International Women's Day is celebrated worldwide under the initiative of the United Nations. This year the theme of the day is 'Women's equal rights, equal opportunities, let's invest to advance'. Equal rights and equal opportunities are essential for the advancement of women. Before starting the article I would like to specifically mention the women of Palestine. Women have suffered more in Israel's attacks. Of the more than 30,000 people who have died in Gaza since October 7, 25,000 are women and children. Needless to say, the women living there are living in indescribable misery. We want the world to take urgent measures to stop the war there.
Let us come to the context of Bangladesh. Our women are moving forward. The number of female students in primary and secondary education is high and their participation in higher education is also increasing. Poor families in remote areas are also emphasizing women's education. Attitudes have changed in people. That is, they have learned to understand that girls are looking at their parents more in their old age.
We have come a long way, it is true. But women everywhere are still lagging behind in terms of being fully equal. Women play a major role in our foreign exchange earnings. Most of the workers in the garment industry are women. Again, a large number of women migrate every year for work. The remittances they send form one of the backbones of our economy. But in the garment industry women are not working in important positions in that sense. There are hardly any women in policy-making or higher positions, including supervisors, or in advanced machinery. The training that will take the women to these positions and increase the income - that work is not being done. Here women are left behind because of the perspective.