Parliamentarians to discuss partnerships for gender equality at ParlAmericas meeting in Jamaica
On January 24-25, ParlAmericas, in collaboration with the Parliament of Jamaica, will convene an inter-parliamentary meeting in Kingston titled Partnerships to Transform Gender Relations, hosted by the Honourable Olivia Grange, Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport. This meeting will bring together lawmakers from the Anglophone Caribbean and Canada to examine how collaboration across various sectors can foster positive cultural transformation and advance the gender equality agenda.
Integrating the expertise of civil society practitioners, academics and government representatives, the meeting will highlight good practices and critical moments for change that can facilitate alliance building. The Honourable Minister Grange emphasised that this meeting “presents an opportunity for legislators across the region to learn from each other and to develop partnerships towards transforming gender relations and advancing gender equality in our individual countries. Gender equality is about ensuring that men and women equally enjoy the socially valued goods, opportunities, resources and rewards and I am very happy to welcome all our delegates to Jamaica and I look forward to our discussions and the impact that they will have on our societies.”
Topics on the meeting’s agenda include national strategic plans for gender equality and legislation on workplace sexual harassment. Delegates will also consider the powerful role of the media and the arts in awareness-raising, as well as the importance of men’s active participation in gender equality initiatives. Finally, drawing on the meeting’s themes, delegates will conduct strategic planning for the commemoration of International Women’s Day in their countries on March 8, 2018.
According to Dr. Saphire Longmore, Senator of Jamaica and Member of the ParlAmericas Board of Directors, “This gathering deliberately centres culture and social norms in the conversations about tackling gender inequalities through our legislative functions. The ParlAmericas Network for Gender Equality is an important forum for knowledge sharing in these areas; I look forward to sharing with our international colleagues the progress Jamaica has made.”
For updates, including the live graphic recording of this event, follow @ParlAmericas on Twitter and join the conversations using #ParlAmericasGender.
ParlAmericas extends its thanks and recognition to the Bureau of Gender Affairs of Jamaica, as well as to Global Affairs Canada for providing support to this meeting.
