The Tribune

By ROCHELLE DEAN

Women are seen as an important part of the international development agenda and as a large contributing factor to the Bahamian informal economy.

There are more women who participate in the informal economy and they account for the sustainability of many homes and children in the community.

This is the greatest reason it is imperative that women become empowered to reduce poverty and develop strategic development interventions that focus on practical gender needs.

The importance of women to the Bahamian economy is just as important as foreign direct investment and other global investments in the country.

While The Bahamas promotes entrepreneurship, it is important for the country to see the value in facilitating the achievement of strategic gender needs by uniting women, raising their awareness of female empowerment, financial literacy and other interventions that prevent or reduce income poverty.

While the government continues to try to regularise the informal economy unsuccessfully, it is important that women understand the importance of this sector and how best they can take advantage of opportunities to transition into the formal economy by developing programmes and other tools and resources that allow them to become fully empowered.

The unspoken ‘unpaid work’ is seen as unappreciated when there are many opportunities for women who do not work to take their talents and natural gifts and develop small at-home businesses that grow the economy and promote inclusion. This area of women’s work emphasises the importance of men being educated on the important role that women play in the development of the country as well as to further empower them economically.

While The Bahamas has developed a National Development Plan (NDP) specifically focused on Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and is currently up for national review at the high level political forum in 2018, the country must begin capacity building for women through skilled experts, the Department of Gender and Family Affairs and other organisations who can develop programmes like FEM Finesse, an initiative on financial literacy with the aid of Marion-Bethel Sears, the United Nations expert for CEDAW and the Department of Gender and Family Affairs director Gaynel Curry. These programmes specifically can assist in this area of female empowerment and social change.

While the country has many experts in motivational speaking, in order for it to see economic development that aids in poverty alleviation, skilled expertise must be applied to achieve the goals required for The Bahamas to see success with its NDP.

It is imperative for The Bahamas to see the important role of capacity building in the area of female empowerment with a direct connection to private data collection. This has recently become prevalent in the implementation of the global agenda at national, sub-national and regional levels that will give the country the material to further develop programmes that impact urban development and the country’s citizenry.

It will also return confidence to public-private partnerships that are transparent and focused on proper principles that drive new emerging markets as well as allow women to apply economic tools and develop further opportunities to integrate entrepreneurship and impact the economy.

• Rochelle R Dean is a Bahamian scholar, research fellow and peer-reviewer and a theory writer of economics presently completing a Bachelors of Science dual degree in economics and public administration with Liberty University, Lynchburg, Virginia. She is an Empower Women Global Champion for Change with UN Women. Comments to dean_rochelle@yahoo.com