No society can develop in a sustainable way without transforming and amplifying the distribution of opportunities, resources and options for men and women so that these have equal power to shape their own lives and to contribute to their families, communities and country. The acceleration of progress in gender equality and investment in empowerment generate big economic gains, said experts of the Center “Partnership for Development” (CPD), who presented the Gender Equality Index 2023, which has been annually produced for over ten years.
In a news conference hosted by IPN, Alina Andronache, CPD political analyst, said the international practice shows that when the state makes significant efforts to accelerate gender equality and invests in the empowerment of people, especially vulnerable categories, big gains and progress are witnessed. The Republic of Moldova should follow this example.
Alina Andronache noted that even if the state made progress in ensuing gender equality in the sociopolitical and political spheres the previous years, slight regression is witnessed in 2023. To change the situation concerning gender equality, considerable efforts should be further made to also ensure the implementation of the adopted legal provisions.
The CPD expert noted that despite the social and economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, the war on the country’s border and the energy crisis, Moldova managed to make particular progress, especially in the electoral and political sectors, in the fields of reconciliation of work and family life, reduction of pay gap, prevention and combating of gender-based violence, strengthening of institutions in the field of gender equality, etc.
Nevertheless, in order to achieve the objectives undertaken at national and international levels as regards the ensuring of gender equality until 2030, according to Alina Andronache, resolute commitments and actions are necessary, as regards the promotion of laws, policies, budgets and institutions that encourage gender equality and also the allocation of adequate investments in the informing and education of society so as to diminish stereotypes and prejudice concerning gender roles. The slowing down of some of the indicators and stagnation of others suggest that the additional progress require substantial institutional and cultural changes.
Alexandra Yermolenko, CPD program coordinator, said the labor market is one of the two areas in which progress has been made compared with last year. However, the CPD recommends continuing the efforts to ensure the reconciliation of work and family life, adjusting the national legal framework by including provisions to eliminate all forms of sexual harassment at the workplace, extending and improving the services to increase the employment rate among persons from vulnerable groups.
According to CPD executive director Natalia Covrig, the greatest progress was made in the field of perceptions and stereotypes concerning the roles of women and men in society. Since 2009 until 2021, the perceptions have improved, but a rupture occurred in 2022 and the number of those who believe that the women should not be present in politics and that they are not sufficiently capable for holding executive posts increased suddenly. In this regard, it is recommended adjusting the legal framework on the prevention and combating of sexist advertisements.
According to the CPD experts, a mechanism for monitoring the implementation of the Code of Audiovisual Media Services in Moldova, especially as regards political pluralism, inflammatory speech, xenophobia and racism, hate speech and defamation, should be created.
Note: IPN News Agency gives the right of reply to persons who consider they were touched by the news items produced based on statements of the organizers of the given news conference, including by facilitating the organization of another news conference in similar conditions.
