SUSTAIN PROGRESS IN SECURING GENDER EQUALITY

Senator Edgardo J. Angara lauded the Philippines' ranking 8th out of 135 countries in an international study on gender equality.

The Global Gender Gap report 2011 shows that the Philippines improved by one place from 9th spot last year.

According to the study conducted by the Geneva-based World Economic Forum, the country ranked highly because of its favorable scores in the four major categories: educational attainment, health and survival, economic participation and political empowerment.

"This gradual but continuous improvement in the country's gender equality indicators is a big step towards accomplishing the third Millennium Development Goal (MDG) by 2015," said Angara.

Gender equality, MDG 3, aims to eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education and in all levels of education. It also focuses on equal opportunities in formal employment.

"In the Philippines, in fact, females outnumber males enrolled in college," noted Angara.

"We have not completely closed the gender gap, however. In the workplace, for example, there are still more men in positions of authority, while a lot of women are hired as informal employees with no benefits," said Angara.

Angara, a long-time champion of women's rights, authored the Magna Carta for Women during the 14th Congress. This bill was signed into law in 2009 as Republic Act 9710.