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The full participation of women in business, in politics and in the labour market, is a sign of the development of modern society, Minister Ivaylo Kalfin said at the forum, organized by the Council of Women in Business in Bulgaria and Women’s Campaign International.
Some people say that leadership is a talant, but I think that it can be taught. Those were the words of Irina Bokova, UNESCO General Director, during the conference-training ADVANCING LEADERSHIP FOR BALKAN WOMEN, organized in Sofia by the Council of Women in Business in Bulgaria and the influential U.S. organization Women’s Campaign International.
Mrs. Bokova pointed out that she was very impressed with the Council’s initiatives and especially the Leadership Academy. The Academy is held annually, in six modules, with professional coaches from UniCredit Bulbank. The Bank has been a member of the Council since its creation. “Anyone can be a leader in his/her own field, anyone can give ideas and contribute. This can be taught and trainings like these help to encourage the leadership among women”, she noted, as she gave as an example the Pakistani Malala Yousafzai, who, only 17, became a Nobel Peace Prize winner.
Irina Bokova also pointed out that in September, the UN will adopt the new sustainable development agenda for the next 15 years. “We must act in such a way that the topic of equality should be the focus of our overall activity. Because, despite the great energy and enthusiasm from the time of the Women’s Conference in Beijing 20 years ago, we are not proud of the results. We cannot accept that only 20% of the world leaders are women”, Mrs. Bokova stressed.
As of June this year, Mrs. Bokova is an honorary member of the Council of Women in Business in Bulgaria. The UNESCO General Director will also be a patron of an International Conference on Women’s Issues, which the Council of Women in Business in Bulgaria will organize in Sofia in 2016.
“Women earn from 10 to 30% less than men for the same kind of work. According to our data, 1,6 billion women live in countries where there are gender restrictions for some job positions and professions”, Irina Bokova also noted. “Inequalities begin very early because of the lack of access to education for millions of girls. We in UNESCO, as a leading world organization in the field of education, set ourselves the task of making education accessible and continued at all stages. It shall lead to the possibility for women to occupy their place in politics and business, in such a way that they remove the present stereotypes”, she pointed out. The General Director of UNESCO hopes that the 21st century may be the century of the real equality between men and women.
Ivaylo Kalfin, Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Labour and Social Policy emphasized that the percentage of women occupying leading positions in the country is twice as high as the average percentage for the EU countries (7%), but nevertheless it still remains very low – only 13%. “That is why all of us – both society and institutions, have to focus our efforts on providing the necessary conditions for it to continue rising. The full participation of women in politics, in business and in the labour market is a sign of the development of modern society”, he said.
According to Minister Kalfin, the lack of time is among the main difficulties that working women in Bulgaria face. “In this regard we have developed changes in the Labour Code that allow flexible working hours. We are working on the introduction of vouchers for help at home and for raising children”, he also noted.
Minister Kalfin also focused on the different remuneration that men and women get. “For the same work, women receive on average 13.5% less than men. The difference in Bulgaria is again less than the average for Europe, which is 16%, but that should not console us, but stimulate all of us, as a society, to work in order to overcome this difference”, the Minister said.
The former Pennsylvania Congresswoman, Marjorie Margolis, founder and President of Women’s Campaign International, gave an insight on the work of the organization for encouraging the better education and the more active participation of women in the public and economic life. “We cannot speak of equality without speaking of education”, she pointed out.
Mrs. Margolis shared her personal and professional experience as a top journalist, a member of the United States Congress and a mother who raised 11 children - own and adopted. “I always tell my children: You cannot win if you are not ready to lose”, the President of Women’s Campaign International said. She told of the missions of the organization in all the corners of the world, including in countries marked by conflicts and poverty like Columbia, Eritrea and Shri Lanka. “We talk with these people, share ideas and, most of all, listen”, Mrs. Margolis noted.
Darina Stoyanova from the Council of Women in Business in Bulgaria thanked the special guests and the participants. “The Council of Women fosters a leadership culture in Bulgaria, supports good practices for increasing the professional qualification of women, tries to give them courage and support in order to make them want and occupy higher positions”, she noted. According to her words, more women in managerial positions mean better business, better society and better life.
“Every decent organization can be recognized by the fact that it supports the education and development of its members as leaders”, said Malina Edreva, president of the Permanent Commission for education, culture, science and cultural diversity with the Sofia Municipality Council. She told of the initiatives of the municipality in the field of education. Mrs. Edreva recalled that the Mayor of Sofia, Yordanka Fandakova, is a patron of the Leadership Academy 2015/2016. “We rely on the sustainability of this project, because it contributes not only to the development of the women in Bulgaria, but also for the development of society as a whole”, she pointed out.
More than 30 ladies from the companies that are members of the Council of Women in Business in Bulgaria, as well as participants in the Leadership Academy of the Council, had the opportunity to be present at the training. They shared their personal and professional experience, the problems and the stereotypes which they have had to deal with in their professional and personal life and received valuable information and guidance on leadership practices, communication skills and ways of encouraging their professional growth.
About the Council of Women in Business
The Council of Women in Business in Bulgaria is a non-profit association for public benefit. Its members are leading managers and representatives of companies and organizations in Bulgaria. Among the goals of the Council are the spreading of good practices and programmes encouraging the professional development of women in small and medium-sized enterprises and their growth into management positions; developing and establishing professional values in civil society, education, science, culture, technologies; support for the young specialists and talents for realization of their potential in Bulgaria and support for disadvantaged youths in their education.
More information about the activity of the Council of Women in Business is available at: