Women Empowerment Holds the Key for Latin America & Caribbean Development Diego Arguedas Ortiz - Inter Press Service
go to original July 23, 2016

On the table, from left to right, Luiza Carvalho, Regional Director of UN Women for the Americas and the Caribbean; the Executive Director of UN Women Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka; the Costa Rican Minister for Women, Alejandra Mora and Simona Scarpaleggia, CEO of IKEA Switzerland and co-chair of the UN High-Level Panel on Women’s Economic Empowerment. (Diego Arguedas Ortiz/IPS)

Latin America’s inclusion of women in its development model, with greater participation within the work force and improved wage conditions, was a decisive factor in the region’s successful diminishment of extreme poverty.

This issue also offers a road map to pursue the elimination of further gender gaps in both Latin America and the world.

Those were among the ideas debated at the second meeting of the UN High-Level Panel on Women’s Economic Empowerment, which gathered leaders from around the world in Costa Rica’s capital on July 13-15 to exchange positive experiences on women’s economic independence.

“Hadn’t women’s conditions been improved since the 1990, extreme poverty in Latin America would be closer to 30 percent of the population and not the current 12 per cent”, said Luiza Carvalho, Regional Director of UN Women for the Americas and the Caribbean.

Carvalho referred to regional indicators on economic empowerment, such as higher rates of labor force participation for women, which increased from 40 to 55 per cent between 1990 and 2013, the largest improvement of all regions.

This figure brings hope to face the other pending regional gender gaps.

“This progress is merely a starting point from where we shall improve. We’re far from out landing point”, stated the Brazilian regional director.

Read the rest at Inter Press Service | En Español

Related: Feminism Slowly Gaining Support at United Nations (Inter Press Service)

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