To mark International Women's Day, Global Compact Network Kenya, in partnership with the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE), International Finance Corporation (IFC), and UN Women, joined over 100 stock exchanges worldwide for the annual Ring the Bell for Gender Equality ceremony.
This initiative underscores the private sector’s role in advancing gender equality by encouraging companies to adopt and implement the Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs).
The theme for this year's International Women’s Day, For ALL Women and Girls: Rights. Equality. Empowerment underscores that despite progress, women and girls worldwide still face systemic barriers that limit their full potential as economic and social change agents.
With the findings from the UN Global Compact report Corporate Africa: Advancing Gender Equality underscoring the urgency of closing the economic gender gap across the continent, Chief Guest, Cabinet Secretary for Wildlife and Tourism Rebecca Miano emphasized that investing in gender inclusion can profoundly enhance a company’s performance and profitability, ultimately leading to increased productivity.
Global Compact Network Kenya Executive Director, Judy Njino, reaffirmed the organization’s commitment to advancing Sustainable Development Goal 5 (SDG 5) and called on the private sector to partner with the organization in driving meaningful change through initiatives such as fostering male allyship, engaging in the Target Gender Equality (TGE) Accelerator, signing up for the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs), and committing to the Forward Faster Initiative.
Nairobi Securities Exchange CEO, Frank Mwiti, emphasized the need to expand gender-lens investing, increase women’s access to capital, and ensure equal remuneration for equal work.
Mary Porter Peschka, Regional Director for Eastern Africa at IFC, stressed the importance of gender diversity in corporate leadership and the need to invest in women-led enterprises.
Meanwhile, UN Women’s Kenya Country Representative, Antonia Sodonon, noted that they are working with the State Department for Gender and Affirmative Action to finalize and roll out the National Care Policy, which will guide gender equality interventions in the country.