It was the best of times, it was the worst
of times,
it was the age of foolishness, it was the
epoch of belief,
it was the season of light, it was the season
of darkness,
it was the Spring of hope, it was the Winter
of despair.
A
Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens
Theme
for Triennium:
Women the Spirit of Enterprise
Yvette
Swan was elected as the fifteenth president
of the International Federation at the Nineteenth
International Congress (1989) in the Bahamas
and had the pleasure of presiding over IFBPW's
Diamond Jubilee (1990) celebrations. The
first International President from Bermuda,
she also had the distinction of being the
youngest president in the sixty-year history
of IFBPW, just eight months younger than
Immediate Past International President Tuulikki
Juusela was when she took office. Yvette
Swan was the first International President
ever to be elected from an affiliate of
the International Federation with Associate
Club rather than National Federation membership
status. Her association with BPW had begun
in 1975 as a Charter Member of the BPW Association
of Bermuda. She was the Association's President
from 1979 to 1981. After serving as Chairperson
of the International Legislation Committee
for two terms (1983-1987), she was elected
First Vice President of the International
Federation in 1987.
At
the age of sixteen, Yvette Swan proved to
be a girl with the "spirit of enterprise"
as illustrated by what she calls her "first
formal stand for equal opportunities of
females" in 1961. Unlike many teenagers,
she already knew what she wanted to be when
she grew up - a Doctor of Optometry. Pursuing
this goal with single-minded purpose, she
wrote for guidance on what courses she should
take in preparation for her chosen career.
One of the courses recommended was Physics.
This represented a major stumbling block.
Although it was offered in boys' schools,
it was not part of the curriculum in the
girls' school which she attended. The Headmistress
of the school was unsympathetic to her pupil's
plight and told her that, "'Physics
was not a ladylike subject.'" That
was the end of that, or so the Headmistress
thought, but she became a firsthand witness
to Yvette's enterprising spirit! With the
backing of her parents, who were both educators,
she told her Math teacher about her problem.
To Yvette's amazement, her teacher informed
her that she was also qualified to teach
physics and would be glad to have her as
a student. With that information in hand,
Yvette was very encouraged and returned
to tell the Headmistress the wonderful news
only to be told that in order to start a
physics class, there had to be eight students
enrolled. Far from being discouraged, Yvette
rose to the challenge. She returned to her
dormitory and "told seven girls that
they were going to take physics, like it
or not." She recalls that not only
did all seven girls agree to take the introductory
one-year course, but they all elected to
take advanced physics the following year.
Nine years later, Yvette Swan graduated
from a university in England with her degree
as a Doctor of Optometry. Yvette Swan proved
to be a woman with the "spirit of enterprise"
to guide the International Federation into
its sixtieth year and through the worst
financial crisis in its history.
IFBPW
PRESIDENT - MARGARET P. HYNDMAN
1956-1959 Canada
IN
MEMORIAM
It
was with great sadness that the Canadian
Federation announced the death of Margaret
P. Hyndman on January 18, 1991. She was
the International Federation's fourth president
and President of BPW Canada from 1946 to
1948. She was a Life Member and Honorary
President of the Canadian Federation. In
1988 she received the Persons Award presented
by the Status of Women Commission of Canada.
She will be remembered for her efforts to
improve the status of women both nationally
and internationally.
BADGE
OF HONOR
Tuulikki
Juusela (Finland), Immediate Past President,
and Willy van Iersel (Netherlands), Treasurer,
announced at the Twentieth Congress in 1991
that the Badge of Honor, the highest award
of IFBPW, was awarded to Angela Butler (Switzerland),
International Labor Organization (ILO) Representative
in Geneva and Esther Ocloo (Ghana), former
Vice President of the International Federation,
for their outstanding service to IFBPW.
Angela
Butler (Switzerland) served as ILO Representative
in Geneva for many years during which time
she made outstanding contributions to the
work of the International Federation through
sharing her expert knowledge gained through
a thirty-eight year career (1943-1981) with
the International Labor Organization. As
IFBPW's ILO Representative, she furthered
the parallel aims of both organizations
including protection of the rights of workers,
improvement of working conditions, and promotion
of social justice throughout the world.
Esther
Ocloo, in addition to founding BPW Ghana
and serving the International Federation
as its Vice President for two successive
terms, had worked tirelessly for the improvement
of the status of women, especially rural
women in Africa. As a founder (1979) and
first Chairperson of the Board of Directors
of Women's World Banking (1979-1985), she
helped advance and promote the entrepreneurship
of women, particularly those women who had
no access to the services of established
financial institutions. She was honored
in 1990 by the Hunger Project as its first
woman recipient of the Africa Prize for
Leadership for the Sustainable End of Hunger.
