Page 2411 - Week 07 - Wednesday, 2 August 2017
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Also included in the commitments of the ACT government is a further $1 million in this year’s budget for programs that will work to encourage and empower women and girls at all levels of sport over the next four years. The buy-in of the Canberra sports community around this work has been great, and I have no doubt that they will keep pushing ahead for positive change. The government looks forward to working with them as these initiatives are implemented.
I have pointed to the fact that the government’s work in the sport portfolio is part of a broader picture. The ACT government continues to lead reforms for gender equity in health, equal rights and domestic and family violence. We are committed to continuing work on building the most inclusive and equitable city that we can. Just recently I launched the women’s action plan, which outlines a range of actions the government will deliver under the theme of health and wellbeing. Clearly, sport and recreation has a connection to that work as it contributes to social inclusion, safety, health and the wellbeing of ACT women.
As you chat with people across different sports and different walks of life there is a real understanding of the chance to embrace these opportunities. The full participation of women and girls in all aspects of our society is critical to the wellbeing of the whole community. It is also important to have more women sitting at the decision-making table. ACT government-appointed boards are sitting at about 48 per cent of women’s representation. This is not accidental; it is the result of tangible measures taken by the ACT government over a number of years. Diversity in leadership creates greater innovation and thought that leads to significantly improved governance and organisational performance.
Despite the positive changes to women’s status and roles made over the last century, gender inequality persists in our community. This includes women’s representation in senior leadership positions, such as boards. We know that, more broadly, gender disparity in leadership roles perpetuates existing stereotypes about the role of women, both at work and in our community. Having more women in leadership positions not only inspires and encourages other girls and women to participate but also sustains women to continue in such roles.
We also know that having more diversity on boards is better for business. Research recently into how to improve gender parity on boards, undertaken by Deloitte in late 2016, states that:
Put simply, boards perform better when they include the best people with a diverse range of perspectives and approaches within an inclusive culture.
Having more women on boards makes good business sense for the organisation and, I would argue, for the whole community. For many years now ACT government appointments have been drawn from the women’s register, a collection of names of women seeking board appointments. The government is currently developing an ACT diversity register, which will merge with and ultimately replace the ACT women’s register.
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