Mr. Chair,
The Bahamas congratulates you and the members of the Bureau on your election. I assure you of my delegation’s full cooperation and support as you guide our deliberations during this Sixty-ninth session of the Commission on the Status of Women.
Mr. Chair,
The Bahamas has a strong ecosystem of policy and action on women’s legal, health, entrepreneurial, and education initiatives. These productivity imperatives are informed by the intensified challenges faced by SIDS – which negatively impact women and girls more than their male counterparts. As we mark the thirtieth anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, we remain guided by the Declaration as a blueprint.
Women in Leadership and Decision-Making
21.8% of the senior political positions in The Bahamas are occupied by women in the offices of the Governor-General, Speaker of the House of Assembly, and President of the Senate together with cabinet ministers and members of the senate.
Violence Against Women
Mr. Chair,
We expect the appointment of the country’s first female Commissioner of Police in December 2024 to have great impact in support of the laws to protect women from violence, including being trafficked.bWe have introduced National Health Insurance. We have seen a 53% decline in HIV/AIDS diagnoses, a 0% rate of mother-to-child transmission, and a decline in maternal mortality.
Our program for assisting women and children affected by domestic violence is a critical support system.
We have constructed proactive programs that support gender equity with accessible funding initiatives for women and disabled entrepreneurs with great effect on the community of small business initiatives.
Education and Training
Mr. Chair,
Enrollment at the University of The Bahamas continues to rise, with women comprising a higher percentage of the student population. Bahamian women are now environmental scientist, biomedical scientist, engineers, and a Bahamian woman also serves as a first officer for a major cruise line. These are but a few examples.
Challenges in Achieving the Beijing Platform
Mr. Chair,
Like other Small Island Developing States, The Bahamas remains deeply vulnerable to Climate Change, natural disasters, and external economic shocks. The COVID-19 pandemic struck at a time when Caribbean nations were already navigating significant challenges in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals. The Bahamas addresses these realities with the aims of gender equity informed by the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the complimentary ambitions of the Sustainable Development Goals and the Pact for the Future.
We appreciate the support of our partners, including CARICOM, UN Women, UNDP, UNFPA, the Commonwealth Secretariat, and various NGOs.
We shall continue to move forward, upward and onward together in pursuit of this ambition.
Mr. Chair,
I thank you
