CEG INTEC talks about decent work and gender awareness

SANTO DOMINGO. – The Gender Center of the Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo (INTEC), with the support of the Business Cooperative, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Mipymes (MICM), held the seminar “Women make bills: raising awareness on Gender and Decent Work for women and men in the construction sector. Mipymes", which concluded a cycle of workshops carried out with the support of the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and MSMEs, whose objective was to contribute to increasing the productive quality of MSMEs in order to improve their competitiveness in internal and external markets. , promoting inclusive and sustainable growth of the Dominican economy and decent work.

In the activity, aimed at entrepreneurs and workers in the MSME sector from the different provinces and municipalities of the country, a discussion was held with the participation of Mariela Jáquez, an expert in Gender and Micro Entrepreneurship with more than 25 years of work in the cooperative sector. and community development, and Kania Castellanos, expert in the area of ​​Women's Entrepreneurship, Micro Entrepreneurship and advice to small businesswomen, with the moderation of Desiree Del Rosario, coordinator of the CEG INTEC.

In collaboration with the audience, the experts addressed the social conception of the term “gender” and how this impacts the performance of roles, as well as those challenges they faced in personal areas for being a woman.

“Gender is not talking about women, but it involves talking about the relationship between men and women and about how we can contribute to being able to lead a relationship in peace, but also lead a country in peace, a nation where one is not on top of the world.” another, but that we can both have opportunities to develop ourselves and be able to contribute with our capabilities and our work to the development of the country,” explained Castellanos, who also works as an independent consultant in microbusinesses, project advisor and free-lance provider of environmental reports.

Jáquez added to his comment, who grew up with the prejudices of those things that “boys and girls should do,” but that still did not change his essence and willingness to make decisions not because of his sex, but according to his convictions and “purpose of life.” life".

Decent work for men and women

Decent work refers to having access to productive employment. Kenia Castellanos stated that, among the necessary requirements for a job to be considered worthy, the employer must take into account salary parity, job security, social protection, offering better prospects for personal development, freedom of expression and equal opportunities, taking into account the clear needs of each position so as not to be discriminatory in the personnel selection process.

The importance of promoting decent work, pointed out by the experts, revolves around compliance with the 2030 agenda of the United Nations (UN), increasing the generation of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the country, generating jobs and training to young people.

To contribute to the promotion of decent work, the speakers recommended that businessmen and entrepreneurs not hire minors, offer better opportunities in hiring, support inclusive businesses, consume local products, take into account the generational change when employing a new collaborator and foster a collaborative climate.

About CEG INTEC

The Center for Gender Studies of Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo (INTEC) was founded in 1987 with the aim of studying gender inequality from a formal academic space, defining analytical perspectives and contributing to policies that overcome inequalities. In his more than 30 years, he has developed numerous investigations, advised different public and private, national and international instances, and offered specialized training to a large number of professionals through its different academic programs.

In addition to this seminar, the CEG INTEC, in collaboration with allied institutions, has carried out four activities in different provinces of the country, including Barahona, San Pedro de Macorís and in Santo Domingo, to promote awareness on Gender and Decent Work for women and men from the MSME sector.

“The development of these activities involved the development of research on how to exercise entrepreneurship from a gender perspective based on studies carried out by Art Gol, Big Lab and Public Procurement and Contracting, as well as the review of the MSME Centers manual from a gender approach,” explained Desireé del Rosario, coordinator of the CEG INTEC.