Female chiefs of seven foreign diplomatic missions and United Nations agencies have lauded the role of women in the country's economy mainly engaged in the readymade garments but said lots of rooms are still there to tap the full potential of them.
They urged the government to incorporate girls' higher education, stoppage of child marriage, women leadership-like issues in its Vision 2021 or more to exploit the full potential of women in the workforce.
"You have to look at the gap -- potential and the opportunity… how the country (can) earn the visions 2021 and 2041 without exploiting full potential of women," said Argentina Matavel Piccin, Representative of UNFPA Bangladesh, during a press conference at the residence of the Danish envoy in the city Thursday.
Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, UNFPA and UN Women which the ladies lead organised the press conference to launch a weeklong programme on the occasion of the International Women's Day to celebrate the social, political and economic achievements of women internationally while focusing attention on areas requiring further action.
Other women present at the conference were Wanja Campos da Nobrega, Ambassador of Brazil, Heather Cruden, High Commissioner of Canada, Hanne Fugl Eskjær, Ambassador of Denmark, Merete Lundemo, Ambassador of Norway, Anneli Lindahl Kenny, Ambassador of Sweden and Christine Hunter, Country Representative of UN Women who also highlighted the issues of violence against women and child marriage, women leadership in different stages including the party levels to improve the situation.
The UNFPA Country Director said Bangladesh is a country that had made great stride for the promotion of women as it's around half of workforce which is in production is women.
She, however, said issues like wage discrimination, workplace harassment, violence, abuse could not bring success in the country citing that child marriage, dowry, lack of access to education for girls refrain the country from attaining full potential of women.
During the press conference, all the high commissioners and ambassadors played a real life drama based on seven females of seven different countries to expose that violence against women is a global phenomenon which needs to be stopped through commitment.
Citing the recent data of the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics that 80 per cent women of Bangladesh have experience of some sort of violence, the foreign and UN mission heads said women of this country want to see commitment to work more on the issues to stop violence against women and gender equality.
