Date: Wednesday, 29 November 2023
Time: 9.00 AM
Venue: E. L. Senanayake Children’s Library, Kandy

• His Excellency, Eric Walsh, High Commissioner for Canada in Sri Lanka, 
  Kunle Adeniyi, UNFPA country representative to Sri Lanka,  
  Government representatives,
  Representatives of civil society organisations, 
  Invitees and all present here today.

1. It is my pleasure to welcome you all to the inauguration of the Interactive Mobile Space on Gender Transformation and Women’s Empowerment, here in the beautiful historic city of Kandy. Thank you all for joining us today as part of the series of events marking the 16 Days of Activism.
2. We wished to have this Exhibition travel throughout the nation to demonstrate our collective commitment to removing barriers to gender equality and to combating Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV).
3. While Sri Lanka has made strides in attaining gender equality, progress is far too slow and far too little. Disparities in income, leadership roles, and education persist, signalling a regression in our commitment to gender equality.
4. The challenges of persistent gender disparities are evident, as highlighted by UNDP’s Gender Social Norms Index 2023, which reveals biases against women across various spheres. Around 90 per cent of men and 87 per cent of women hold internal biases against women—roughly the same numbers as a decade ago. A quarter of the global population still condones violence against women. This isn't a challenge resolved through sporadic interventions. In addition, there are alarming rates of gender-based violence (GBV), which often go unreported due to cultural stigma. These are alarming hurdles that require our immediate attention.
5. Moreover, the ongoing economic and political crises have exacerbated the risks of SGBV, disproportionately affecting women and gender minorities. These crises have also impacted women's roles in both productive and reproductive spheres, necessitating urgent intervention.
6. Today, and in the forthcoming 16 Days and beyond, we must introspect: are our efforts enough?
7. Within UNDP's priority areas, women's economic empowerment takes centre stage. By focusing on livelihood support and women's entrepreneurship development, we directly change the lives of women, as they gain a life defined by independence and dignity.
8. While there is no silver bullet to ending SGBV, economic empowerment and financial independence give women an option to walk out of abusive relationships. In addition, there is a direct impact on economic growth when we actively give women the opportunity to be part of the labour force. Company profits and share performance can be close to 50% higher when women are well-represented in senior leadership positions. When more women join the workforce, wages rise for everyone, including men.
9. But we need to accept that women continue to face harassment – be it sexual, verbal or moral, preventing them from fully becoming a productive workforce. 
   Between 2020 and 2022, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) conducted a study with 1,653 employees to better understand the prevalence and impact of violence and harassment on employees and businesses in Sri Lanka. 
   The findings highlighted; a staggering three out of five people surveyed experienced some form of workplace violence or harassment, with nearly one out of five people surveyed feeling unsafe at work in the four weeks prior to the survey. Surveyed employees across all genders and age groups also reported that they were impacted by bullying, sexual harassment, and/or online violence. 
   Due to the impacts of workplace violence and harassment, each company surveyed lost six working days per employee, per year, which is the equivalent of at least $1.7 million across all nine companies. When the country is in dire need of economic revival, we cannot simply afford such a loss.
   There is also a clear economic argument for fighting harassment in times of economic hardship. 
   So, to answer the earlier question, we have a long way to go. And, no, we are not doing enough to move the needle.
10. This mobile interactive space serves to showcase UNDP Sri Lanka's endeavours over the years, actively promoting gender equality across thematic sectors like climate adaptation, inclusive governance, innovation, digitalisation, SDG advancement, and development financing. We firmly believe that to achieve gender equality, we need to have a multifaceted approach. And these efforts have contributed to UNDP Sri Lanka’s Gold Seal Certification last year for its impactful gender equality initiatives.
11. Without an increase in investments, the SDG target of eradicating violence against women and girls by 2030 remains unattainable. Our ongoing dialogues with the Government highlight the critical need to finance GBV, drawing upon our wealth of experience in aligning public and private resources.
12. Within the Tax for SDGs Programme, our focus on the SDG Taxation Framework zeroes in on SDG 5 - Gender Equality, pinpointing specific areas that bolster women's economic empowerment. Through collaboration with the Government, we've outlined an action plan, detailing both immediate and long-term strategies. Similarly, the tagging of the national budget to the SDGs, which was adopted by the Parliament, will provide policymakers with information on budgetary allocations and expenditure for each SDG, including SDG 5.
13. By actively demonstrating practical solutions, we can optimise revenue generation and also redirect substantial funds towards the correct developmental trajectory – ensuring that financial resources drive gender equality.
14. In partnership with UNFPA and Canada, UNDP also actively facilitates access to justice for survivors of SGBV, in partnership with stakeholders in the justice sector through the project ‘Ensuring Justice for Victim-Survivors of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence in Sri Lanka.’ We've contributed technical support to shape policies addressing SGBV, ensuring efficient service delivery to survivors. This initiative aims to empower women, girls, and gender minorities, including survivors of SGBV, ensuring their access to justice and advocating for enhanced service delivery, ultimately striving for a society free from SGBV.
15. We are very grateful for this incredible partnership, and the dialogue series initiated from today onwards is a result of this collaboration.
16. Through this space, it is our sincere hope to foster behavioural change towards gender transformation. Interactive sessions aim to amplify public voices, encouraging idea generation and active participation.
17. We anticipate sharing analyses, engaging communities and civil society, and fostering positive dialogues on SGBV and gender norms through this space. Our ultimate goal, however, is personal transformation, encapsulated by introspective questions for all attendees.
18. As a mobile interactive space, it will reach communities across the island, stationed at each location for three days. Commencing today in Kandy, it will then journey through Jaffna, Anuradhapura, Kurunegala, and Nuwara Eliya, culminating in Colombo on March 8th next year.  
19. We cannot achieve this on our own – to move the needle, we need multistakeholder partnerships that are united and integrated. We highly value our partnership with fellow UN agencies and international partners for their support.
20. I hope you will continue to participate in this journey towards gender equality actively. Let us collectively embrace our responsibility to end SGBV and champion gender equality, paving the way for a brighter, more inclusive future.