, I want to stress, legally, have almost entirely disappeared. But we can accelerate the promotion of gender equality and the inculcation of a culture of gender equality through holistic, horizontal actions, which, I repeat, are practical and aim at a substantial improvement in the lives of citizens and our society.
As most of you probably know, I have been an active member and part of civil society for many years. I have worked with most of those who are here today, we have participated in marches together, we have had intense debates with officials of the governments of the day and we have actively contributed to the promotion of equality in our country, in the European Union and internationally. I know the importance of inclusiveness and democratic processes. Recognizing this importance, I know very well what it means to give space and voice to groups in society when decisions affecting them are taken, as, after all, is the Strategy for Gender Equality.
Having this as my basic principle and on the basis of the ministerial decision authorizing our Office to prepare the new strategy in cooperation with the ministries/departments, in the context of both the international and European obligations of the Republic of Cyprus, it is important to take into account the ideas and suggestions of all of you. With our equality officers we have already prepared the framework and guidelines and today we are discussing with you, recording your views and suggestions, with actions and measures that you believe can be implemented in order to formulate the new strategy. Always in the context of fiscal discipline, our aim is to create a workable strategy over a three-year period, which can be revised and which will include a few but targeted and implementable actions. The aim is to have a positive impact on everyone's lives through the empowerment of women. This can only be achieved through the cooperation and synergies of all stakeholders. The strategy will be a document, the result of the cooperation between the state and you, the wider civil society.
Let me also respond to some of your own concerns regarding the content of the strategy, such as the lack of a working group on violence against women, women, peace and security, or working groups for women with specific vulnerabilities. As you already know, there are relevant action plans on violence against women and domestic violence, as well as the coordinating body under the Ministry of Justice and Public Order and the action plan for the implementation of Resolution 1325, which is coordinated by our Office, and there is a separate budget for related actions. To avoid repetition, no relevant actions will be included in the new strategy. Concerning migrant women, women with disabilities, very consciously they have not been included as vulnerable women groups, since we want actions concerning these groups of women to be horizontally integrated across all pillars (transport, employment, social policy, foreign policy, etc.). This is why we include representatives/experts for the above. If, of course, during our discussions in the working groups you believe that a separate pillar should be created, we are ready and willing to discuss, record and decide on it.
I will not tire of repeating that accelerating the promotion of gender equality is imperative. Our goal is to mainstream gender in all ministries and deputy ministries in practice. To make the culture of gender equality a normality. Turning words into deeds, a new effort is being made, applying a participatory and inclusive approach to the preparation of the new National Strategy for Gender Equality. The Strategy is the key policy document on equality between women and men, which is the guideline for all stakeholders and for all state policies. The Strategy is the result of an open dialogue between the State, on the one hand, and the social partners, wider civil society, local government and the business community, on the other. In this context, we look forward to your input and suggestions and through the dialogue to create the new gender equality strategy.
We have the opportunity, friends, but also the responsibility, to accelerate efforts to promote gender equality.
(B]PIO[/B]
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