GIRL POWER. The Philippines sent a delegation to the 67th session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in New York from March 6 to 17, 2023. Interior and Local Government Undersecretary Margarita Gutierrez said the Marcos administration had been working tirelessly in addressing women's concerns, especially in empowering women in the era of digital transformation. (Photo courtesy of Presidential Communications Office)
MANILA – A government official has put an international spotlight on the several measures that have been set up by the administration of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to protect and promote the welfare of women in the Philippines.
In her speech before the 67th Session of the United Nations (UN) Commission on the Status of Women (CSW67) at the UN headquarters in New York on Thursday, Interior and Local Government Undersecretary Margarita Gutierrez said the Marcos administration had been working tirelessly in addressing women's concerns, especially in empowering women in the era of digital transformation.
“We support and prioritize women-dominated industries to adapt to the digital economy. A digital transformation tool kit determines their readiness and provides specialized training programs such as the Small Enterprise Technology Upgrading Program,” Gutierrez said.
An innovation fund provides grants for enterprises developing innovative solutions, including those led by women, with particular focus on learning and education as a priority area, she noted.
Gutierrez also cited the Marcos administration’s development of the Registry System for Basic Sectors in Agriculture for industry workers to avail of public services, noting that 43 percent of the 6.65 million records in the registry are women as of January 2023.
For the education sector, she said the country's Science Education Institute would pioneer a gender-responsive STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) education, applying a gender perspective in administration of scholarships, advancing specialized training, and intensifying programs to provide equal opportunities for women and men by 2025.
In terms of promoting digital literacy and bringing online learning and government services closer to the public, she said a total of 2,000 Technology for Economic Development Centers had been established nationwide that benefited women, out-of-school youth, and senior citizens.
“Our ICT ( Information and Communications Technology) Department will be receiving another award from the World Summit on Information Society for their project ‘Cybersecurity Education in the Philippines in the Face of New Normal Adversities’, which taught individuals on cyberthreats, digital parenting, cybersecurity for children and protecting digital footprint,” she said.
She also highlighted that the government passed two landmark laws -- Safe Spaces Act and the Anti-Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation of Children and Anti-Child Sexual Abuse or Exploitation Materials Act -- to bolster existing laws on violence against women.
Moreover, she said that the e-lawyering and e-reporting to the Gender Ombudsman were launched by the Philippines’ Commission on Human Rights to process complaints and provide legal assistance as criminals shifted their operations online.
The Philippine government strongly supports the recommendations from the Asia-Pacific region “to ensure meaningful connectivity to close the gender digital divide; and to foster inclusive education in the digital age and promote women and girls’ participation and leadership in STEM education and careers; to implement policies for inclusive digitalization; and to address forms of virtual and non-virtual GBV (gender-based violence) and discrimination”, she said.
Meanwhile, Ambassador Antonio Lagdameo secured the “chairmanship” of the 68th session of the UN Committee on the Status of Women next year.
This, after the Asia Pacific Group endorsed the candidature of the Philippines to chair the 68th session of the CSW which will immediately open after the conclusion of the 67th session on March 17.
The priority theme of CSW68 is accelerating the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls by addressing poverty and strengthening institutions and financing with a gender perspective. (PNA)
