UN Women Caribbean offers empowering knowledge and guidance to young women and girls for International Women's Day 2024

"Invest in Solidarity and Sisterhood to Ensure that No One Is Left Behind" – Isiuwa Iyahen, Deputy Representative.

Addressing a gathering of enthusiastic young women and girls from secondary schools across Barbados at the I Am A Girl-NGO Opening Ceremony for their workshop themed "HerLegacy: Elevating and Empowering Girls and Women," Isiuwa Iyahen, Deputy Representative of the UN Women Multi-Country Office (MCO) - Caribbean emphasised the significance of acknowledging the contributions of women, men, girls, and boys throughout history, from the era of slavery to the present, who have paved the way for future generations. She stressed the importance of continuing in their legacy, demonstrating persistence, and honouring the determination of women who made sacrifices or had their efforts go unnoticed.

Highlighting data from the Barbados Statistical Service in 2022, Ms. Iyahen pointed out that the current unemployment rate in Barbados is 8.5% for women and 8% for men, indicating a slight disparity of approximately 1%. However, she drew attention to the fact that 42.4% of women are categorised as inactive or discouraged workers, compared to 32.4% of men. This underscores the reality that women predominantly occupy undervalued professions. In the face of persistent inequalities, Iyahen stressed the importance of ensuring that those earning less are still able to attain decent wages, emphasising the need to invest in the less fortunate.

Furthermore, Iyahen noted that women continue to bear the brunt of unpaid domestic care work in Barbados. In February 2024, Barbados became the second Caribbean country to participate in a regional pilot project aimed at collecting data to measure and determine the economic contribution of unpaid domestic care work through a partnership with UN Women Multi-Country Office (MCO) – Caribbean and the Barbados Statistical Service (BSS).

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This story was first published by UN Women MCO - Caribbean.