Esther Ocloo used the prize money to found
the Sustainable End of Hunger Foundation
in 1991.
IFBPW
REGIONS
AFRICA:
Eme Nwakamma-Okoro (Nigeria), Regional Coordinator
The
eighth All Africa regional meeting was held
in Lagos, Nigeria, in November 1990 - a
five-day workshop entitled "Developing
Women's Entrepreneurial, Organizational
and Management Skills." Hosted by BPW
Nigeria, it was sponsored by UNFPA (United
Nations Population Fund) and the Commonwealth
Foundation. Participants came from thirteen
African countries. Also attending were International
President Yvette Swan; Past International
Vice President, Esther Ocloo (Ghana); and
the Regional Coordinator of Africa, Erne
Nwakamma-Okoro. Topics included methods
of starting business/investment projects,
production, lab or, marketing, financial
and administrative management and budgeting.
Participants were encouraged to help establish
banking facilities in their countries through
contact with Women's World Banking.
The
African Regional Coordinator reported the
biennium as "a vintage one" for
the region. Two countries with Associate
Club membership status had qualified as
Federations and three Individual Associate
Members (IAMs) had organized Associate Clubs
in their respective countries.
ASIA
AND THE PACIFIC:
Hatsue Ando (Japan), Regional Coordinator
The
Regional Coordinator, Hatsue Ando, reported
that no regional meeting had been held during
the biennium in the Asia and the Pacific
region due to her prolonged illness, but
that the Region looked forward to hosting
the International Congress in 1993.
EUROPE:
Britta Calminder (Sweden), Regional Coordinator
 Britta
Calminder, Regional Coordinator of Europe,
reported that BPW was getting stronger and
stronger in the European region. European
members had welcomed their new sisters from
the Eastern European countries of Hungary,
Bulgaria, Romania and Czechoslovakia to
the European Regional (EFBPW) Congress in
Aachen, Germany, October 1990. The European
Friendship Fund had been established to
aid women from Eastern European countries
in attending the European Congress in Aachen
and future Regional Congresses. Before World
War 11, many Eastern European women had
been members of BPW Clubs and Federations.
These included Senator Frantiska F. Plaminkova,
an International Vice President and Founder
President of BPW Czechoslovakia (1937).
She was executed during World War 11. From
that time on, BPW members from around the
world remembered their Eastern European
"sisters" annually on International
Night. In 1990, the Canterbury Club of the
UK Federation chose "Eastern Europe"
as its theme for their International Night
Candlelighting Ceremony and lit a candle
to honor the brave women from those countries.
The
first Associate Club in Eastern Europe to
be founded after World War 11 was in Poznan,
Poland on April 25, 1990, and the first
Eastern European country to become affiliated
as a National Federation was Romania on
July 5, 1991. By joining IFBPW, the women
of Poland and Romania expressed "the
hope that affiliation would give them an
opportunity to share the International Federation's
vast experience in the international women's
movement."
LATIN
AMERICA and the Spanish-speaking countries
of the WEST INDIES:
Olga M. Ramirez de Rodriquez (Mexico), Regional
Coordinator
Latin
America's Regional Coordinator was pleased
to report that the joint IFBPW/UNIDO workshop
was held in Buenos Aires, Argentina in May
1991. She informed Congress delegates that
a member of BPW Mexico had donated a record
that was being sold to benefit the International
Federation and $1,200 had been raised to
date.
NORTH
AMERICA and the non Spanish-speaking countries
of the WEST INDIES:
Jennifer Cox (Jamaica), Regional Coordinator
Jennifer
Cox reported that affiliates in her region
had communicated and shared information
through correspondence. Four reports had
been sent to affiliates during the biennium.
International President Swan visited Jamaica
in 1990 and was guest speaker at the Candlelighting
Ceremony. Many Clubs in the region increased
in membership, and a new Associate Club
had formed.
MEMBERSHIP
COMMITTEE
Membership
Committee Chairperson, Livia Ricci (Italy),
reported that her committee had launched
a successful "One to One" membership
campaign. She congratulated her Committee
members and their correspondents in the
five IFBPW regions for helping to significantly
increase membership during the biennium.
There were affiliates in 77 countries in
1991, a gain of 9 countries since 1989.
Including the countries where individual
associate members lived, IFBPW now had representatives
in 86 countries.
