IFC, CSE promote ‘Gender Equality’ in Sri Lanka
View(s):For the fifth consecutive year, IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, partnered with the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) to ring the opening bell for trading in celebration of International Women’s Day 2020. An annual global gender initiative, Ring the Bell encourages the private sector to expand opportunities for women as leaders, employees, entrepreneurs, and consumers to promote sustainable development, IFC said in a media release.
While progress has been achieved in educational and health outcomes, Sri Lanka lags behind in women’s participation in the workforce with only 34 per cent, compared to 76 per cent for men. At the same time, the latest research by IFC and CSE points to a rise in the number of women board directors. In 2019, 9.6 per cent of listed company board directors were women – a significant rise from 8.5 per cent in 2018 and 8.14 per cent in 2017.
From left - David Holly, High Commissioner, Australian High Commission in Sri Lanka; Amanthi Perera, Deputy General Manager Strategic Sustainability of MAS Holdings, and Steering Committee member of UN Global Compact Sri Lanka; Amena Arif, Country Manager for IFC Sri Lanka and Maldives; Rasakantha Rasiah, Chairman, Sri Lanka Institute of Directors; Anoka Abeyrathne, Asia-Pacific Representative to UN Habitat Youth Advisory Board; Ramaaya Salgado, Programme Analyst, UN Women; Dumith Fernando, Director, Colombo Stock Exchange.