On the occasion of the OECD Forum 2015 “Investing in the Future: People, Planet, Prosperity” (2-3 June), WIP organised a meeting between female Parliamentarians present at the Forum and Mari Kiviniemi, OECD Deputy Secretary-General and former Prime Minister of Finland.
This informal discussion enabled participants to exchange on the importance of gender equality and women’s empowerment in the context of fostering a more inclusive and sustainable growth at global level. Mari Kiviniemi emphasized the growing importance given to gender equality in the OECD work and researches as well as the positive effect of women’s empowerment in alleviating poverty, reducing inequalities and contributing to restore growth.
“Experience shows the added value gender diversity can bring in terms of sounder and more inclusive governance. We need more concrete measures and targets to address the gender gaps and increase the number of women in decision-making,” underlined Kiviniemi.
This meeting provided participants with the opportunity to exchange on the main barriers and challenges that continue to hamper women’s participation in public life and on the labour market in their respective countries. All participants welcomed the efforts of the OECD in ensuring gender-balance in the different panels and sessions of this year’s Forum, as 40% of the speakers were women.
WIP has been enjoying a fruitful and continuing collaboration with the OECD that includes the participation of a WIP delegation to the OECD Global Parliamentary Days, as well as WIP’s involvement in on-going OECD Initiatives to foster women’s representation in governance and public life.
