Women empowerment key to better life for all: Sumitra Mahajan

GENEVA: The worth of any civilisation can be judged from the position it gives to women, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan today said as she asked countries to accord top priority to women's empowerment, key to a better life for all.

Addressing a global meeting of women speakers of parliament here, Mahajan said it is their duty to ensure that the laws enacted by legislatures are women-friendly.

She also said that parliament served as a model institution for creating a positive environment for women's economic empowerment.

"In order to create a more just and caring world, social and economic policies of countries should accord top priority to women empowerment as it is the key to a better life for all."

She made the keynote address on the theme "Building a Conducive Environment for Women's Economic Empowerment" at the ninth annual meeting, which concluded today.

Speaking on the status of women in the Indian society, she said, "Our culture and ethos justifiably ascribes an honoured status to women. They are an integral part of life and dharma."

Mahajan further said that as per the Indian belief, the concept of inclusiveness prevails as men and women are not independent of each other but are interdependent in the family and the larger society.

Observing that real empowerment comes with education, she said that the literacy rate in India has improved for both girls and boys.

She, however, bemoaned that women in India were facing formidable challenges in almost all spheres of life.

The Lok Sabha Speaker referred to various steps being taken by India for empowering women and furthering their active participation and achievements in the political processes.

She said that to encourage women to join the workforce and protect their rights, Indian Parliament has enacted several legislations on payment of minimum wages, provisions for child care, decent and safe working conditions and basic social security.