Tabuya: Big blocks remain – Social, cultural norms hold women and girls back

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Minister for Women, Children and Poverty Alleviation, Lynda Tabuya with Assistant Minister Sashi Kiran during break between sessions at Parliament on Monday March. 27. 2023. Picture: JONACANI LALAKOPBAU

Minister for Women, Children and Poverty Alleviation Lynda Tabuya says according to the Fiji Country Gender Assessment (FCGA), gender discriminatory social norms and cultural practices remain a significant obstacle to gender equality in Fiji.

She made the statement in Parliament on Wednesday.

Ms Tabuya said despite notable progress in some areas such as education, critical challenges continued to hold back the empowerment of Fijian women and girls.

“Women outnumber men among students in academic programs at Fiji’s universities, accounting for 60 to 65 per cent of students and over 50 per cent of graduates,” she shared.

“People between the ages of 15–24 years who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) is 18 per cent, with young women most affected at a rate of 30 per cent, three times the rate for young men. “This rate has not substantially changed in recent years.”

She said women’s participation in the formal economy and labour force was significantly lower than that of men, and most working Fijian women were engaged in informal employment with lack of job security, irregular income, and no social protection.

“Women and girls might not be well-positioned to secure work in emerging digital and technical fields, limiting their opportunities for economic empowerment in the context of future of jobs.”

However, data confirmed Fijian girls in secondary school enrolled in computer courses often outnumber and outperform boys.

“The 21st century workplace requires that nearly everyone have digital skills.

“It is important to note that these statistics are in the context where women outnumber men among students in academic programs at Fiji’s universities, accounting for 60 to 65 per cent of students and over 50 per cent of graduates.

“The gender parity ratio of girls to boys enrolled in secondary-level home economics courses is 15 or greater; in contrast, the gender parity ratio is less than one for digital and other applied technology courses.”

She said there was a need for parents and teachers to reinforce cultural beliefs that science, digital and other technologies, engineering and mathematics education was not “masculine”.

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