By Vanya Walker-Leigh
The President, the Countess of Wessex and the minister for European Affairs and Equality Dr Helena Dalli are scheduled to launch Malta's celebration of International Women's Day at an invitation only event at the Stock Exchange next Thursday morning.
The Countess will then visit the Careers' Day for schoolgirls organised by the Malta Association of Business and Professional Women, the University's Careers Day, attend lunch at the Palace and an evening reception at the Casino Maltese (programme organised by 100 Women in Finance, a global network of women finance executives), according to provisional information available from the Royal Household Press Office at Buckingham Palace.
The Countess of Wessex
Married in 1999 to the youngest son of HM Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, the Countess owned and managed a public relations business until 2002. In addition to supporting her husband in his official duties, she has developed a broad range of activities as charity patron. Her special focus on women includes being patron of Women of the Future, a programme of events and projects celebrating the successes of young women; of the Women in Business Committee, a group senior business women set up by her who work together to promote and support The Duke of Edinburgh's Award; the Women's Network Forum also set up by her, a group of senior business women committed to promoting women's success in the workplace, at all levels, through best practise. The network aims to make gender equality in the workplace a reality.
The Countess has travelled widely on missions to promote women's advancement.
International Women's Day was first observed in New York in 1909 as Woman's Day, and then endorsed by the International Woman's conference in 1910 as a global event and by the UN in 1975. Now Woman' Day is being celebrated worldwide at official and non-official levels.
Malta has seen steady progress in the advancement of women in the last decade or two but is far from achieving gender equality according to women leaders interviewed by this reporter.
The President has also regularly highlighted the topic and in a recent address to the Global Meeting of the Women's Forum on Economic and Social Life in Paris said that "our strategies to promote women's leadership must aim to have an effect on all levels of political, social and economic life, to ensure the necessary successful transformation, that is much needed in this disrupted world. We must address the social, cultural, political, and economic marginalisation which is currently being experienced by too many of our girls and women... each of our countries is affected by these issues, including developed economies... " Last October she launched a new initiative EmPower bringing together all Malta's leading women organisations to work together to promote gender equity and equality.
Dr Helena Dalli told this paper that "in view of the very low percentage of women in decision-making positions, particularly on company boards, the government commends positive action aimed at a more balanced representation of the sexes in this sphere. This is also in line with government's commitment to work towards a gender balanced representation by reaching 40% of each sex on government appointed boards as proposed in the electoral manifesto".
Renée Laiviera, Commissioner, National Commission for the Promotion of Equality also indicated that "women in Malta are underrepresented on company boards as evident in statistics by the European Institute for Gender Equality. The NCPE deems that a gender balanced representation on company boards including in financial and insurance activities is necessary to ensure that equal opportunities for women and men in decision-making positions are safeguarded. According to the NSO Labour Force Survey in Q3/2017 there were 4,161 women and 4,801 men whose main occupation was in these activities. NCPE supports the Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on improving the gender balance among non-executive directors of companies listed on stock exchanges and related measures that seek to substantially increase the amount of women in corporate boards."
Mary Gaerty, president of the National Council of Women and founder-owner and co-managing director of the leading waste collection company Greenskip Ltd found that "starting a business is not so difficult for women as 25 years ago due to some financial incentives now in place. However, many women entrepreneurs don't know about them, application procedures are difficult. I have been pushing for a chamber of commerce of women entrepreneurs and would like to see ambassadors accredited to Malta do more to bring their national women entrepreneurs to visit here. NCW is running a one-year entrepreneurship course for members supported by the Malta Community Chest Fund Foundation".
Stephanie Falzon, founder owner/manager of Falzon Bathrooms and president of the Malta Association of Business and Professional Women - one of 95 national associations affiliated to the International ABPW founded in 1930 ‒ said that "ABPW's sixth annual Careers Day next Thursday at MCC, now formally part of the schools' calendar, will bring some thousand Form IV girls (age 14) together with over 200 'mentors' ‒ women leaders from across the economy, politics, society, TV stations, Air Malta pilots, policewomen, AFM personnel and foreign women ambassadors".
"While legislation is needed, this remains a cultural issue in Malta, with the 60+ generation of men only seeing women in their 'traditional role'. Attitudes are evolving very slowly, though many younger men are now probably sons of working women. If getting back into the workforce after child-raising is a challenge to women who have left their jobs, becoming a grandmother is another - support to a working daughter by babysitting comes before continuing their professional lives. A new vision of shared family responsibilities is needed but may come eventually."
Charlotte Gregory, managing director of Gregory and Murray and president of Malta Women in Business stated that "Government has taken a number of incentives, however, women in business in Malta is still very lacking, the percentage of female entrepreneurs is still very low. The three main barriers for female entrepreneurs are access to finance, culture and the family life balance. Our main aim is promoting female entrepreneurs, providing members with training, information sessions, updates of legal developments, networking opportunities, mentoring while we also lobby for policy change. We sit on a number of consultative boards and are members of different platforms."
100 Women in Finance was launched in 2005 as Women in Hedge Funds, its name changing in 2016 with membership extended to women executives in other finance sectors. Current membership numbers 15,000 (of which 5,000 in New York) grouped into 22 local committees in 13 countries (including Bermuda, Canada, Switzerland, Singapore, Ireland, UK and Malta). Each committee has three activities: education, philanthropy and peer engagement. Several fund-raising events in the UK have been patronised by members of the royal family. The Malta committee, chaired by Irish financier Elaine Mulcahy (its 100+ members, 60% Maltese, 40% foreign including a few men) was launched in November 2016 at a Finance Malta-hosted event by the 100WF's current CEO, UK-based Amanda Pullinger.