Women can contribute much to Philippine economic growth – senators

MANILA, Philippines — Women have a lot to contribute to economic growth and the country can do much to increase their participation in government and various sectors, senators said yesterday.

Senators Risa Hontiveros, chairperson of the Senate committee on women, children, and family relations, and Cynthia Villar, in separate statements vowed to continue to do more to protect and promote the welfare of women as the nation observes National Women’s Month.

Villar said she hopes to further empower women, break gender bias and promote equality in the community.

“If half of the population of the Philippines are women and contribute to the betterment of the country, it will create a positive impact to our economy,” the senator said yesterday to kick off Women’s Month at the Department of Agriculture compound in Quezon City.

She underscored the need to empower and equip women to help ensure food security and production, adding that when more women work or earn, economies grow.

She said head of government offices should encourage sufficient time and opportunities for their employees to engage and participate in any activity conducted within the premises of government offices or establishments to celebrate National Women’s Day.

“Women have a lot to contribute to development of our nation given the proper opportunities and trainings,” Villar said.

She said she was fortunate enough to have been mentored by her grandmother, Lola Lelang, who taught her how to earn, save and spend money wisely and stressed the importance of a good education.

With this as an inspiration and the desire to help the community, the senator said her family established the VILLAR SIPAG foundation.

“Our aim was to improve the quality of life of the people through entrepreneurship and livelihood, health and social services, culture and arts, education and urban greening, among others,” she said.

Hontiveros spoke during a similar occasion at the Department of National Defense in Camp Aguinaldo, saying when the nation celebrates Women’s Month, “we are encouraged to reflect on what we have gone through, what we have fought, and what we have won, for our women.”

She recalled that it was only in 1993 that women were granted the right to become cadets of the Philippine Military Academy, through Republic Act 7192 or the Women in Development and Nation-Building Act.

“The law recognized that women should be full partners of men in nation-building; that real progress is only possible when women are not excluded from spaces of decision-making, governance, and development,” Hontiveros said.

She cited the Expanded Solo Parents Welfare Act, which was crafted because of close consultations with solo parent groups and federations, all of whom belong to the 14 to 15 million solo parents in the entire Philippines, of whom 95 percent are women.

“I share this because we cannot empower our women if we do not listen to us, if we do not hear the very real, lived experiences of different kinds of women across the country, including our women in uniform,” the senator said.

“While, yes, we’ve had many triumphs for our women, I hope that this Women’s Month encourages us to do more: more programs, more policies, more measures that can truly level the playing field in all the spaces that men also occupy. The fight is still on. We still need to increase female participation in all levels of governance, in politics, in positions of power,” she said.

Better work environment

Meanwhile, a consumer and research analytics firm said more Filipino women believe they have opportunities to grow and receive support at work compared to regional counterparts.

According to a Milieu Insight study conducted last February, 81 percent of Filipinas feel there are fair opportunities for them to grow professionally at work. This is higher than the 79 percent of women who felt the same in Indonesia, and 66 percent in Singapore.

Covering 500 female employees each from the Philippines, Singapore and Indonesia, the survey was conducted to understand the sentiments about the opportunities, amount of support and rewards women are getting at work.

In terms of support, the study showed 88 percent of Filipino women think their manager or company is receptive toward their needs at work, higher than the 78 percent in Singapore, and 71 percent in Indonesia.

A majority or 81 percent of Filipino women also think their companies are receptive to their feedback, compared to 70 percent in Indonesia, and 65 percent in Singapore.

The study showed, however, that only 73 percent of Filipino women believe their companies act upon the feedback being given. This is higher than the 50 percent in Singapore and 43 percent in Indonesia. – Louella Desiderio