Cyprus has 27% of women in management-level positions, one of the lowest percentages in the EU and is ranked 22nd in the EU on the Gender Equality Index, and gender inequalities are stark in the power sector, said the President of Parliament, Annita Dimitriou.
She added that Cyprus still has a long way to go to close the gender gap and increase the participation of women in decision-making structures and leadership.
In a speech on Saturday, at the 5th Mediterranean Symposium of BPW, Cyprus Federation of Business Women Professionals in Nicosia, Ms. Dimitriou said that reconciling professional and family obligations remains a major challenge that must be urgently overcome.
Currently, she said, Cypriot women shoulder far more care responsibilities and unpaid work than men and have limited access to leadership networks.
"The €20.5 million investment under the Cyprus Recovery and Resilience Plan to support pre-school education and the creation of a network of childcare facilities is a positive step forward as it will enhance the full-time labor market participation of carers, especially women'', he added.
He also noted that we must focus our efforts on overcoming the particular challenges women face, step up our efforts to eliminate the pay and pension gaps between of the sexes (9% and 39%, respectively), the gender gap in education, training and employment and the underrepresentation of women in various sectors.
«Women have the potential to lead the way to a new normal, where equality is the rule and not the exception. Working closely together in solidarity and unity, we can fight for a better, more sustainable, just and promising future for current and future generations,», he concluded.
Source: KYPE
