Bangladeshi Women More Empowered Than Some EU Countries

European Union Ambassador to Bangladesh Rense Teerink on Sunday lauded Bangladesh for performing better on the Global Gender Gap Index than the Netherlands and Luxembourg.

She made the comment while observing an International Women's Day program at a city hotel organized by the European Union.

Teerink said women are experiencing various forms of social and economic problems not just in Bangladesh but in several countries across the world.

"In the Netherlands, there are so many taboos. There, just 34 percent of the people are financially independent. If a married woman does any work, she has to face various types of scrutiny, including not having time with their kids and sending their kids to daycare centers," she said.

The ambassador said Bangladesh is doing well when it comes to empowering women. Since women still face several obstacles here, these should be discussed, as well as raising awareness regarding gender equality among citizens, she said.

At the function, speakers said gender equality is a core principle of the European Union, though it is still not a reality.

While expressing the views, they said the use of our creativity and uniqueness is a must in industry, politics, and society to achieve the full potential.

They said women face too many barriers and challenges on their path and added that women continue to be objects of gender-based harassment, racism and hate speech in Europe and beyond.

Even if Europe is a good address for women, one in three women in the EU was subject to physical and sexual violence, they said.

While more women graduate from universities, the speakers said they receive 16 percent less on average than men do. Just eight percent of the EU's top companies' CEOs are women, they said.

The function was told that this is not what our Union stands for. Everyone, regardless of his or her gender, should be able to live free from violence and pursue his or her chosen path in life.

“We need a change and the moment is now. We need to remember: progress towards equality between women and men is neither inevitable nor irreversible”, it added.

The EU adopted the EU’s Gender Equality Strategy, setting out concrete actions for the next 5 years, including on pay transparency.

The Policy is also the response of the EU to the Beijing Declaration and Framework for Action – the first international agreement and action strategy to support women and men on fair opportunities.

The EU will continue to support, foster and defend women's rights and equality whilst combating gender-based abuse, including in vulnerable circumstances such as crisis and emergency.