Publication Launch of the “Empowerment of Women in Democracies of Developing Countries: The Experience of the Dominican Republic”

On April 3, the Cafe Filó of the Juan Bosch Library in Dominican Republic welcomed a discussion based on GFDD and FUNGLODE’s brand new publication: “Empowerment of Women in Democracies of Developing Countries: The Experience of the Dominican Republic”.

This volume written by Rosa Rita Alvarez is part of the GFDD and
FUNGLODE publication series: RESEARCH AND IDEAS – Gender; and since it is directly linked with one of The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) (Promoting gender equality and empowering women), it was presented during a panel discussion held in March, 2012 during the Commission on the Status of Women at United
Nations headquarters.

Ms. Rosa Rita Álvarez who currently heads the micro credit section of the Banco de Reservas, and who also served as the former Executive Director
of Mujeres en Desarrollo (MUDE – Women in Development) introduced her work to the Dominican public with the following statement:
“The advancements of Dominican women, in relation to decision-making and their participation in the power structures, have not taken place to the same extent as have their contributions to development and democracy”.

Yamile Eusebio, Director of GFDD’s
office in New York and of the Formative Activities at FUNGLODE, introduced Álvarez to an audience that was mainly constituted of women who are politically active and work on initiatives related to the development of their gender.

Álvarez shared the figures contained in the report to describe the current reality of Dominican women participating in politics as members of a political party, and working in the areas of health, security and economic empowerment.

The results show that despite the percentage of women registered in the voter list, which is slightly higher than the percentage of men, and the existence of a law which establishes a 33% quota for women working at the Congress or the Municipality, “these numbers have not yet been reached, notwithstanding an increase in women’s representation.”

When it comes to the health sector, the researcher stated that teenage pregnancy is today a
major cause for concern, given that these figures are among the five highest rates in theAmericas. “A total of 92 teenage girls for every thousand females become pregnant between the ages of 15 and 19.”

She argued that this situation “perpetuates the cycle of poverty, increases the school dropout rates, reduces employment opportunities, and increases the teenagers’ likelihood to fail in their relationships with their
partners.”

GFDD and its sister organization FUNGLODE are proud to offer to the Dominican society a publication that can be used as a tool to stimulate dialogue around issues pertaining to gender equality and women’s empowerment as well as call attention to the need for continued progress in the areas of health and security and economic empowerment.

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Related Links:
www.gfddpublications.org