President of the Egyptian National Council for Women, Chair of the Ministerial Council of the WDO, H.E. Dr. Maya Morsy,
Secretary General of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, H.E. Hissein Brahim Taha,
Executive Director of the WDO, Dr. Afnan Alshuaiby,
Excellencies, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen.
Assalam alaikum and good evening from the Maldives.
It is my immense pleasure to join you all at this symposium and a great honour to address you on the topic of “the Role of Family-Oriented Policies in Empowering Women and Girls within the Family”.
The Maldives is a country formed of small tight-knit island communities, with family being the foundation of society. Ensuring the well-being and dignity of families has thus always been a key policy priority of the government. This is reflected across all five sectoral priorities in the national Strategic Action Plan (SAP). The SAP adopts a holistic approach with the aim of ensuring access to equitable social protection services, increasing social cohesion and revitalising island economies, and empowering vulnerable groups (including women) through effective income-generating opportunities.
These policies are further incorporated in the Gender Equality Action Plan (GEAP), a five year plan that addresses five key policy areas (Leadership and Governance, Economic Empowerment, Institutional Gender Mainstreaming, Elimination of Gender-Based Violence, and Access to Justice). The GEAP will be implemented from 2022 to 2026. It will serve as the main guiding framework under which gender equality initiatives are conducted by the state. The importance of family-oriented policies for empowering women is reflected throughout this plan. It includes policy goals to ensure that families benefit from greater personal security in the home through the elimination of gender-based violence, and to increase women’s public participation and economic empowerment.
The GEAP provides specific targets with the aim of empowering women through the promotion of more equal distribution of the unpaid domestic and care burden. According to the Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES) conducted in 2019, women spend thrice the proportion of time men spend on unpaid domestic and care work. This is particularly concerning as household and income expenditure surveys conducted in the past decade have established that the primary reason women do not seek employment or remain outside of the labour force is due to household and childcare responsibilities. It is imperative that we work to reduce this burden for women so that women have greater access to opportunities to participate in public life and in the labour force.
I am pleased to note that many significant developments have already been made with regard to ensuring family-friendly policies in the workplace. In line with the SAP, in 2019, paid maternity leave was extended from three months to six months, and paid paternity leave was extended from three days to one month for all government employees. It is also heartening that many public enterprises and private organisations have followed this precedent and adopted similar parental leave policies. Numerous workplaces including private sector organisations have also adopted flexible working arrangements, and the GEAP includes strategies to introduce greater flexible arrangements in the civil service.
The Ministry of Gender, Family and Social Services is also currently working with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to increase accessibility to affordable day-care facilities in the country. The Ministry aims to subsidise childcare facilities, so that working mothers and fathers alike experience greater access to such facilities.
It is expected that these policies will allow for greater retention of women in the workplace. Additional strategies to allow for a greater balance of work and family are provided in the GEAP. We are immensely hopeful that the implementation of the plan will have a positive impact on women’s economic empowerment.
The GEAP additionally outline the importance of working to eliminate violence against women to ensure security for families. An awareness and advocacy campaign, Geveshi Gulhun, was launched in 2020 and has had a significant positive impact on families and our communities as a whole. It is a nation-wide campaign that aims to combat domestic violence and strengthen family relationships. Over the past 2 years, numerous activities have been carried out across the country, including the production and distribution of advocacy materials, radio and TV programs, men engagement programs and awareness sessions for the general public on domestic violence. Since the beginning of the campaign, there has been a noted increase in the number of reported cases of domestic violence, with 2021 being the year with the highest number of DV cases reported.
With this increase in reported cases, the need for expansion of services was identified. To address this need, the Ministry has worked to increase access to services such as pro-bono legal services, in partnership with local NGOs. As part of the Ministry’s efforts to ensure that greater protection is provided to vulnerable women, including victims of abuse and violence, the Ministry is also working in partnership with ADB to establish and operationalise shelters in three different regions. We hope to provide greater protection and assurance of services across the country, with the aim of empowering women in vulnerable situations to seek assistance.
Madam Chair,
During the COVID-19 pandemic, concerted efforts were made by the government to ensure that vulnerable families, especially women, were provided the necessary resources and services.
One key measure taken was assisting families, who have been financially affected by the impacts of COVID-19 and located in the capital city Male’, to voluntarily relocate to their islands. This voluntary relocation program (Ahulu) was a multi-agency effort, designed to improve the standard of living of such families, through provision of financial assistance via a 0% interest loan. The loan was provided for refurbishing and maintenance costs of the premise that families moved into. Additionally, a re-establishment allowance for a period of 6 months was also provided, along with ensuring access to healthcare, education, employment and other necessities for a dignified life.
Through this project, 125 members of 32 families have been relocated from capital Male’ to their home islands.
With the relaxation of COVID-19 measures earlier this year, the ‘Ahulu’ program is planned to be reprogrammed to provide grants for women in local communities seeking entrepreneurship opportunities. It is our aim to empower women to attain financial independence while playing an integral role in their communities.
Madam Chair,
As previously mentioned, the Maldives is formed of many small island communities. Given the geographic dispersion of the Maldives, it is vital that we ensure decentralisation of services. As reflected in our Strategic Action Plan, we envision a society in which every community, household, and family in the country benefit from the resources and services provided.
The government has established several mechanisms to ensure that the services provided, including social protection measures, are available throughout the country through a decentralised mechanism. There are 19 Family and Children Service Centres (FCSCs) established under the Ministry, in every atoll in the country. These centres provide support to vulnerable families within local communities. They play a role in advocacy work and conducting awareness sessions. Staff in these centres also coordinate with local governments and key policy makers to address trends and patterns pertaining to community issues.
Additional mechanisms that engage stakeholders from different sectors have also been established, to maximise social protection coverage across the country. As outlined in the SAP, community social groups will be mobilised in all inhabited islands, for prevention and responding to violence against children, and other vulnerable groups.
This project, intended to establish a multi-sectoral social protection mechanism and expand the network of social service, was launched in 2021 with support from UNICEF. Under the title “Ijthimaee Badhahi Madhadhuverin” or IBAMA in short, relevant sector-related government authorities work together holistically, as a cohesive group, for the social protection of each community. This initiative ensures that the most vulnerable and at-risk individuals and families are identified, assisted, and provided with necessary services to uplift their living standards.
To date, IBAMA trainings have been conducted in five different atolls. The IBAMA groups in these atolls have been mobilised, with over 200 people trained.
The government’s vision for equitable access to service is reflected through such policy initiatives that prioritise families, strengthen communities, and ensure social cohesion.
Madam Chair,
We firmly believe that empowered women will significantly contribute to the well-being of families and that building stronger families and communities is key to improving the quality of life and the overall development of the country. The Maldives remains committed to ensuring our policies produce the best outcomes for women and girls, families, and our communities as a whole.
25 May 2022