A sponsorship
fund was created by the International Federation
to which affiliates could contribute to
pay the International dues of new Individual
Associate Members and Clubs in areas with
financial hardship and/or currency problems.
Many affiliates responded.
TREASURER/
FINANCE COMMITTEE
The
Treasurer and Finance Committee Chairperson,
Willy van Iersel (Netherlands), reminded
members that a decision had been made at
the previous Congress to combine the posts
of Treasurer and Finance Officer/Finance
Committee Chairperson. She therefore presented
both the Financial Statement and the Budget
to Congress in 1991. The Treasurer reported
that due to late payment or lack of payment
of International dues by some affiliates
including one of the largest, IFBPW's revenues
had decreased by approximately fifty per
cent each year during the biennium forcing
the Executive Committee to enact austerity
measures that included: reducing the number
of issues of Widening Horizons from three
to two issues annually, operating the International
Headquarters with the bare minimum of staff,
launching the President's Appeal Fund, and
suggesting that affiliates remit their International
dues early. Despite exercising every possible
economy, the Financial Statement showed
a combined deficit of $249,592 for the two
fiscal years of the biennium.
The
Treasurer presented the Budget for 1991/92
with a projected deficit of $109,643 and
reported that the Executive Committee had
concluded that it was not possible to reduce
the budget any further. Congress delegates
voted to increase dues from their current
rate of $3.00 to £2.25 per member
to take effect as of April 1, 1993. The
delegates also voted to amend Article I
of the International Bylaws pertaining to
dues. As of April 1, 1993, the graduated
dues structure that came into effect in
1985 was rescinded and all members of a
Federation were required to pay dues on
a "per member" basis, irrespective
of the size of the Federation. It had been
decided to calculate dues in sterling rather
than in U.S. dollars as previously done
because eighty-five per cent of the International
Federation's expenses were incurred in the
United Kingdom.
President
Swan thanked the Treasurer for her work
and the detailed information contained in
the Financial Statement and the Budget.
She told Congress delegates that the financial
resources of the International Federation
had been severely tested during the biennium.
It had only been through the "tremendous
efforts of the Treasurer, Headquarters'
Staff and members of the Executive Committee,
by cutbacks in staff as well as cutbacks
in the budget, by drawing from the Accumulated
Fund, and through contributions to the President's
Appeal Fund and support of the "Friends"
that IFBPW had managed to survive the biennium."
The President's Appeal had been launched
with the goal of "raising a minimum
of £200,000 in donations, loans, and
deposits against future dues to enable the
International Federation to meet its immediate
financial obligations." Individual
Associate Members, Associate Clubs and National
Federations had responded generously to
the emergency President's Appeal.
PUBLIC
RELATIONS COMMITTEE
Public
Relations Committee Chairperson Ulla-Liza
Blom (Sweden) reported that her committee
had concentrated on producing new publications,
advertising materials and a new membership
leaflet. Much work was done in relation
to public relations and press activities
during the 1991 Congress by the Committee.
A growing number of members had volunteered
to liaise between the Public Relations Committee
and their National Federations or Clubs.
The Chairperson expressed regret that Widening
Horizons was now only published twice a
year due to financial constraints and stated
that "we are missing a good Public
Relations channel as it is our [IFBPW's]
line of communication with women of the
world."
AGRICULTURE
COMMITTEE
Agriculture
Committee Chairperson less Sanders (Zimbabwe)
reported that she had corresponded with
the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO),
a specialized agency of the United Nations,
on the topics of food production and world
food security during the biennium. The Chairperson
paid particular tribute to Committee member
Njeri Mungai and her Federation (BPW Kenya)
for efforts on behalf of women engaged in
agriculture. Many projects had been initiated
by affiliates that assisted and advised
women on nutrition. Members of BPW Pakistan
had pressed their government to provide
for special incentives for women in agriculture.
BUSINESS,
TRADE AND MARKETING COMMITTEE (AD HOC)/SMALL
BUSINESS ADVISER
The
leader of the Business, Trade and Marketing
Committee, Willy van Iersel (Netherlands),
reported that the work load of the Committee
had steadily increased during her two successive
terms as Chairperson due to the enthusiasm
of affiliates for developing programs relating
to business, trade and marketing. The Chairperson
had put affiliates in contact with many
sources of funding for their programs such
as: CBI, DANIDA, ILO, PRODEC, RVB/FEMCONSULT,
SOS Werelhandel (World Trade), UNIDO and
UNIFEM and other international organizations.
Affiliates had made good progress in focusing
attention on the problems of women entrepreneurs.
