Young Female Leaders Urge Gov’t to Prioritise Gender Equality, Women’s Economic Empowerment

Members of the first Young Women in Leadership Parliament are calling on the Government to implement a national action plan to prioritise gender equality and women’s economic empowerment.

During the session held on Tuesday (February 21) at Gordon House, the members, representing the 63 constituencies across the island, recommended the development of programmes in the educational sector to strengthen women and girls’ access to information and training in high-demand and emerging fields, including digital innovation and information technology, and the care economy.

This is with a view to improving employability of women, thereby enabling greater economic empowerment and creating more opportunities for their participation in the economy.

Member of Parliament for St Ann, North Eastern, Dannyelle-Jordan Bailey, said that gender equality must be given “serious consideration if we are to achieve the human and economic development mandate of Jamaica”.

“When we think of women’s economic empowerment we must consider that [this] is a prerequisite for sustainable development. Women’s economic empowerment is a right and women’s economic empowerment requires long-term collaborative and multi-sectoral commitment and approach from all stakeholders,” she pointed out.

The all-female parliament also recommended advancement of the country’s digital transformation through policy, plans, projects and programmes/initiatives with the aim of improving digital connectivity, affordability, accessibility, availability, and literacy.

Enactment of legislative initiatives and public programmes relating to the care economy, to guarantee decent employment for all care workers in accordance with national and international labour standards, was also proposed.

Another area they want prioritised is the development of a national mentorship programme in select communities to address the rate of underachievement among boys in external examinations.

Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon. Olivia Grange, who addressed the sitting, commended the young women and expressed the hope that they would seek to contribute to Jamaica’s continued development in the political arena.

“Make today the first day of the rest of your lives as you move forward to become leaders. You have started that journey today. You are leaders in your own right, and in the future, I will have the pleasure, I am sure, of seeing some of you sitting in this House,” she said.

Member of Parliament for St. Andrew East Rural, Most Hon. Juliet Holness, commended the young leaders for their insightful proposals, which advocate for gender equality in the society as a critical aspect of development.

“Ladies, you all did us proud. It was a pleasure to get a sense of your appreciation of something that needed to be said to Jamaica and Jamaicans, that gender equity is not just about us as women wanting to forge ahead and holding anybody back. It requires us as strong women along with our men to be able to make our communities, our families and our country the best place in which to live,” she said.

“We had some excellent suggestions and we will take them to heart as a Government,” she told the young women leaders.

The 63 participants, ages 18 to 25, were selected to represent each constituency based on the nominations of sitting Members of Parliament.

The event was hosted by the Parliament of Jamaica with support from international organisation ParlAmericas, which is headquartered in Canada and works to promote parliamentary diplomacy in the InterAmerican system. It mainstreams gender equality by advocating for women’s political empowerment and the application of a gender lens in legislative work.