KEYNOTE ADDRESS BY THE HON. GIOVANNA DEBONO, MINISTER FOR GOZO, AT THE SECOND ANNUAL FORUM OF EURO-MEDITERRANEAN FOR WOMEN PARLIAMENTARIANS (2-3 March, 2001)

I feel most priveledged and honoured and may I daresay proud to be in a position to have this opportunity to welcome you all, fellow lady parliamentarians from the numerous and various countries that together constitute an area with a kaleidoscope of unique and at the same time diverse characteristics of all kinds that makes us what we are.

All of us gathered here today are representatives of our respective countries' historical golden ages and disasters, guardians of democracy and human rights, mothers of mankind's future, and we have joined forces in a battle towards unity, so singular in nature yet so diverse in its implications. We have fought for this important role throughout the ages and notwithstanding discriminative attitudes, have exercised this role in an unfathomed ocean of ways. We now stand at the dawn of a new era, in a society where stereotyped borders and gender inhibitions finally begin to thaw, revealing one single united path, which we must jointly follow, while carrying the tapestries of our cultural heritage.

The challenges ahead as women parliamentarians are considerable, but so are the achievements of womankind in the past century. We, the women of today, are able to and ought to continue sharing our experiences, our needs and resources and hand in hand embark on a journey aiming to empower more women to take charge of their lives and strive to determine their own bright futures - futures devoid of violence, exploitation, intimidation and subordination. The holding of this Forum, and the translation into possible action of its outcome are significant steps along the united path that we must follow. Now that the Euro-Med Parliamentary Forum has approved a declaration announcing its permanence as a structure, we, women parliamentarians, are ourselves empowered to ensure that the recommendations that will come out of this meeting will be concretised into effective programmes.

At the last Euromed Meeting of Foreign Ministers, held in Marseilles last November, one of the recommendations of the Ministers was the establishment of a regional programme covering various issues, one of which was the promotion of the role of women in economic development. Our meeting today should aim to fulfill this recommendation.

Globalisation could be defined as the processes of change towards global economic integration and a world economy characterised by the liberalisation of trade, globalisation of capital markets, and rapid diffusion of advanced technologies and consumption patterns. While globalisation is creating unparalleled opportunities for the creation of wealth, the world is becoming increasingly polarised between the rich and the poor – both between and within countries.

Globalisation has presented new challenges for the fulfillment of the commitments made and the realisation of the goals of the Beijing Conference. The globalisation process has in some countries, resulted in policy shifts in favour of more open trade and financial flows, privatisation of state-owned enterprises and in many cases lower public spending particularly on social services. This change has transformed patterns of production and accelerated technological advances in information and communication and affected the lives of women, both as workers and consumers. In a large number of countries, particularly in developing countries and least developed countries, these changes have also adversely impacted on the lives of women and have increased inequality. The gender impact of these changes has not been systematically evaluated and action needs to be initiated in this direction.

One of the greatest challenges facing humanity today is how to ensure thaT globalisation is managed in a manner which attaches the highest priority to the elimination of poverty that encompasses women in the majority of cases, and the creation of a more just world in which people are at the centre of development and are empowered to participate in decisions affecting their lives. This requires a multi-dimensional approach that necessitates action at the economic, political, social and cultural levels.

The gender effects of globalisation are complex and uneven, with new risks and new opportunities for different groups. Women, as a particularly vulnerable group, have experienced special difficulties in the face of the forces of globalisation. Access to new information technology is conditioned by income, education, gender and social status, thereby marginalising large numbers of people. Our region is no exception and is very much part of this process. If globalisation is to be pro-women and pro-poor, it must be steered and shaped in accordance with international human rights conventions.

The trends of globalisation, and the prospects for a "New Global Age" hinge on the ability of individuals and groups of human beings to adapt to and be receptive to opportunities for change. A "New Global Age" could provide a strong boost to standards of living the world over, with low-income families, in particular, seeing great reductions in poverty, increases in life expectancy and substantial progress in primary education, gender equality, basic health care and family planning.

Women must be encouraged and helped to manage new risks and to take advantage of new opportunities, including new information and communications technologies. Women-friendly financial institutions based on greater participation and accountability must be created. Micro-credit and other financial instruments for women have proved to be successful strategies for economic empowerment and have widened economic opportunities for women living in poverty in particular rural areas. Policy development also needs to address the particular needs of female-headed households, to reflect the needs of this sector of the population.

It has been recognised that gender equality is one of the factors of specific importance for eradicating poverty particularly in relation to the feminisation of poverty. However, constant effort has to be made in order to integrate a gender perspective into poverty eradication policies and programmes by governments, in cooperation with non-governmental organisations.

We, as women parliamentarians, should work to develop ways in which women's empowerment could be increased within microfinance programs. These could include among other initiatives, the registration of assets used as collateral, or purchased with loans, in women's names or in joint names; the incorporation of clear strategies for women's graduation to larger loans; the provision of various loan options, including loans for non-traditional activities, health, education, housing, etc.; the provision of a range of savings facilities that include higher interest rates. However the effectiveness of these initiatives depends on provisions that stipulate women's continuous control over their projects, thus also ensuring that it is the women themselves who benefit form such initiatives.

The increased scope of access to information and speed of communication in the digital age is an important dimension of globalisation. The new information and communications technologies, especially the Internet, reshape the way that markets operate and production is organized. We have to ensure that our women do not fall behind in the acquisition of these skills and resources.

At the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing and again in New York last June, it was recognised that empowering women with information prepares them to participate more fully in all stages of political and economic life. The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, called on organisations to increase women's participation in and access to new technologies as a tool for strengthening women's economic and democratic processes.

