Gender inequality currently remains a serious problem in the world, Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Minister Bintang Puspayoga stated during the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) 66 Side Event held online on Wednesday.
“Despite various advancements in general, gender inequality currently remains one of the serious problems in the world,” she noted.
During the event themed, “Financial Inclusion and Women MSMEs: Experiences from the Republic of Indonesia and Global Partners,” Puspayoga noted that this condition is exacerbated by the presence of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Due to the pandemic, several women lost their income, had to do unpaid work, and had to assume double roles.
This is despite the fact that women’s participation is crucial to build a more prosperous world, the minister emphasized.
“Various research show that women’s full participation is very important to build a more prosperous and resilient society and world,” Puspayoga stated.
More than half of the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) actors in Indonesia are women, she noted. Hence, it becomes very important to empower women’s economy to achieve economic recovery.
“Hence, encouraging the empowerment of women’s economy and women’s potential should be a part of the national and global strategy to achieve economic recovery from the pandemic and to realize long-term economic stability,” she remarked.
Women should be supported in facing various challenges through education, so that they have good financial literacy, the minister stressed.
“The need to improve financial and digital literacy is crucial, specifically since the last survey in 2019 shows that women are still very much behind,” she noted.
The Indonesian government is paying serious attention to women-owned MSMEs by giving them various trainings and different forms of assistance on financial literacy and digitalization, she remarked.
As a matter of fact, in June 2020, the Indonesian government announced a national strategy for women’s financial inclusion that the Asian Development Bank (ADB) admitted as the first and only one in the world, she remarked.
Source: Antara News