Remarks of Resident Coordinator Thailand at the UN regional Commemoration of International Women’s Day

Thank you for the opportunity to participate in today’s panel as we commemorate International Women’s Day, at this unique time in history. I am inspired by the rich perspectives shared by colleagues from Member States, and representing the public, civil society and private sector.

UN Thailand’s work has gender equity at the heart of every Agency’s mandate. I would like to highlight some of our collective efforts to advance women’s leadership and a more equitable society. We know that empowering women is a fundamental human right, which benefits each and every one of us.

Let me start with the work being done by UN Women, training more than 300 women to prevent trafficking in persons and, in partnership with government and civil society, to engage comprehensively to address violence against women and girls. Nationally, the Agency supports women’s leadership and political participation through collective engagement and advocacy at every level.

In the economic sector, ILO in partnership with the private sector is enabling women to acquire critical soft and technical STEM-related skills to gain quality employment and support career advancement in the electrical and electronics industry. As we know, women are disproportionately at risk of losing employment to automation, and these efforts help to transition them from low-skilled jobs to quality STEM-related careers.

Women’s leadership in society starts with strong education foundations and bridging gender gaps. ITU, UNESCO and UNICEF are jointly working on ICT-training, including artificial intelligence and programming, to prepare girls and young women for the new technology-driven world and to close the digital divide.

As we cope, adapt and transform in the context of the pandemic, we know the socioeconomic disruption has disproportionally affected women both at work and in the home.

Many women’s economic security has been threatened as they lose income, while taking on the lion’s share of unpaid household work and caring for their families. Those who were already at risk of abuse are increasingly vulnerable to gender-based violence. A recent ESCAP study on Thailand tells us that 14 per cent of lower-income women believe their partners are justified in beating them, a disturbing rationalization that holds true among 7 per cent of women overall.

We just need to look around us to see the immense diversity of women in Thailand and their extraordinary leadership today. Most human rights defenders in Thailand are female, and key partners of the UN. As the country stands out globally for its pandemic response, a million health volunteers continue to conduct outreach and contact tracing, almost 90 per cent of whom are women.

UN Thailand as a whole is working closely with the private sector to lead the way on gender equity. Twenty-four per cent of CEOs and 43 per cent of CFOs in the country are women, well above the global and regional averages.

There is still so much more work to be done together. One urgent issue is adolescent pregnancies, affecting learning opportunities and lifelong socioeconomic wellbeing.

The answer emerges over and over again: women in leadership and decision-making, across the board, have a powerful impact. We can no longer afford to exclude some of our best people at the table, as we make this country and the world more prosperous, peaceful and sustainable, in line with Thailand’s development trajectory and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

I am privileged to work with so many strong women in leadership positions at UN Thailand and in society as a whole. We already know what we are capable of. At this time, our contribution and leadership is more important than ever.

Thank you and I look forward to working with you all.