BANGKOK, 09 FEBRUARY 2024 - An all-women delegation of the Philippines led by Undersecretary Cherbett Karen L. Maralit of the Presidential Communications Office, called on member states and all stakeholders in Asia and the Pacific region to collective action to empower women and girls as agents of change in sustainable development, at a regional consultation meeting held on 06-07 February 2024 in Bangkok, Thailand.

The regional meeting was organized by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and UN Women to deliberate on the theme topic of the 68th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW68) CSW68: “Accelerating the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls by addressing poverty and strengthening institutions and financing with a gender perspective.” Participants were also tasked to draw up a collective list of suggested actions for the CSW to consider when it meets on 11-22 March 2024 in New York. CSW will be chaired by H.E. Mr. Antonio Manuel R. Lagdameo, Permanent Representative of the Philippines to the United Nations in New York.

Invited to deliver opening remarks in recognition of the Philippines’ CSW68 chairmanship, Atty. Khay Ann Mangundayao-Borlado, Officer-in-Charge and Deputy Executive Director of the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) emphasized the interconnectedness of gender equality and empowerment of women and girls, and the eradication of poverty in achieving sustainable development. She added: “By addressing women’s poverty, we contribute significantly to uplifting not only their lives but also their families and communities.”

The Philippine delegation provided key inputs and recommendations on three substantive areas, identifying ways the Asia-Pacific can work together: (i) New Development Strategies: Towards Caring, Green Economies; (ii) Fiscal Space and Mobilizing Financing for Strategies to End Women’s Poverty; and (iii) Developing Economic and Social Policies to Address Gendered Poverty.

On new development strategies, Undersecretary Maralit drew attention to climate change as one of the threats that disproportionately affects women. In the recently signed Philippines-UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework 2024-2028, the Philippines “[prioritizes] the transition towards low-carbon and sustainable economy pathways that are gender-responsive…to achieve carbon neutrality.” The Undersecretary, on behalf of the Philippines, called on all stakeholders “to do the same and continue to support the mainstreaming of gender-responsive climate policies and actions across all levels.

On mobilizing finance strategies, the Philippines advocated gender-responsive budgeting by allocating funds for programs targeting women and girls’ empowerment. The delegation highlighted the Philippines’ conditional cash transfer program which goes beyond cash grants to include family development sessions to empower parents, especially mothers, to strengthen their decision-making capacity and knowledge on critical issues such as climate change and environmental protection.

Finally, on economic and social policies to address gendered poverty, the Philippines urged Member States to provide women with economic opportunities and leadership roles, especially in male-dominated fields such as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

The Philippine delegation also provided constructive comments to strengthen the draft list of suggested actions that will be considered at the CSW68, which includes: i) ensuring a whole-of-society approach to effectively address gender equality gaps; ii) strengthening public and private insurance that will support households, especially women-headed households, to recover from economic shocks and prevent deeper poverty; and iii) designing and implementing employment-related care policies such as flexible working arrangements to support women’s participation in the labor force and address their domestic caregiving responsibilities.

The Philippines continues to engage in productive dialogue with various stakeholders toward actionable measures to advance gender equality and empower all women and girls.

For information on the Asia-Pacific Regional Consultations on the theme topic of CSW68, please visit:

https://www.unescap.org/events/2024/asia-pacific-regional-consultation-sixty-eighth-session-commission-status-women-csw68. END