While we’ve made significant progress in improving women’s rights, prejudice and poverty continue to impede the fulfillment of their fundamental rights and needs. The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) estimates that there are 10 million women who live in poverty. Poverty makes it more difficult for women to exercise their rights and meet their needs.

Female workers often face insufficient protection and unequal pay. This largely occurs in workplaces where women are practically allowed to work without adequate safety equipment, as well as migrant workers who fall prey to assault and discrimination. Women are being discriminated against in workplaces as a result of unfavorable treatment and disparities in compensation.

Some women are forced to patronize informal work as they are given the responsibility of feeding their families while being responsible for the upkeep of their homes and their children. As informal work provides little to no certainty of earning and bears inadequate protection from the state, women only face further disenfranchisement.

The failure of the prevailing system of livelihood only disables women to acquire the advantages and needs required to become more productive members of society.

Discrimination against women escalates when communities lack access to social services. With the continuous privatization of public services by the state, women are deprived of access to healthcare and a decent standard of living. As the government pushes for a charter change that only favors the interests of a few, women will only be disenfranchised further as social services become more inaccessible to them.

Inklusibo values women’s efforts to fight for their rights. Over the years of community involvement, women have been at the frontline of asserting urban poor rights. As we celebrate Women’s Month, Inklusibo stresses that struggling for women’s rights is equivalent to fighting for a more inclusive future for everyone.

The notion of inclusion envisions a society in which everyone receives adequate support to become more productive members of society. When we denounce all forms of prejudice and violence, we promote the spirit of equality and help create a society free of discrimination, violence, and poverty.