Though countries around the world lag behind gender parity goals and sustainability targets for their development and economies, the empowerment of women will expedite the process of achieving significant objectives, Hanzade Doğan Boyner told Daily Sabah
“At Hepsiburada, we believe that strong and sustainable economies of the future can only be achieved when women have a leading role in them,” the chairperson remarked.
By Daily Sabah/Turkey
photo: Hepsiburada Chairperson Hanzade Doğan Boyner
Ensuring gender parity in economic and political participation will continue to remain an ominous challenge as societies around the world, be they developed or developing, are still struggling to provide accommodating conditions for further inclusion of women. Yet, in a global context where the biggest concern has become to create stronger and more sustainable economies of the future, women will have a leading role, remarked Hanzade Doğan Boyner, the chairperson of Turkish e-commerce company Hepsiburada.
Not restricted by any geographical distribution, gender inequality in the workplace or in the corridors of political powerhouses is a prevailing issue since women take far fewer roles in decision-making processes. In a recent report on Gender Parity, the World Economic Forum (WEF) predicted that it will take 257 years for women to achieve full equality in economic participation while the political gender gap will be closed in 95 years. Despite various reasons for the economic gender gap, the report highlighted low numbers of women in managerial positions, wage stagnation, labor force participation and income.
Presenting another perspective on the challenges women face while participating in the labor force, Boyner emphasized, in an exclusive interview with Daily Sabah, that women face educational or cultural barriers when entering the workforce and encounter issues ranging from child and elderly care responsibilities to various widely accepted customs that generally discourage women from working.
The WEF report also underscored that women’s participation in the wider labor market has stalled and financial disparities are increasing. Globally, the trend is toward a deteriorating picture in emerging and developing economies, which is offsetting the gains made in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries.
In a bid to emphasize the wider impacts of women’s economic empowerment, Boyner said, “It is important for people to understand that supporting women’s economic empowerment is not only good for women; it is good for families and good for the economy.”