Club to include men in scholarship to promote equality

EXTENDING education scholarships which were once offered only to women is a way forward in addressing gender parity, says Business and Professional Women’s (BPW) club of Port Moresby president Jessinta Wagambie.
Wagambie, in commemoration of International Women’s Day on Friday, said that in line with this year’s theme, balance for better, scholarships offered annually by the BPW club of Port Moresby will now be available to both men and women, BPW hosted a breakfast last Friday which is one of its major annual fundraising activities.
Wagambie said they realised that to effect change more boldly, men and women should work together and look for ways to partner with relevant organisations to increase the economic participation of women.
“This year’s theme is a call for a more gender-inclusive world,” Wagambie said.
“It is a call for action; we must all ask ourselves how we can make a difference individually.”
The club was established in 1982 and is affiliated with BPW international which is operating in 80 countries.
BPW aims to promote the interest of and to encourage cooperation among business and professional women here and overseas, encourage women and girls to further their education at every level, and work for equal opportunities and status for women in the economic, social and political life of PNG.
Wagambie said women should have equal opportunities to earn, learn and lead and BPW has contributed towards that goal.
She said their flagship scholarship has expanded to include the science technology engineering and maths (STEM) which was launched in 2014 with ExxonMobil women in engineering network.
“The scholarship to date has awarded 19 scholarships worth more than K120,000,” Wagambie said.