ID :
117006
Fri, 04/16/2010 - 11:14
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/117006
The shortlink copeid
REMOVE BARRIERS TO MALAYSIAN WOMEN'S EMPLOYMENT - UNDP
KUALA LUMPUR, April 16 (Bernama) -- Malaysian policy makers must design and implement strategies to remove barriers to women's employment thus enabling them to make meaningful contribution to the country's development, said a United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) representative Thursday.
UNDP resident representative for Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei, Kamal
Malhotra said the move was crucial if the country aimed to become a high-value
added economy by moving up the economic ladder.
However, he commended Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak's recent
positive statement on the integral role of women in the country's economic
transformation through the New Economic Model.
"Lack of women's participation in the workforce costs the Asia Pacific
region billions of dollars every year, especially in countries such as Malaysia,
India and Indonesia where conservative estimates show that GDP (Gross Domestic
Product) would increase by up to 70 percent, which is closer to the rate of many
developed country," he said in a statement issued here.
Malhotra said this was one of the key findings in the report launched in
Malaysia Thursday entitled "Power, Voice and Rights: A Turning Point for Gender
Equality in Asia and the Pacific", which was sponsored by UNDP.
He also highlighted the report's finding that the increase of women in the
workforce in developed countries over the last 10 years was estimated to have
contributed more to global growth, than all of China's astonishing and
unprecedented economic growth which demonstrated the good economy as a result
of gender equality in workforce.
Meanwhile, activist Marina Tun Dr Mahathir who delivered the
keynote address at the launch said, short-term measures with fast results were
necessary if Malaysia wanted to achieve the goal of having more women in
decision-making positions.
"Our ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination
Against Women (CEDAW) calls for us to increase women's participation to 30
percent of such positions.
"This would mean affirmative action, where 30 percent of all elected
positions in political parties and in state and Federal elections have to be
reserved for women," she added.
According to the report, in Malaysia, women's participation in the labour
force has remained stagnant at just under 50 percent compared with the
participation rate of men at 85.3 percent in 1995 before slipping to 79 percent
in 2008.
The report found that the gender gap between men and women by occupation in
the country was also of concern, with wage differentials being as high as
RM1,774 (US$553) per month for senior officials and managers doing the same job.
Despite laws guaranteeing equal pay for equal work, in the Asia-Pacific,
women still earn considerably less than men, with the pay gap ranging from
between 54 percent to 90 percent, the report revealed.
The report's main recommendations and solutions included removing barriers
to women's ownership of assets such as land, expanding paid employment, making
migration safe and investing in high-quality education and health.
-- BERNAMA
UNDP resident representative for Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei, Kamal
Malhotra said the move was crucial if the country aimed to become a high-value
added economy by moving up the economic ladder.
However, he commended Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak's recent
positive statement on the integral role of women in the country's economic
transformation through the New Economic Model.
"Lack of women's participation in the workforce costs the Asia Pacific
region billions of dollars every year, especially in countries such as Malaysia,
India and Indonesia where conservative estimates show that GDP (Gross Domestic
Product) would increase by up to 70 percent, which is closer to the rate of many
developed country," he said in a statement issued here.
Malhotra said this was one of the key findings in the report launched in
Malaysia Thursday entitled "Power, Voice and Rights: A Turning Point for Gender
Equality in Asia and the Pacific", which was sponsored by UNDP.
He also highlighted the report's finding that the increase of women in the
workforce in developed countries over the last 10 years was estimated to have
contributed more to global growth, than all of China's astonishing and
unprecedented economic growth which demonstrated the good economy as a result
of gender equality in workforce.
Meanwhile, activist Marina Tun Dr Mahathir who delivered the
keynote address at the launch said, short-term measures with fast results were
necessary if Malaysia wanted to achieve the goal of having more women in
decision-making positions.
"Our ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination
Against Women (CEDAW) calls for us to increase women's participation to 30
percent of such positions.
"This would mean affirmative action, where 30 percent of all elected
positions in political parties and in state and Federal elections have to be
reserved for women," she added.
According to the report, in Malaysia, women's participation in the labour
force has remained stagnant at just under 50 percent compared with the
participation rate of men at 85.3 percent in 1995 before slipping to 79 percent
in 2008.
The report found that the gender gap between men and women by occupation in
the country was also of concern, with wage differentials being as high as
RM1,774 (US$553) per month for senior officials and managers doing the same job.
Despite laws guaranteeing equal pay for equal work, in the Asia-Pacific,
women still earn considerably less than men, with the pay gap ranging from
between 54 percent to 90 percent, the report revealed.
The report's main recommendations and solutions included removing barriers
to women's ownership of assets such as land, expanding paid employment, making
migration safe and investing in high-quality education and health.
-- BERNAMA
