2013-05-25T09:11:07-04:00 Baroness Mary Goudie http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/author/index.php?author=baroness-mary-goudie Copyright 2008, HuffingtonPost.com, Inc. HuffingtonPost Blogger Feed for Baroness Mary Goudie Good old fashioned elbow grease. tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/theblog//3.2829004 2013-03-07T19:00:00-05:00 2013-05-07T05:12:01-04:00

Baroness Mary Goudie http://www.huffingtonpost.com/baroness-mary-goudie/
Many of these emerging countries including China and India are leading in terms of global economic growth, but are moving in the opposite direction when it comes to gender equality and complete economic change.

Emerging markets are not making use of women's talents and are facilitating an environment that is not only stunting for female aspirations, but can also become dangerous for women, which was illustrated by the shooting of Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani girl shot by the Taliban for campaigning for women's rights to education.

This year the G8 presidency is held by the UK and prime minister David Cameron's priority will be the global economy. As part of this, Britain will pledge to continue its committed to fighting violence against women and children around the world.

The areas that need to be addressed by all G8 members in order to combat global gender inequality and secure safety and economic security for all are:

Equality education
A major problem in the emerging markets is that gender inequality is a deep cultural issue. Girls are taught at a young age not to aspire to secure an education and that they are in no way equal to their male counterparts. Whilst this is ingrained in girls, boys are also being educated and immersed in a mentality that they are superior to girls and they have more rights than girls. While this sort of education continues it will be challenging to change the mind-set that boys, who grow up to be men have and this will continue to impact the global struggle for change. G8 countries need to encourage countries to develop state programmes to educate children from a young age in schools, faith centers and community centres, about the importance of gender equality.

Equality at conception
Many countries throughout the globe struggle with a culture that prefers sons to daughters. China's one child policy in particular produces very worrying side effects and has triggered a number of unethical practices amongst Chinese parents in order to get rid of their female offspring. This includes neonaticide (killing infants that are less than one day old), infanticide (killing infants that are more than one day old), and the practice of disposing of female children in favour of male offspring.

As a result of these terminations, there is a huge shortage of Chinese women to marry Chinese men and this has triggered a new wave of human trafficking in the region. Women are trafficking into China from Burma to combat the lack of women to marry. A recent report from the Burmese government said 80 per cent of human trafficking cases in Burma over the last five years involved women being smuggled to China for forced marriage. Many of these women are then subjected to a life time of poor treatment by their husbands. This is a deep routed cultural issue that needs to be addressed on a global scale in order to achieve any type of change. The G8 leaders need to address this and work to identify ways to move forward together to create an environment that women are equal and safe in the communities they are born into.

Economic freedom
Access to finance for women is improving throughout the world, with more banks opening in emerging markets and greater access to micro-financing programmes. But we must not let the global financial crisis deter this progress. By neglecting 50% of the population, the economic crisis will only continue to grow and ultimately emerging market economies will not deliver to their full potential.

In these challenging financial times the world cannot afford to ignore the collective potential of women to contribute to economic development whilst improving the wellbeing of their families. Access to finance is so important for women in emerging markets, where it enables them to re-invest in agriculture, solar panels or even start a small factory to bring employment to their communities.

I welcome G8's commitment to ending violence against women, genital mutilation and an additional commitment to the fight against human trafficking. Britain is committed to take a lead on these issues in the world across borders and I hope for continuing change to secure true equality throughout the world.]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/theblog//3.2764095 2013-02-26T19:00:00-05:00 2013-04-28T05:12:01-04:00

Baroness Mary Goudie http://www.huffingtonpost.com/baroness-mary-goudie/
During the symposium it was overwhelmingly agreed that gender inequality is likely to be more acute in the emerging markets and this demands both national and international action.

There are a number of ways that gender inequality can be addressed. But now is the time to stop talking and move to take action. The issues are global and the need for action in the emerging markets is crucial.

There are a number of areas where women's roles can be improved and supported within these countries:

Education
One of the key issues is to ensure that girls have equal access to education; this reduces economic inequality by enhancing girls' employment and productivity. We need to encourage girls' access to primary, secondary and tertiary education, ensuring that girls enjoy safety and privacy, including access to segregated sanitary facilities, the lack of which is widespread and is an impediment to girls' attending and continuing their long-term education.

Governments and the private sector must be encouraged to create internships and mentoring for girls who finish secondary schools.

