Directory of Maltese women competent in various fields being compiled

Maltese women are being asked to take part in the compilation of a Directory of Maltese Women through the completion of a questionnaire being disseminated to women in public and private entities.

These include Government Ministries and Departments and other public entities, private industries and companies, hotels and catering establishments, private schools and health clinics, TV and radio broadcasting companies, newspapers, professional associations, the University of Malta, political parties, trade unions, non-professional organisations/foundations, committees, commissions, voluntary and charitable organisations and community groups.

The objective is to include women from the widest possible diversity of areas including education, health, legal services, social work, politics, trade, marketing, tourism, science and technology, communications, broadcasting, international affairs, human rights, environment protection and security services.

The project is being carried by Department for Women in Society, that is currently upgrading its Directory of Maltese Women, a database created in the past years to give visibility to women competent in various fields and to enhance the opportunities of women to assume positions of leadership and responsibility at all levels of Malta’s development process.

Information in the database is to include the qualifications, skills, activities, and experience of Maltese women in the different sectors of society, and is to be compiled in the form of a Directory that will be put on the Department’s website, together with the questionnaire.

Ministries and departments, local associations, organisations, trade unions and other entities may subsequently make use of this database to identify persons to serve on Government boards and committees, speakers for seminars, fora, discussions, and television and radio programmes.

The database will also serve as a point of reference for the Department and other organisations to identify women experts to advise and/or participate in various fields, and will provide a mailing list for the activities of the Department.

The Directory for Maltese Women should prove crucial in empowering officials in decision-making positions to work towards a more balanced representation of women and men in all sectors and at all levels of Maltese society. This is in line with the objectives of the European Union’s Fourth Action Programme for Equal Opportunities between Women and Men (1996-2000), and with Commonwealth initiatives to increase the advancement of women to higher-grade positions in all fields.

The Directory should thus aid the implementation of gender equality in the field of decision-making in line with Malta’s gender equality legislation that is to be enacted by the end of 2002. Consequently the Directory is a further step in Government’s enhancement of gender equality in Malta.