LONDON: Malaysia is committed to step up efforts for the empowerment of women in the maritime sector, ensuring equal opportunities which will lead to the creation of employment.
This was reiterated by the Minister of Transport, Anthony Loke during his closing remarks at the Day of the Seafarer, held at the headquarters of the International Maritime Organisation here, recently.
The seminar for the Day of the Seafarer, which was hosted by Malaysia, was themed “I am on Board with Gender Equality”, which is closely related to the World Maritime Day theme, “Empowering Women in the Maritime Community”.
“This, of course, is in line with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), particularly SDG5 - Achieve Gender Equality and Empower All Women and Girls and Malaysia, as a member state for both the UN and the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), is actively empowering the role of seafarers and the involvement of women in the maritime sector,” he said.
Malaysia, he said, is concerned in raising the standard of living for not only Malaysian seafarers, but also seafarers all over the world. Malaysia is active in promoting seafarer’s welfare especially in terms of safety, marine welfare as well as their family members and also ensuring the conducive working environment, especially for developing countries and Small Island Developing States.
He emphasized that women’s contributions to the economy are notable with ever-growing percentages of their representation in the labour workforce.
“However, women face many plateaux, and the same goes to the maritime industry. It is crucial that effective actions to be taken to empower women and girls so that the industry is prepared to take on the demands and challenges of the global market."
He added that despite the many challenges faced, many women have managed to overcome these challenges and climb the ladder leading to key positions in the maritime industry. This should serve as an inspiration not only for other women but also for the male counterpart.
The minister, in an interview said, “In a male-dominated domain, there are certainly challenges faced by women. However, we will want to face any challenge professionally. We will organise seminars and workshops to create awareness not just to the women but also to men so there’s mutual respect between men and women in this sector. We will have equal opportunities for both genders in the maritime sector."
He hoped that more women will become involved because the maritime sector plays an important role in the development of the country.
“The Straits of Malacca is a very important and busy shipping lane and this certainly creates economic opportunities for the country. If we can develop this sector well, it will create a lot of work opportunities for our people,” he said.
Delegates at the seminar, led by IMO Secretary-General, Kitack Lim, were then treated to Hari Raya delicacies before they watched the movie ‘Pulang’ – a true life story of a son searching for his seafarer father from Serkam, Melaka.
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