Technology
Technology plays a very important role in alleviating gender inequality, by liberating women from isolation. The Cherie Blair Foundation for Women have pioneered this and shown that expanding women's use of mobile telephones not only creates opportunities but can also open communication channels for women. Access to technology can also address gender imbalances by providing open access to information. By enabling further access to mobile phone applications, women will be able to access information for healthcare, legal rights, security and banking, offering women a new independence.

Empowering Women in Communities
Many women in emerging markets spend a great deal of time taking care of their families and on commercial activities in communities. Recognising the potential importance of communities as incubators of positive change, governments and civil societies should support community education programmes, centers for community development and social activities that empower women and help to bridge the gender gap.

Human and Sex Trafficking
The first step to combatting human and sex trafficking is for global leaders to recognise that it is a global crime. More enforcement laws are needed in the emerging markets prohibiting sexual and labour exploitation of women and men through domestic, international trafficking and slavery. Further work needs to be done in countries that are sources of demand for trafficking. By strengthening the controls and increasing the number of convictions against the trafficker gangs, it will start to send a message of zero tolerance. It should not be forgotten that this is now a billion pound business and linked to so much other criminal activity, including terrorism and money laundering.

Access to Finance
No one doubts that without access to finance women's economic empowerment and gender equality is not possible. In June 2012, the communiqué of the leaders of the G20 declared 'We recognise the need for women to gain access to financial services and financial education, and call for the GPFI and OECD/INFE to identify additional barriers women may face.' Governments from the emerging markets must give leadership to encourage the banks in their countries to incorporate gender equality conditions in loan and credit agreements. Facilitating access to finance is a major part of securing gender equality, without finance women cannot take the steps to secure independence.

Emerging market leaders need to focus on these key areas to enable true economic development, by empowering women and not only focusing on their rights to health care and education. Access to technology, finance, supporting community projects and combatting human trafficking are all areas that need to be addressed and supported by country leaders to really deliver development and ensure that women are not only receiving the opportunities they deserve, but also have the opportunity to contribute to their economies.]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/theblog//3.2447378 2013-01-10T09:34:13-05:00 2013-03-12T05:12:02-04:00

Baroness Mary Goudie http://www.huffingtonpost.com/baroness-mary-goudie/
The number of reported rapes in India has increased drastically from 2,487 in 1971 to 24,206 in 2011, and this is only the official numbers. Cultural stigma means many attacks are not reported to authorities due to fear of bringing shame on the victim's family. Many Indians still believe that women who have been raped have brought the attack on themselves and are the ones to blame, not the attacker. This sort of ignorance is what is at the centre of the growing epidemic of sexual violence against women in India.

The attitude to girls and women within India is one of contradictions. This is a country that is one of the fastest growing economies in the world and whilst it has had a female prime minister in Indira Gandhi, its citizens have aborted a reported 50,000 female foetuses every month, provoked by a traditional preference for sons and supported by medical staff who are bribed into revealing the sex of a child. A country with such global economic influence cannot continue to let such atrocities occur and must make change.

The root of the problem is the lack of education on social equality at a local level. Until local community leaders are engaged and women's rights are really taught and recognised within communities, no real change will occur. There have been calls in India's Parliament for reform and the authorities have promised tougher laws against sexual violence, however cultural problems are harder to change and it is only education that will trigger true transformation.

Many people have suggested that this type of sexual violence is a class issue, and it is true that within rural and lower class communities in India women's rights are at their worst, however there is also a lot of evidence that women are not considered equal in middle and upper-classes. It is not a class issue, but an education issue throughout Indian society.

Time needs to be spent addressing the cultural issue causing the problem. Teaching respect and equality is the first step in solving such a long standing issue. It is now important to call on the Indian government and local authorities to take real action and quickly. The ongoing protests throughout India following this tragic murder illustrate that there is a demand for justice and change, and this can only be achieved through education to all generations. Teaching men and boys about women's rights and equality is the only way to trigger this much needed change.]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.2122476 2012-11-13T19:00:00-05:00 2013-01-13T05:12:01-05:00

Baroness Mary Goudie http://www.huffingtonpost.com/baroness-mary-goudie/
The 30% Club believes that quotas are harmful to the ongoing gender debate. We believe that quotas do not work, that they are counter-productive and can be harmful to the development of diversity. We believe that voluntary change is the right approach to achieving a balanced board.

Achieving equality in the boardroom is not a women's issue, but a business issue. There are many powerful arguments for having gender varied boards. One reason is that companies with varied boards deter themselves from the danger of 'groupthink' - psychological phenomenon that occurs within groups in which the desire for harmony with decision-making overrides the realistic appraisal and alternatives. Having women on boards will change the decision making process, would ensure that the pipeline is at optimal function, and would redefine corporate social responsibilities (CSR) policies. Some CSR Policies include projects associated with education, food security and human trafficking policies; issues that women are are often more pro-active in pursuing.

