Women’s Inclusion in Economy is Smart Economic & Defence Policy: Ivanka Trump at G20 Summit

Ivanka Trump, the adviser to the US President said, "We must continue to prioritize women's economic empowerment and place it at the very heart of the G20 agenda."

Osaka: Ivanka Trump, US President Donald Trump’s daughter and senior White House adviser, on Saturday called on G20 leaders to prioritize women’s empowerment, citing the benefits female participation in the workforce will have on the global economy.

“We believe that women’s inclusion in the economy is not solely a social justice issue, which of course it is. It’s also smart economic and defence policy,” Ivanka Trump said at an event here on the sidelines of the ongoing G20 Summit.

She said that if women participated in labour markets on an equal footing to men, global annual GDP could rise between $12 trillion and $28 trillion by 2025, reports Kyodo News Agency.

She also said research shows that states with higher female participation are less likely to use violence or military force to resolve international conflict.

“We must continue to prioritize women’s economic empowerment and place it at the very heart of the G20 agenda,” the adviser to the US President said. “This is a legacy worth fighting for and a future we can be proud to leave to our children.”

During the event, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe received reports on activities and recommendations on the issue from groups such as a UN entity dedicated to gender equality and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Abe said the G20 will establish a follow-up system to review at the leaders’ level the steps taken by members to achieve a goal agreed in 2014 of reducing the gender gap in labour force participation by 25 per cent by 2025.

The event was held to add momentum to women’s empowerment, seen as essential for achieving sustainable economic growth, according to the Japanese government.