PH hosts ASEAN confab to advance gender mainstreaming

MAKATI CITY – People of the ASEAN may now look forward to more gender-responsive policies and programs in the region as their senior officials embark on a three-day conference that will deepen their understanding on Gender and Development (GAD).

Around 100 delegates from the ASEAN Member States (AMS) are expected to participate in the “Senior Officials Conference on Gender Mainstreaming in the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC) Sectoral Bodies” at the Dusit Thani Hotel, Makati City on June 27-29.

Led by the ASEAN Committee on Women (ACW), through its Philippine focal point – the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW), the conference will tackle internationally-recognized women’s issues that are relevant to the mandates of ASCC sectoral bodies.

Delegates are expected to outline possible strategies in addressing the priority women and gender issues in the ASEAN which can form part of an ASCC Action Plan on Gender Mainstreaming.

Conference topics include fundamental concepts of GAD, gender statistics and sex-disaggregated data and examples of good practices, Gender Mainstreaming, and elimination of Violence Against Women (VAW) and Violence Against Children (VAC). Gender Mainstreaming is the strategy through which women and gender issues are included in the regular functions or “mainstream” of an institution or body.

“We are proud to share with our ASEAN counterparts the mechanisms we have institutionalized in the Philippines relative to mainstreaming GAD. This is also an opportune time for the Philippines to learn from the best practices of our neighboring countries to better improve our current efforts and continue what we have achieved in the past. By working together, we can establish a strong fabric of the Community that binds us to achieve gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls, which is Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Number 5. Inclusive Society promotes high quality of life, “said PCW Chairperson Rhodora M. Bucoy, the current chair of the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Women (AMMW).

This initiative is part of the three-part series of conferences to support the development and implementation of gender mainstreaming initiatives across all sectoral bodies in the three ASEAN pillars. It is part of the ACW’s Work Plan for 2016-2022. The conference for the ASEAN Economic Community and the ASEAN Political-Security Community are slated to be held in November 2018 and in 2019, respectively.

The conference is organized by the PCW in partnership with the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), Council for the Welfare of Children (CWC), Civil Service Commission (CSC), Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Department of Health (DOH), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of Education (DepEd), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC), National Youth Commission (NYC), Office of Civil Defense (OCD), Office of Cabinet Secretary (OCS), Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO), and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) with support from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO). (PR)