One policy in particular is The Athens Policy, which includes seven principals adopted by a number of companies in January 2006 to combat human trafficking globally. These strategies include corporate procedures for anti-trafficking policies and reports to share information on best practices.

Furthermore, I welcome the British government's recent Business Innovation and Skills Committee inquiry into women in the workplace that was launched this week. Amongst the topics the committee will be considering is whether to promote part-time working at all levels. In this technical age, employees have the benefit of being able to work from home. This committee understands the potential value of advocating for women's full economic and social participation in the workplace. A women's value is one that we should not hesitate to unleash.]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.1706476 2012-07-27T19:00:00-04:00 2012-07-27T12:05:49-04:00

Baroness Mary Goudie http://www.huffingtonpost.com/baroness-mary-goudie/
This year women will account for about 40 percent of the 10,500 athletes. This is roughly twice as many women than were represented four decades ago, according to a recent Goldman Sachs report 'The Olympics and Economics.' Other milestones this year include the United States team consisting of more women than men and Saudi Arabia sending two female athletes to the games for the first time in history; Wodjan Ali Seraj Abdulrahim Shahrkhani, a judo competitor, and 800 meters runner Sarah Attar. These are impressive steps and statistics that should be highly commended.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has been particularly supportive of female athletes. The Olympic Charter states that one of the roles of the IOC is "to encourage and support the promotion of women in sport at all levels and in all structures, with a view to implementing the principle of equality of men and women". One of the IOC's greatest achievements is the negotiation with Saudi Arabia to encourage the country to send women to the Olympics, as well as the invitation it extended to athletes from Brunei, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia even though they did not technically qualify for the Games. This has set a powerful example regarding progress and the role sport can play in empowering women and encouraging equality.

Women achieving great success and also being acknowledged for their achievements is something that the Olympics champions and can be immensely proud of. By recognising women's athletic achievements it sends a strong global message about the capabilities of women and also the importance of encouraging determination and dedication to pursuits of the highest standard.

Sports women are powerful advocates not only for women but also for the countries they represent. They have the opportunity to represent their countries on the global stage and in doing so create positive and progressive attitudes to their home nations.

The Olympics should be held as a benchmark for attitudes towards women and educate the world on equality and the impact women can have not only in the sporting world but in general. Athletes are tremendous role models for women and girls around the world and this is something that can be mirrored beyond the sporting arena. The progress that has been made for London 2012 needs to continue and spread to ensure we keep encouraging equality as a norm and not just something reserved for the Olympics.]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.1535345 2012-05-22T19:00:00-04:00 2012-07-22T05:12:24-04:00

Baroness Mary Goudie http://www.huffingtonpost.com/baroness-mary-goudie/
In these challenging financial times the world cannot afford to ignore the collective potential of women to contribute to economic development whilst improving the wellbeing of their families. Their business acumen is very often underpinned by a drive not only to improve their own future but also to provide for their families.

The meeting of the G20 leaders is an important event when changes can be made and challenges discussed. This year advancing financial inclusion for economic growth has been established as top priorities for the summit.

Women all over the world are constantly faced with the inability to provide for themselves and their family, blocked by discrimination and cultural norms forcing them to face an unnecessarily bleak future. Although women are often the main provider for the family, they are disadvantaged by access to finance or no access at all. If this was rectified they would be able to pay for their children to go to school and enable the next generation to have a better future, as well as be more stable providers for the family.

Agriculture plays a critical role in millions of women's survival. By giving a women access to finance in a rural village, she can purchase a solar panel and start a small business through her neighbours paying to charge their electrical goods, or she can purchase livestock to feed her family and produce goods to sell. Equal access to finance will open many doors for these women who currently have nowhere to turn and are discriminated against because of their gender.

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation and Farming First have produced an interactive graphic showing how women play a leading role in agriculture around the world and the challenges they are up against due to inequality. Investing in rural women has been proven to dramatically increase productivity and positively impact their lives. This doesn't just help women but also the family they are providing for and the communities they are members of.

On average in developing countries, 43% of the agricultural labour force are women and account for an estimated two-thirds of the world's 600 million poor livestock keepers. These women are discriminated against by societies, laws, tradition and access, that prevent them from owning and inheriting land.

By removing these gender discriminations it would dramatically improve food and nutrition security globally, and enable millions of women to provide for their families.

