More than 100 Thai companies pledge to empower women

Thailand has a global reputation for the high percentage of its women working as business executives, and now management at 110 Thai companies are taking that one step further, signing on to a United Nations campaign to raise the level of women’s economic empowerment.

The commitment by Thai companies represents “nothing less than bold, decisive actions to secure a generation of equality in business as well as women’s full and equal participation across all sectors,” said Mohammad Naciri, Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific at U.N. Women.

Naciri was speaking at the signing ceremony in Bangkok for the WeEmpowerAsia initiative. Created by U.N. Women, the initiative “aims to mobilize the private sector towards gender equality and increase women’s full and equal economic participation.”

Naciri said that the pandemic has created new opportunities to advance women’s status. “The ‘new normal’ shines a light on our common humanity, shared vulnerabilities, and it is only through a collective, collaborative recovery that a more gender-equal society can be fully achieved,” he said.

The 110 Thai executives pledged to improve gender equality in the boardroom, adopt equal pay for equal work, and create safer and more inclusive workplaces. Before this year, 11 Thai companies had already been participating in the program. Globally, more than 3,600 companies have signed on.

In Asia, the program focuses on China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam.

The U.N. founded WeEmpowerAsia in 2010. It promotes the Women’s Empowerment Principles, which include:

– Establishing high-level corporate leadership for gender equality;
– Treating all women and men fairly at work, without discrimination;
– Ensuring health, well-being and safety of all workers; promoting education, training and professional development for women;
– Implementing enterprise development, supply chain and marketing practices that empower women;
– Promoting equality through community initiatives and advocacy; and,
– Measuring and reporting on progress towards gender equality.

Photo courtesy of https://news.un.org/en/story/2020/09/1074342