Paramaribo, Suriname – Trinidad and Tobago joins the rest of the world in commemorating International Women’s Day under the United Nations theme of “Empower Rural Women – End Poverty and Hunger”. I am also pleased that at today’s 23rd Inter-Sessional CARICOM Heads of Government Meeting in Suriname, for the first time in CARICOM’S history, there are two female Heads of Government represented here today.
This is another “first” for Caribbean women’s Political Participation and I hope to be joined by more women leaders not only at the regional and hemispheric levels but internationally as well. Together with the Most Honourable Portia Simpson, Prime Minister of Jamaica I shall be representing the interest of our nation and region at this High-Level meeting.
I encourage everyone in our nation to reflect on this year’s theme, “Empower Rural Women – End Hunger and Poverty”. My Government fully recognises that the empowerment of women is critical to progress and the only possible way to achieve sustainable development. Trinidad and Tobago’s track record thus far has been commendable; in 2011 we were identified in the Commonwealth as the third best place to be born a girl. However, there will always be room for improvement and this year’s special focus on the empowerment of rural women calls on the political and financial backing of the Government and the private sector. A collective effort is required to ensure that all citizens of Trinidad and Tobago regardless of gender and geographic location have equal access to opportunities.
On the important question of food security, we must give due recognition to the key role of rural women. They act as catalysts for change in their homes and communities, capable of expanding rural economies and augmenting rates of food production and yet their value as dynamic forces for economic growth is consistently overlooked.
Coming from a rural district I appreciate first-hand the essential role played by rural women in this country. They are an integral part of the economy and play crucial roles ensuring food and nutrition security. The only real avenue we have of eradicating rural poverty is through the recognition of the contribution of these women. As such, my Government is committed to continuing to improve women’s access to financial and productive resources and services, expand their opportunities to diversify their production, increase their productivity through labour-saving technologies, and facilitate their access to high-value productive markets.
In Trinidad and Tobago, we have the Network of Rural Women Producers and the Trinidad and Tobago Goat and Sheep Society who have been championing the cause of importance of rural women and communities in agriculture, and I applaud them.
We are aware, however that challenges such as gender-based stereotypes and discrimination that deny them equitable access to opportunities, resources, assets and services, continue to exist and the Ministry of Gender, Youth and Child Development has been given the mammoth task of reducing these incidents. The Ministry of Food Production, Land and Marine Affairs will also be looking into the prospects of developing Women in Agriculture programme, in conjunction with the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN, which has seen immense success in Bangladesh.
My Government, from the onset, has been mandated with the task of gender equity and gender mainstreaming. One of our main objectives is to deliver on our promise to shape public policy and implement practices which are gender sensitive. I have given my commitment to including a gender perspective in our macroeconomic policies and the formulation of public policies. This week, local policymakers are receiving training in gender responsive budgeting, in a three day workshop organised by the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Ministry of Gender, Youth and Child Development.
This is an initial step towards making managers more aware of how they can make a difference by developing gender equality in the economy.
My Government remains strongly committed to achieving gender equality. We want and are working towards equal access to opportunity and equal access to resources. Women in this country have achieved immense success without the benefits of policies which were gender sensitive.
I can only imagine the things that can be accomplished with enlightenment and I look forward to greater successes.
Hon. Kamla Persad Bissessar