There are signs of progress with the G20 Finance Ministers recognising the need to increase women's access to financial services. This has been helped by the organisation La Pietra Coalition who has been asking the G20 to take action to advance women's financial inclusion, by endorsing the recommendations of the IFC and GPFI, and to insist that progress towards those commitments for women be measured and reported publicly.

I urge banks to work to ensure women have access and support to be able to obtain finance. I call on the G20 leaders to create the environment where women receive the support they deserve and require in order to continue to build on their contribution to the global economy. If the G20 collaborates with banks we can really start to tackle the disparities that exist in the global market and work towards creating a better environment for women.]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.1331931 2012-03-08T11:23:11-05:00 2012-05-08T05:12:02-04:00

Baroness Mary Goudie http://www.huffingtonpost.com/baroness-mary-goudie/
There is however still a long way to go to ensure women enjoy freedom, equality and recognition globally. Women are still discriminated against in the boardroom, excluded from parliamentary decisions, traded as commodities and deprived of even owning their own land.

I have been fortunate enough to work at a global level on the issues of women, through my work in the House of Lords, with Vital Voices, UN Gift, Community Foundation for Northern Ireland and many other organisations dedicated to women and children. This experience has enable me to identify where there has been success in the fight to empower women, but also where there still needs to be much work.

Women in the boardroom

The issue of women in the boardroom was recently addressed by David Cameron, at the Northern Futures Forum summit in Stockholm, Sweden. He suggested that 30% quotas could be the answer to inequalities in Britain's boardrooms. As a steering committee member of the 30% Club, an organisation committed to bringing more women onto UK boards, which is good for the overall effectiveness of boards and therefore good for business. I believe it is a positive step to be focusing on this issue but that quotas are not the answer. Change in the boardroom is not happening fast enough, and the discussion needs to continue to ensure that people begin to be persuaded to the benefits. Since Lord Davies' report into women on boards, in February 2011, the proportion of FTSE 100 women directors has risen from 12.5% to 15% this year. Illustrating that the movement is beginning to happen and overtime we hope to see women playing a substantial role in the success of FTSE100 companies. Enabling this to become a way of life, not an exception.

Women at the peace table

The Arab Springs saw both men and women take to the streets in the Arab world to protest against their country's leaders. In many cases, women were critical actors in these revolutions. Many were bloggers, activists, leaders and logistics experts. In Libya on the 3 September 2011, Martyrs' Square was filled for part of the day with only women to celebrate the fall of Colonel Gaddafi and their role in that battle. The key question now is in each country, how much space will there be for women to participate fully in these nascent democracies.

Research shows that women's participation helps build stronger businesses and public institutions. A study of legislative actions in countries belonging to the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) found that the greater the number of women in a country's parliament, the more they spend on education as a percentage of GDP and per capita. Perhaps even more important however, is the involvement of women wherever decisions are made. This could be when electing women to office at the local or national level or involving women in decision making about how camps are run or resources are distributed.

Since the devastating earthquake in Haiti in 2010, the country has had to deal with many challenges. The group Femmes en Democratie has worked to develop a women's policy platform. Their aim is to expand Haitian women's role in generating economic opportunities, increasing political participation and protecting human rights. Women comprise 52% of Haiti's population, and approximately 44% of households are led by women. Haiti cannot make economic and social progress if it leaves half of its people behind and neglects the diverse experiences, talents and vision of its women. These sorts of initiatives will enable the Haitians to move forward from the earthquake and build a stronger country and economy.

Inspiring hope for the future

International Women's Day is an important celebration of the achievements of women around the world. Everyday women are risking their lives and enduring inconceivable hardship as a result of their gender. We are making incredible advances in equality which was especially illustrated this year with three inspiring women sharing the Nobel Peace Prize; Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, women's rights campaigner Leymah Gbowee, also from Liberia, and Tawakkul Karman, a key icon in the protest movement in Yemen. These sorts of recognitions inspire us with hope for the future. Our collective voices can drive action and change, and I encourage each and every one of you to do what you can do to support the world's women to achieve their potential and breakdown the barriers of discrimination. ]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2011:/theblog//3.992187 2011-10-03T19:00:00-04:00 2011-12-03T05:12:02-05:00

Baroness Mary Goudie http://www.huffingtonpost.com/baroness-mary-goudie/
Where do we start? First, we need fewer handouts and better results. While there are many success stories, there is much more to do to reach our goals. In this challenging financial and political environment, where we cannot afford to waste any resource, human or otherwise, we need overseas aid that helps countries build public and private infrastructure to solve problems, not create cultures of complacency and dependency.

