Dr Mere Tuisalalo Samisoni’s presentation on
Association of Development Financing Institutions in the Pacific (ADFIP) contributions to women empowerment
Pacific Regionalism and Climate Change: New Opportunities for ADFIP
At 2016 ADFIP Annual Meetings
Raddison, Denarau, Fiji - Monday, 21st November 2016
1. Introduction.
In our connected and interdependent world, there are 3 important points I would like to make in my presentation on Women’s empowerment to show how the Association of Development Financing Institutions can increase its commitment role through financial empowerment of that process. Once financial empowerment is achieved economic, social, cultural, technical, political, spiritual, moral, ethical, informational empowerment follow making the pie better in quality and bigger in size to share with care.
First, Research; Get the Data Right
Lena Abira Feh, Lebanese American University was in ABC News Nov 10, 2016.
When she said, “The Trump Victory over Clinton is a serious setback for Women worldwide”.
At a global level, Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton’s speech, conceding defeat after the US presidential elections had to start to put it right by saying that the glass ceiling remained in tact. There is a lot of work left to do to advance the empowerment of women because what happens in America, the leader of the free western democracies, impacts the rest of the world. Although, this is our biggest challenge it is still achievable.
Secondly, how did the American pollsters get their readings, so wrong?
Their methodologies to detect and remove bias in both the Right Liberal and Left Conservative leanings did not check out with what the voters of their opponents were thinking. This oversight is a very fundamental flaw in the purpose for research through polls, survey, census, ballot, sample and market research. From a Woman’s perspective as a market, and especially after the American November 9th Presidential Elections, we owe it to our little girls, our little boys, their families and our communities of the future, to facilitate the basic truths of our humanity.
We should feed relevant data into our research methodologies for relevant responses out. These are human beliefs of right over wrong, good over evil values in our civil societies for generations to grow in a stable, peaceful world.
Thirdly, getting it wrong will have a grave impact on Women in America and other parts of the globe, like Fiji and the Pacific region in particular. Especially Trump’s opposition to the Pacific Partnership Trade Agreement (PPTA), which, any free trade philosophy in my opinion, offers the promise of financial and economic empowerment as entrepreneurial opportunities for the region in general and National States, in particular.
Amanda Taub (NYT Nov 9th, 2016) has been investigating in the last year the rise of a new kind of populism – a majoritarian backlash including speaking to dozens of social scientists and gathering original data. While, research varies, their conclusions all converge on three key factors to explain what is taking place in Mr. Trumps America and Presidential win:
i). Fear of social change;
ii). Fear of terrorist attacks and other physical threats; and
iii). The crises of identity that many whites are experiencing as they struggle to maintain their position.
The three factors have lead to a new kind of populism, not the rage of the long* marginalized poor as is typical of the left populist governments e.g. in Latin America for example.
Rather it is the “majoritarian backlash”, resulting in the rage of those who now are slightly less powerful against the gradual erosion of their privileges. That backlash fueled Mr. Trump’s candidacy and now against all predictions has landed him in the White House.
2. The case for democratic process.
I would like to spend a little time on the subject research, which in America, of all places, did not achieve its purpose. America, as the Leader of the free Western world of choice for democratic governments, independence of Legislator or Parliament, Executive and Judiciary, rule of law, freedom of association, information, assembly and religious beliefs, the recent American presidential elections, with the choice of President elect Billionaire Donald Trump over the qualified Hillary Clinton shocked the Western world to its core. We know why.
However, Hillary Clinton, when delivering her speech, conceding defeat, rose to the occasion and congratulated President elect Donald Trump also adding that she will work with him, that included her role for the peaceful transfer of power to the elected Republican nominee and Party.
She went on to describe the vision, mission and values to continue the fight to defend the democratic freedoms for continued rights, for all groups to co-exist; Blacks, Whites, Latinos, Mexicans, Muslims, Asians and other minorities under the American living Constitution. From this diversity agree on common goals, as we are “stronger together” to live the American dream.
Further, she reminded us all that life is about success and failure and while failure hurts, the challenge is about learning from that process, and to continue to work together to demand that America and the free world is “stronger together”. To achieve this, the election polls and exit polls are important to explain the win, but this information is only the beginning to hold the President elect and the Republican Party to account.
In Hillary’s closing remarks she quoted from the scriptures, the book of Galatians 6:9. “Let us not become weary in doing good. For in doing good there are seasons, when to reap and when to have faith in each other. Do not lose heart. Our season is yet to come as there is more work to do”. Today is the time to be reminded of spiritual capital and wisdom.
May I add at this point, that I was pleased to see Opening Prayer as an Agenda item for this meeting. I believe that women empowerment includes spiritual centering for truth and faith not denial.
2.1 Exit Polls.
Exit poll data showed53 per centof men voted for Trump while 41 per cent voted for Clinton. This figure is far higher for white men, of whom63 per centchose Trump.
It increases again when you add education into the mix, with72 per cent of non-college educatedwhite men voting Trump.
In fact, if only men had voted in the election, Trump would have won by a far greater margin.
When news of this broke, a social media movement sprung up calling for the repeal of the 19th amendment — to ban women from voting.
But none of this should come as a surprise; recent research found hostility towards women was, one of the strongest predictors of support for Trump.
Three political scientists conducted a survey that analyzed indicators of 'hostile sexism' and tracked these against support for the Republican nominee.
The result? Hostility towards women was almost as strongly correlated with Trump support as party identification.
