Gender Equality Means Business
Date:
Kingston Jamaica: Several top business leaders demonstrated their commitment to gender equality in an event that signalled the start of a private sector partnership with UN Women MCO Caribbean by signing on to the Women’s Economic Empowerment Principles (WEPs) and the ringing of the opening market bell at the Jamaica Stock Exchange.
The initiative comes in the week of observances of International #WomensDay under the theme: Women in the Changing World of Work: Planet 50-50 by 2030” with the partnership clearly demonstrating gender equality means business.
The Jamaica Stock Exchange readily partnered with UN Women to facilitate the ceremony which saw the CEOs and representatives of Island Grill, Facey Law, Sandals Foundation, JMMB Group, Women Entrepreneurs Network of the Caribbean (WENC), the Jamaica Stock Exchange and RUBiS Energy Jamaica signing the WEPs.
Former Member of the United Nations High Level Panel for Women’s Economic Empowerment, Ms. Patricia Francis shared on the WEPs which state that equal treatment of women and men is not just the right thing to do – it is also good for business. High Commissioner-designate of Canada to Jamaica, His Excellency Sylvain Fabi, a partner of UN Women participated in the event as well.
The initiative served as a follow up to the visit of the UN Women high level visit to Jamaica in the last quarter 2016 which saw UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Regional Director for the Americas and the Caribbean Luiza Carvalho and Head of Office a.i. of the UN Women MCO Caribbean Office Tonni Brodber meeting with key private sector partners.