Only 42% of Latin American women are included in the formal labor market and only 7% of them hold a managerial position in private sector companies, a sample not only of the inequality that affects women in the region, but also of the lack of opportunities. Despite this, the unpaid work of women represents between 20 and 25% of the continent’s domestic product, an effort that shows that the region’s growth depends to a large extent on them. “Countries grow on the shoulders of women for free,” said María Noel Vaeza, regional director of UN Women.
Vaeza has participated in a discussion table on the role of women in the sustainable development of Latin America together with the Minister of Education of Colombia, Aurora Vergara; Rosa Junquera, director of sustainability at PRISA; and Aimée Sentmat de Grimaldo, president of Banistmo de Panamá. The table is part of the Dialogue of Women of America meeting, which took place this Wednesday at the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City.
Vaeza has emphasized the importance of recognizing the care work carried out by women, on which the well-being of families depends, but also the economic growth of the countries of the region. That contribution, she has said, was demonstrated during the covid-19 pandemic, when women played an important role in protecting both their families and society. “The pandemic made it clear that care is an important job, if it had not been for women, there would have been more victims of the pandemic,” said the UN official.
Vaeza has advocated for such care work to be recognized as a driver of development, which means that it must also be paid. “When women enter the private sector, those companies produce 30% or have 40% more market share. Our continent will not grow without women”, Vaeza said.
In this sense, Aimée Sentmat de Grimaldo has affirmed that the private sector must be a more active actor when it comes to generating more opportunities for the participation of women in the labor market, which means guaranteeing their access to financing systems . “The private sector has to understand that it must work together with governments. Being allies of governments in global initiatives. We have made progress, but at the speed we are advancing we are not going to meet the challenges ”, she stated.
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