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OPENING SPEECH BY DR. LOUIS DEGUARA, MINISTER OF HEALTH, AT THE 'GENDER MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS IN THE HEALTH SECTOR' SEMINAR - UNIVERSITY RESIDENCE, LIJA – 3 OCTOBER 2001
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03/10/2001
03/10/2001
Honourable Colleagues, Ladies & Gentlemen,
Good Morning,
| It is my pleasure to welcome you to this Seminar on | Gender Management Systems in the health sector. This Seminar is the first of its kind to be held in Malta and in itself is the affirmation of our Ministry’s commitment to the government’s national gender mainstreaming policy. |
| Gender mainstreaming is a relatively new concept in | the area of women and development. The concept first appeared after the United Nations Third World Conference on Women in Nairobi, 1985. The focus has slowly shifted from an emphasis on women’s rights and discrimination against women, to a wider view of gender, that is, a view whereby it was increasingly being recognised that men and women are different and therefore have different needs and characteristics. This view further implied that all policies, programmes, and projects, must be sensitive to these differences and address them constructively. This was seen to be the way forward to achieve the objectives of gender equality and social justice. |
| Gender mainstreaming is therefore about both women | and men; involves every level of policy-making; involves all actors involved in policy-making; is applicable in every sector and service; needs to be directed at both service providers and service recipients; and will benefit society in general. |
| The Government of Malta has been committed to the | development of gender mainstreaming since 1989 when it first declared its gender equality policy and established a women’s national machinery. In 1991 focal points were established in all Government departments and organisations, including the health sector. In that same year, the Government also became signatory to the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), and in 1995 it endorsed the Platform for Action of the UN Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing. This Conference had identified gender mainstreaming as the main strategy for the achievement of gender equality. The Gender Mainstreaming Policy was again reiterated by Cabinet in March 1999 and subsequently by the Head of the Public Service in June 2000. |
| All Ministries and Departments are therefore strongly | urged to integrate women’s concerns in the drafting and implementation of all policies. It is the government’s intention that the public service acts as a role model, leading the way in the implementation of gender equality policies. It is further my intention that my Ministry and the Division of Health be themselves role models to the other Ministries and Departments. |
| The health sector is a very large sector which | employs a large female workforce. In addition it offers a wide variety of specialised services some of which may be gender-specific, whilst others may have differential gender implications. The health sector further intersects with many other non-medical departments, services and organisations. This setting offers much scope for the implementation of gender mainstreaming which needs to be directed both at the service providers, as well as ingrained in the service delivery. |
| Our commitment to actively integrate gender | mainstreaming was spurred when an intersectoral taskforce participated in a Commonwealth Secretariat Workshop on Gender Management Systems in the health sector earlier this year. This led to the development of a two year Action Plan for implementation of a Gender Management System for the Maltese Health Division. This system, which we are launching today, is the first to be introduced in a Ministry in Malta and will be the tool for effectively mainstreaming gender into all our health policies, programmes, and services. It is hoped that our experience will serve as a model for other Ministries and Departments. |
| Commitment by all key actors in the health field is | the most crucial factor for the success of this Action Plan. It is therefore with pleasure that I invite you all to actively participate in this Seminar. |
Thank you.
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