Indian mission in South Africa awards 10 women on International Women’s Day

Women empowerment is codified as an objective in the Sustainable Development Goals SDG adopted by the Member States at the UN, the diplomat said.Kumar listed five factors that had been identified by experts to help achieve the SDGs. These included connecting women with financial resources to help them meet their basic needs and start or grow businesses.However, it is estimated that micro, small, and medium-sized businesses owned by women globally are underfunded.

The Indian mission in Johannesburg has honoured ten South African women who have excelled in various fields, including business, healthcare and science, on International Women's Day.

An event to commemorate the 114th International Women's Day was hosted jointly on Friday by the Consulate General of India, the India Business Forum and the Johannesburg Indian Women's Association, comprising the wives of diplomats and expats working in South Africa.

The ten recipients, who ranged from senior executives in business and healthcare professionals to media celebrities and scientists, were acknowledged with special awards at the event.

Addressing the gathering, Consul General Mahesh Kumar said the event was aimed at creating a more inclusive and equitable society and shared how India has progressed in this sphere.

He pointed out that despite the advances of the past decade with many programmes initiated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, there was still some way to go.

"If it is top positions and decision-making power that the urban women are fighting for in the corporate world, the rural women still have to battle for their freedom, basic amenities and equal opportunities. Therefore, the campaign theme this year is #InspireInclusion," he said.

Asserting that his roots were also in rural India, Kumar said he had personally seen how the changes were taking place.

"I have seen how the landscape is quickly transforming. Girls are today more confident about their life and life choices,'' he said.

''They are pursuing careers that they like. They are winning medals for us in the sports arena, starting businesses, educating themselves," he said, adding that this was the result of a long-drawn advocacy effort.

"Every society is responding to the challenge. Women empowerment is codified as an objective in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) adopted by the Member States at the UN," the diplomat said.

Kumar listed five factors that had been identified by experts to help achieve the SDGs. These included connecting women with financial resources to help them meet their basic needs and start or grow businesses.

"However, it is estimated that micro, small, and medium-sized businesses owned by women globally are underfunded. Closing the funding gap for women-owned small and medium enterprises would result in a massive growth for all of us,'' he said.

"In addition to financial resources, women need access to education, land, information, technology, and natural resources," Kumar said.

Other factors included reviewing how care work by women remains undervalued and underpaid; addressing the security issues faced by women, especially gender-based violence; and placing human rights at the core of women's empowerment.

Kumar shared details of how the policy of women's empowerment is incorporated into the Constitution of India with various acts as well as more recent efforts by the country.

"A few months ago, the Women's Reservation Bill was adopted in India. The bill will ensure that women occupy at least 33 per cent of the seats in state legislative assemblies and the Lok Sabha, the lower House of Parliament,'' he said.

"Similarly, India, in its G20 Presidency last year, introduced an addition to the lexicon on women's empowerment— that of 'women-led development'—thereby influencing a paradigm shift in gender-based policymaking. This paradigm recognises women's agency," Kumar said.

"As they say, the price of liberty is eternal vigilance. Accordingly, we must not lower our guard. We must rededicate ourselves to the objective. We must call out anything contrarian to the objective while celebrating successes," Kumar said.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)