MANILA -- The just-concluded Philippine-led regional forum on gender mainstreaming has provided a positive outlook on gender perspective in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) said Wednesday.
On the last day of the Senior Officials Conference on Gender Mainstreaming in the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), PCW Chairman Rhodora Bucoy said the cluster affirmed that gender is no longer an option but an imperative within the bloc.
"Listening to the inputs of the different sectoral bodies and listening to their confirmation of commitments to really push for GAD (gender and development) mainstreaming, I think this has been a very good indication that we could really move forward," she told the Philippine News Agency.
Several sectoral bodies recognized that the AEC is delayed in integrating gender perspectives into its policies, especially in sectors that are traditionally gender-neutral.
In the AEC's trade and investment cluster alone, the ASEAN Consultative Committee on Standards and Quality (ACCSQ) and the ASEAN Trade Facilitation-Joint Consultative Committee (ATF-JCC) admitted the limited discussion on gender issues and concerns in its respective sectoral bodies.
Among others, limited resources on gender analysis remain a challenge.
More than a dozen sectoral bodies on tourism, energy, digital economy, and agriculture shared similar gaps as reported in their parallel breakout session.
Bucoy acknowledged that "it would take some time for the AEC to relay a push for higher level of gender mainstreaming”, but remained optimistic "there is much hope" in the cluster.
The PCW chief said the delegates crafted a proposed Gender Mainstreaming Action Plans (GMAPs) that seeks a cross-sectoral and cross-pillar collaboration on issues related to gender considerations in the ASEAN.
"It was proposed by different members of the AEC. Their proposals now have to be brought up to the ASEAN Committee on Women, then, the Secretariat who will provide support to this effort,” she said.
Once approved, the GMAPs would "concretize what were declared in the past" on gender, Bucoy added. "This is more concrete because it focuses on the three pillars, particularly the AEC."
PCW Executive Director Emmeline Verzosa described the AEC as a “very important pillar” in the bloc.
"It talks about economy. It is the lifeline of all ASEAN citizens. The mantra is that there should be no one left behind so if they take it on and ensure that women are able to participate in all their activities, development will truly be for all," she told the PNA.
Meanwhile, Sita Sumrit, head of ASEAN Secretariat Poverty Eradication and Gender Division, said integrating gender perspectives in all pillars of the ASEAN, specifically to AEC, is vital towards the development of the region.
"Many of you think that the economy is gender neutral, but if you look at it, it's the social structure. There's no such thing as energy, tourism, or trade without people. Because we are people, we have our own gender and sex," she said.
"The economy can only be run by economic actors, and economic actors have different gender, men and women. This is why, we need to address the needs from different economic actors," she added. (PNA)
