This morning, Representative Bi-khim Hsiao joined Ambassador Kelley Currie from the State Department’s Office of Global Women’s Issues in a webinar on “Women’s Leadership: Redesigning the Post-COVID19 Era.” She spoke about the importance of women’s participation in politics and the workforce, as well as noting the many contributions by women in the fight against COVID-19.
“I want to be clear: female leadership matters. A country cannot be well run when half the population do not feel empowered to participate. And a company cannot be well managed when 50 percent of potential hires are excluded. It’s not just common sense, there is also robust data that show when women participate on a level playing field, results tend to be better, countries tend to be more prosperous, and societies more resilient,” Representative Hsiao said.
Representative Hsiao shared Taiwan’s track record in promoting gender equality. Over 40% of members of the Taiwan Legislature are women, the highest ratio in Asia. As Taiwan’s first female head of state, President Tsai has also made it a priority to tackle the issues that prevent women from entering the workplace, increasing the number of childcare facilities, lowering the gender pay gap, and establishing programs to support women entrepreneurs.
Representative Hsiao also referred to Taiwan’s successful response against COVID-19 as indicative of a larger trend where women leaders around the world acted strongly and decisively against the pandemic, making swift decisions given difficult circumstances. Women have also served as essential workers in health and senior care facilities, public transportation, schools, and many other critical jobs that are keeping communities safe.
Representative Hsiao said Taiwan looks forward to deepening its continued work with the United States to empower women around the world. Taiwan and the U.S. have announced a joint project to train women entrepreneurs and work with them in developing gender smart strategies, under the U.S. Women’s Global Development and Prosperity Initiative (W-GDP). She stated: “As countries that have made significant progress in gender equality, Taiwan and the United States should continue to lead the way towards more inclusive societies, both at home and abroad.”
The webinar was co-hosted by the Foundation of Women’s Rights Promotion and Development and Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.