Since then, the advent of new communication technologies has provided women throughout the world with an opportunity to use these technologies to improve their business opportunities by collecting and disseminating information within and beyond national boundaries and participating in regional and international networks. The information revolution has the potential to benefit disadvantaged women by helping them gain increased access to credit, technology, training and market information so that they can take advantage of new economic opportunities and contribute to the sustainable development of their communities and economies. It is our duty to ensure that these opportunities are turned into concrete realities.

The strengthening of women's economic capacity is an integral part of the ongoing strategy of the Barcelona Process to increase women's access to and control over income and resources. To strengthen women's economic capacity is to encourage women become key economic players and shape the direction of the market forces that often ignore gender considerations altogether. Economic empowerment can be achieved by ensuring that work, trade and other economic policies are gender-sensitive, by increasing women's participation in economic decision-making, by strengthening their bargaining power in both the household and marketplace, and by increasing their access to and control over economic and natural resources.

Acquiring these capabilities requires both a process of self-empowerment, in which women claim time and space to re-examine their own lives critically and collectively, and the creation of an enabling environment for women's empowerment by other social actors, including other civil society organisations and international institutions. This entails both the development of women's own agency and the removal of barriers to the exercise of this agency.

Transforming economic policy making and global economic governance can only materialise when these include women's agenda for equitable economic governance. This agenda includes the improvement of the economic literacy of women's advocacy groups; securing more participation by women in economic policy processes; and training policy makers to look at economic issues from a gender perspective in order to engender economic analysis.

The importance of a gender perspective in the development of macroeconomic policy needs to be emphasized. Many women around the world still work in rural areas and the informal economy as subsistence producers, and in the service sector with low levels of income and little job and social security. Therefore it is imperative that effective utilisation is made of financial and other resources in the social sector, particularly in education and health, to help achieve gender. National poverty eradication programmes with short-and long-term goals should be set up with a focus on a gender perspective and the empowerment of women. Demographic changes and changes in society should be taken into account to provide for safeguards against the uncertainties and changes in conditions of work associated with globalisation and to work to ensure that new, flexible and emerging forms of work are adequately covered by social protection.

Many women with comparable skills and experience are confronted with a gender wage gap and lag behind men in income and career mobility in the formal sector. There is a need to seriously address segregation at the place of work and the financial and other inequalities that this carries with it. Equal pay for women and men for equal work, or work of equal value, has not yet been fully realised. Legislation has to be backed by policies and measures to ensure implementation of equal pay regulations. Gender discrimination in hiring and promotion related to pregnancy and family concerns, and sexual harassment in the workplace persist and therefore should be addressed in an equal opportunity policy at the workplace.

In some countries, women's full and equal rights to own land and other property, including through the right to inheritance, is not recognised yet in national legislation. Progression in the professions, in most cases, is still more difficult for women, and the lack of structures and measures that take into account maternity and family responsibilities should be addressed. Family-friendly policies regarding the organisation of work should be strengthened. Legislation should be effectively implemented and should provide for practical support systems. Recognition should be given to the combination of remunerated work and care giving within families, households and communities that leads to a disproportionate burden for women. Also to be recognised is the fact that it is still women who perform the larger part of unremunerated work.

These initiatives can materialise when a gender perspective is mainstreamed into key macroeconomic and social development policies and national development programmes through the incorporation of a gender perspective into the design development, adoption and execution of all budgetary processes, as appropriate, in order to promote equitable, effective and appropriate resource allocation and development programmes that enhance women's empowerment and develop the necessary analytical and methodological tools and mechanisms for monitoring and evaluation.

An important initiative in this field was undertaken in March last year with the organisation of the Euro-Mediterranean Conference on the promotion of women in economic development, in Brussels. During two days, 150 delegates from the 27 countries of the European Union and their Mediterranean partners met to identify priorities concerning the role of women in economic development in the Mediterranean basin and to encourage the active participation of women. The themes discussed within the workshops dealt with legislation and women's rights at work, women's participation in the labour market, the creation of businesses by women and female entrepreneurship and vocational training. Eight pilot projects were chosen from among the various proposals submitted and work is under way for their implementation. The Malta Association of Women in Business, having participated to this Conference and submitted a project entitled ‘Information Centres for Women', was awarded the Euro-Mediterranean Women's Solidarity Award by European Economic and Social Committee.

Official recognition serves as insofar as it is a symbol of our determination, inspired towards the well being of future generations that will motivate others like us to continue along the path we have set. The implementation of change is an ongoing process that requires much monitoring, restructuring, sacrifice and most of all a united vision. I thank you for your dedication. Let us here today continue to turn our dreams into action.

Outline for Keynote Address

Bibliography

Currents 3 (1999) – Globalisation and Human Development. Commonwealth

Women and Economic Equality: Commonwealth Secretariat

Progress for Women is Progress for All: Strengthening Women's Empowerment and Rights in Copenhagen +5 Presentation by: Noeleen Heyzer UNIFEM

Further actions and initiatives to implement the Beijing declaration and the Platform for Action (2000) Beijing + 5 – Concluding document.

Communication from the commission to the Council and the European Parliament to prepare the fourth meeting of Euro-Mediterranean Foreign Ministers "Reinvigorating the Barcelona Process" (2000) Brussels.

Strengthening Women's Economic Capacity: Eradicating Feminised Poverty. (2000) UNIFEM

Progress of the World's Women 2000: UNIFEM Biennial Report. United Nations Development Fund for Women.