We need to clarify our goals, both globally and on a country basis, and then create measurements for the effectiveness of aid in meeting those goals. Put simply, we need to define what success will look like, and what kind of impact we want to have with our aid.

To do this, we need to work with other governments, donors, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and the private sector to design smart, effective and bold solutions that will bring people out of poverty and improve a country's infrastructure and ability to compete globally.

Women are central to aid reform

Any strategy we pursue needs to involve women and girls. We must see women as effective agents of change, not just beneficiaries of our aid.

Women, who comprise over 50 percent of the world's population, perform 60 percent of the world's work, but only earn 5 percent of the world's income. Rural women produce half of the world's food and in developing countries, between 60 and 80 percent of food crops. Globally, 1.4 billion people subsist on less than £1 per day. Most of them (829 million) are women.
Women - still one of the world's great untapped resources - are central to building global peace and prosperity. Despite the imbalance in income, women invest 90 percent of their income in their families and communities compared to men who invest only 30 to 40 percent.

If our overseas aid is successful at valuing women and girls, we will have better outcomes across the board. When a girl in a developing world receives seven or more years of education, she will marry four years later and have 2.2 fewer children. An extra year of primary school boosts girls' eventual wages by 10 to 20 percent; an additional year of secondary school boosts her wages by 15 to 25 percent.

Investing in results

We also need to rethink where we invest our aid. While there are needs everywhere in the world, we must think long and hard about where Britain can have the biggest impact and deliver results.

We should reward countries that are making progress and meeting goals. But, looking at results and working backwards may be the best way to proceed. Do we need to provide overseas assistance to countries with strong emerging economies like Brazil, China, Russia and India? Do we need to put conditions on any of our aid?

In addition, our investment must be transparent and we must measure results. We should consider annual, in-depth evaluators to look at aid, its effectiveness and whether what we are doing on a country by country basis helps us meet our collective goals of ending poverty.

Finding the right partners

We must, however, make sure we do this right. The funds we invest must be invested in the right programmatic work and get to the right people.

First, we must ensure that we coordinate across our various governmental departments, so that our aid complements existing programmes.

Second, we need strong partners from every sector. It is important that we continue Britain's leadership in strong multilateral international organizations, such as the United Nations, the International Labour Organisation, the European Union, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, as well as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, to name a few.

Third, we need to engage the private sector, and be innovative in how public-private partnerships can leverage resources and help drive change. This may mean incentives for companies to work with governments on developing technologies that work.

Fourth, it is critical to partner with NGOs that are credible in this country and impoverished regions, can work across multiple sectors and can deliver results and are transparent in their financial dealings.

What should our programmatic goals be?

There are many ways to focus aid, but if we centre our approach on addressing issues faced by women and girls, there is some key programmatic work to be done here.
First, it is important that we address legal barriers that women face, whether those barriers are to property ownership, citizenships rights, access to capital or access to education. We must promote our values of fair treatment for all.

Second, we should continue effective aid programs that support maternal and child health, family planning and nutrition, education and fighting diseases such as malaria, HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis.

Third, we should begin to focus on issues that have arisen as a result of global climate change. Our development aid should be 'green' so that we are not contributing to the devastating effects of climate change.

Fourth, we should look at investments in food security to strengthen the world's food supply. Providing more financial support to women, (the majority of small holder farmers in sub-
Saharan Africa), should go hand in hand with efforts to reform property rights and providing farmers with technical assistance to grow and get more food to market.

Fifth, we should ensure that our programs spur economic growth and entrepreneurship and ensure that women have financial identities. This includes micro-finance and also access to capital and skills development so that women can graduate to small and medium sized businesses over time.

Finally, we need to ensure that there are women represented in every body that makes these decisions. Having women at every table and in every hall, board room, and legislature, makes a difference in terms of the policy and programmatic issues that get raised.

Global poverty, although it is seemingly intractable, can be addressed effectively if we invest in women, put aid where it achieves results and even in these times of economic challenge, continue to recognise the value of creating more sustainable and stable economies abroad.

Baroness Goudie is a senior member of the House of Lords and is also Chair of the Women Leaders' Council to Fight Human Trafficking at the United Nations. She launched the global initiative to fight human trafficking and is involved with the G8 and G20 promoting the role of women and children in the global economy. She is actively engaged in numerous philanthropic organisations including her role as a member of the Executive and Board of Directors of Vital Voices Global Partnership. In recognition of her work, she was awarded the 2010 GlobalPower Award by the Center for Women Policy Studies. www.baronessgoudie.com ]]>