But it wasn't only men that elected Trump:
(White) women voted for Trump, too
42 per cent of women, and 53 per cent ofwhitewomen, voted for him, too.
Commentators have largely attributed this to the fact that women just weren't inspired by the idea of having a female president, or that they're racists (fear on more migrants entering and diminishing White Supremacy).
* As LV Anderson, puts it at Slate Magazine: "More than half of white women looked at the first viable female candidate for the presidency, a wildly competent and overqualified career public servant, and said, 'Trump that bitch'. "Photo: Trumps "locker room talk" saw the emergence of the #PussyGrabsBack movement. (Reuters: Eduardo Munoz). Interestingly, women of color — women who have largely been left behind in the struggle for women's equality — overwhelmingly voted for Clinton.
* These women were underrepresented in public debates on key issues, are more likely than white women to be employed in low-wage jobs, and have higher rates of disease and lower rates of healthcare than their white counterparts. And so it's hard to argue that gender was not a high priority for these women. Dismissing it as 'locker room talk' is risky.
Women who make up 50% of the population worldwide are a human capital niche market, with the metrics to accept and build on the strengths as Hillary so graciously and bravely branded. Not go into denial, in dominant patriarch societies where the glass ceiling is very much in place worldwide, to high cost and human detriment.
At an international and regional perspective women are moving to top positions gradually but not up or forward enough.
However, in today’s information economy with its corresponding ICT tools, we must continue to make our case heard, based on research & development for innovative ways so the best and qualified professionals move into first place and not “sweep the narrative under the mat”.
In 2015, the Global Gender Gap Report by the World Economic Forum (WEF), Fiji (Columbia & Philippines) have more females than male senior officials, managers and legislators. The ratio in Fiji is 51% to 49%.
The Fiji National Gender Policy (2014, PM, January, 2016) from the Ministry of Women, Children, and Poverty Alleviation (MoWC&PA) all Ministries were mandated to take positive action and alleviate gender parity. There are certainly innovative ways to identify enablers and blockers of change (FT on line Nov 3rd., PS Dr. Koroivueta, of MoWC&P Nov 10th 2015). To date I am still looking for KPI’s not broad statements.
3. Women Empowerment.
* The dictionary defines empowerment, “to authorize or to give power to or to sanction”.
I would like to add financial, economic, social, technical, information, spiritual, ethical, moral and political empowerment which links to ADFIP vision and the broad holistic framework of entrepreneurship.
In Fiji, to give equitable power to women, will require both Public and Private Policy Type Intervention beginning with a reasonable targeted proportion base like 20:80 in order to facilitate women into Leadership roles especially at Parliamentary level. This is WIP for Women in Fiji, to address social change and transformation, while defining moments in the leadership journey.
In my business, my belief in equity has led to a 50% representation of women at all levels of management and Board included.
3.1. Mother my first Teacher.
May I at this moment share my mother’s success story? Her parents, my grand parents were people of the “cloth” who sailed from Tonga with King Ma’afu who brought education and Christianity to Fiji. She attended primary school to Primer 3 level in Mualevu, Lau and continued her education at home based on the Bible, which she read in the vernacular and knew backwards.
She was a prayer Lady and I am convinced my fortune has been streamed from her faith. She divorced my father through abuse and brought up 6 children on $6 Pounds per month in those days. Through her vision, we all attended Levuka Public School (LPS) to form 6 levels then went our different ways to find jobs. The boys joined the Public Service and Private Sector while the girls entered the Nursing profession including myself. I was the only one who attended University, paid for by my company. In those days there was no welfare and $6 pounds a month to bring 6 children up on, my mother responded with her talents. She taught herself to sew, knit, crochet and organized the family to work as a unit, helping with the chores of daily living. It was not child labor either but a survival process of sharing and caring. Mother was smart on the principles of “reduce, reuse, and recycle” and before she died she had $10,000: 00 in her bank, which she asked us to invest in HBK.
3.2. HBK. Franchise model.
On HBK, I moved into business by chance because when we returned to Fiji in 1979 for the late Dr. Jim Samisoni to repay his WHO scholarship, the Fiji Nursing Union did not allow me to be employed at senior management level as I would take up a position for a local Nursing Sister. However, they did offer me a position of junior nurse. I declined gracefully and dug deep into “my heart and talents” for other employment. In February 1981, we set up the first HBK and today we have 25 outlets
with over 500 employees, a turnover of $23M with a 10% NPAT.
HBK is a Franchised Business Model with a 10 year business plan to export the Franchise to the Pacific. We had an outlet in the Solomon Islands (SI) but because the Fiji law did not apply there, the franchise relationship ended when the Franchisee stopped paying the weekly franchise management fee, stipulated in the Franchise Agreement.
HBK is looking forward to Pacific Regionalism where a legal framework can enforce Franchise Agreements and other legal contracts.
May I acknowledge the role, Fiji Development Bank played in the establishment, development and growth of our Indigenous business under Affirmative Action policy of the Rabuka SDL government, HBK and Solar Pacific Fiji for “climate change” is busting at the seems to spread social and business networking?
4. Research & Development
4.1. Samisoni, (2009) Research on Factors Influencing Entrepreneurial Success in Fiji. What are their Implications? This paper is based on the author’s research.
4.1.2. Definition of Entrepreneurship.
Briefly, Entrepreneurship is a worldwide phenomenon. It has taken on greater momentum since the 1950s to impact theory, management and policy, refocusing on human values before technology and profit in the new world order of the 21st Century Information Economy. To include these issues, entrepreneurship framework is integrative in design and particular in systems and process.