Belarus provides conditions for women to unlock their potential in personal and professional life, members of the round table “The image of successful women in the context of motherhood and family values” noted. The session took place in the Press House on 6 March, BelTA has learned.
Belarusian Deputy Information Minister Igor Buzovsky noted that more women take charge of mass media outlets. “They are managers who are able to unite their staff amidst high competitiveness and difficulties. They stand for the importance of the printed word and the media and respond to the challenges of time,” the deputy minister said. According to him, more than half of regional printed media are headed by women.
Igor Buzovsky believes that there is no need to legislate for quotas to promote women's employment. Lyudmila Kananovich, Deputy Chairperson of the Standing Commission on Labor and Social Affairs of the Belarusian House of Representatives agrees with this opinion.
“We, women, want to succeed not only in family matters and personal life. We want to contribute to Belarus' prosperity, that is why women are broadly represented in mass media, industry, parliament, and international organizations,” Lilia Ananich, Deputy Chair of the Belarusian Union of Women, said. According to her, the union brings together 180,000 women through over 4,000 primary organizations.
UN Resident Coordinator, UNDP Resident Representative in Belarus Joanna Kazana-Wisniowiecki recalled that there is a science-backed vision which says that women should account for at least 30% of managerial staff for a company to develop steadily and successfully. “In Belarus women have plenty of rights and opportunities,” Joanna Kazana-Wisniowiecki noted. However, she criticized a weak contribution of Belarusian men to parenting, household life. “Why do they ask me in Belarus how I balance work and family? Men do not get such questions,” she said.
Igor Buzovsky agreed that some men underestimate the role of women. “It is no secret that even nowadays there are men who come home, sit down on a coach and wait to be served dinner. We have to cultivate a more respectful and considerate attitude to women in the society. This will have more effect than introducing obligatory quotas,” the deputy minister believes.