Much attention is given to the gender pay gap, but one hears much less about the increasing gender pension gap – a growing problem in most countries.
Pension systems are usually based on employment related contributions. Women’s working patterns – long career breaks because of child rearing, part-time work , lower salaries and lower retirement ages – all result in reduced pension benefits. Many women rely upon their partners for retirement income, but this is not always a secure option. Coupled with their longer life expectancy, these factors are forcing older women into the poorest demographic groups in many nations.
One solution would be for women to increase optional contributions to pension schemes, but during the economic downturn, fewer women can afford to save, especially those with dependent children.
Some developed countries try to compensate for these differences through systems providing a universal minimum pension and credits for child rearing years. A few have even established pension schemes based on residence instead of employment or family work.
What is the situation in your country? How can the gender pension gap be addressed? Most young women do not think about the later impact of “lost” working years, lower salaries and part-time hours. How do you think women can build a financially secure future?
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Attracting volunteers in the 21st century is a challenge. While some research shows that volunteering has remained steady over recent years, IFUW and other women’s organizations have seen their membership figures slowly decreasing. It is therefore important to understand what kind of organizations and activities are still attracting volunteers.
Apart from the economic and social benefits to the state and community-building, individual benefits seem to be an important aspect of volunteering. On Wikipedia one can read: “volunteering is generally considered an altruistic activity, intended to improve human quality of life, …but people also volunteer for their own skill development, …to meet others …and to have fun”.
What do volunteers look for today? What kind of organizations and activities interest them? Are the individual benefits of volunteering becoming more important? Does IFUW need to change to better meet the needs of the new volunteers?
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IFUW Board and Staff would like to wish all readers a peaceful 2010.
During the next three weeks the blog will take a break. In the meanwhile, we would like to give you the opportunity to suggest future blog topics. Please write to us and share the topics that are “close to your heart” .
We will be back with a new blog post on13 January 2010.
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After years of pressure, the United Nations General Assembly has adopted the long awaited resolution calling for a single, independent gender entity. The new reform will provide a system-wide coherence of the UN gender equality approach by consolidation of the existing gender-related bodies.
A detailed structure proposal will be finalized mid-December; once approved by the Secretary-General, Member States will consider it in a special session in February 2010. The new entity will be headed by an Under Secretary-General thus securing a high level of authority within the UN. The recruiting process will start as soon the UN General Assembly has allocated funding for the position. The appointment will hopefully be confirmed by March 2010.
The GEAR Campaign (Gender Equality Architecture Reform), a network of more than 310 civil society organizations of which IFUW is a member, played a key role in the campaign to achieve the above changes.
GEAR believes that the effectiveness of the new entity depends largely on the level of funding and is calling for an annual budget starting at $1 billion. Some parties would prefer a large percentage of this to come from voluntary donors. IFUW believes that most should come from the regular assessed contributions.
GEAR continues to push for a “systematic and meaningful participation of civil society, especially women’s organizations” in the work of the new entity. Civil society should be given “a voice” through access of meetings, participation in policy formulations, agenda setting, monitoring etc.
What commitment has your government made towards the implementation of the entity? IFUW urges its national federations and associations to contact their government to lobby for adequate funding for the entity’s works and for a strong civil society role in the process.
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According to some estimates, up to 70 per cent of women experience physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. The United Nations General Assembly, which designated 25 November as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, has invited governments, international organizations and NGOs to organize activities designed to raise public awareness of the problem.
UNIFEM has taken a leading role in advocating for the elimination of violence against women in form of a world-wide campaign, Say NO to Violence Against Women. The first phase of this campaign, of which IFUW was a launch partner, generated over 5 million signatures in a global call to make this issue a top priority worldwide. Heads of States and Ministers from 69 Governments and more than 600 Parliamentarians have added their names to Say NO since then.
The second phase of the UNIFEM campaign, Say NO – UNiTE to End Violence against Women, is a global platform for advocacy and action. It aims to trigger and highlight actions by individuals, governments and civil society. Actions can range from adding your name to the Say NO petition, volunteering at local shelters or women’s organizations, advocating for legislation to reaching out to students at schools, spreading the message through blogs and tweets or donating funds that support local organizations on the ground. The initial goal is to reach 100,000 actions by March 2010. IFUW members are encouraged to add their actions taken on the Say NO website.
Every action is counted to showcase the global wave of engagement, urging governments to make ending violence against women and girls a top priority. People must engage at all levels, transform beliefs and attitudes, and ensure laws, programmes and services are implemented and well resourced.
What actions have you taken? Share your experience and inspire others.
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