A seminar
in "Business Management for Women Entrepreneurs"
of four weeks duration was held in Nairobi
immediately preceding the Twentieth Congress
in 1991. Organized by the Programme for
Development Cooperation at the Helsinki
School of Economics (PRODEC) of Finland
in cooperation with IFBPW and in partnership
with the Kenyan External Trade Authority,
it was a full-fledged seminar for entrepreneurs
from small and medium-sized enterprises
with at least three years experience at
management level. Willy van Iersel (Netherlands)
and International Immediate Past President,
Tuulikki Juusela, were resource persons
during the seminar. Saara Kehosmaa-Pekonen,
Managing Director of PRODEC, made a short
report to Congress emphasizing the long-term
objective of the course- "to strengthen
the participation of women in the economies
of their countries and particularly in the
business sector." Quoting the former
President of Tanzania, she said, "'Great
things could not be attained on a single
stroke. We have to confine ourselves to
the policy of small steps despite that our
resolve might yearn to see the promised
land on earth and not in the distant future.
With only determined goal-oriented struggle
will we be able to reach our development
goals.'" The Managing Director continued,
"These words express the spirit of
the seminar and the goals to be faced by
every entrepreneur today and in the future.
An entrepreneur has to have her head in
the clouds but her feet on the ground."
Lucile
Dunham (USA), Small Business Adviser, prepared
a paper during the biennium on "Small
Business Start Ups" for use by a BPW
member from Russia. She cited this type
of communication as an example of how IFBPW
can fulfill its role of facilitator of the
exchange of ideas and programs among women
of diverse cultures, economies and governments
and as a channel for networking of ideas
among BPW members worldwide.
Committee
member Amalia Ruth Borges Schmidt (Brazil)
contributed an article to the Spring 1991
issue of Widening Horizons entitled "Being
a Business and Marketing Committee member
makes all the difference" and paid
tribute to Chairperson Willy van Iersel
for her leadership over the past four years
beginning with the Trade Presentation at
Congress in 1987. A small business owner
herself, Amalia Schmidt expressed her deep
appreciation for the opportunities for career
growth which she had experienced as a result
of her membership in IFBPW. Panamanian member
Dagmar de Alvarez wrote in the same issue
of Widening Horizons that she had been busy
disseminating information and ideas gained
at the CBI Workshop at Congress in 1989.
Her Federation had held seminars on "How
To Start Your Own Business" and "How
To Sell What You Produce."
Chairperson
van Iersel spoke of "the end of an
era" for the Business, Trade and Marketing
Committee (1987-1991) and noted that a new
Standing Committee called the Business,
Trade and Technology Committee would commence
operation during the next biennium.
EDUCATIONAL
AND CULTURAL COMMITTEE/UNESCO
The
Chairperson of the Educational and Cultural
Committee, Dorothy Bain (Bahamas), reported
that her committee had distributed information
from UNESCO to affiliates to assist them
in the promotion of literacy worldwide as
provided by the UNESCO Representative, Andree
Bailly (France), who kept the Committee
informed about UN meetings, conferences,
and activities relating to International
Literacy Year 1990. Women's literacy programs
were being developed and supported by UNESCO
because surveys revealed that worldwide,
one woman in three was illiterate, the majority
of whom were in the developing countries.
The least developed countries had a female
illiteracy rate of approximately eighty
per cent, often due to social and cultural
practices which, in many instances, prevented
females from receiving a basic education.
Among 889 million illiterate adults worldwide,
two thirds were women. More than 100 million
children had no access to primary schooling
of whom 60 million were girls.
To
launch International Literacy Year (1990),
a United Nations World Conference called
"Education for All" was held in
Jomthien, Thailand (March 1990). It was
the first high level international meeting
to address basic learning needs necessary
to eradicate illiteracy. Sudathip Gin Indira
of BPW Thailand represented IFBPW at the
conference. UNDP, UNESCO, UNICEF and the
World Bank were the four major sponsors.
The consensus documents at the World Conference
were called "The World Declaration
on Education for All : Meeting Basic Learning
Needs" and a "Framework for Action."
IFBPW committed itself to participate, through
its UN Representative and the Educational
and Cultural Committee, in the follow-up
"Education for All Network" at
regional levels.
 Education
and training for girls was a high priority
of the Freetown Club in Sierra Leone. The
project known as the Annual Shadow Scheme
gave thirty girls in secondary school paid
work experience during their summer vacation.
The Club also supported a private secondary
school for girls.
May
31, 1991, was designated by the United Nations
as World Day for Cultural Development. One
of the most significant cultural developments
among affiliates during the biennium was
the founding in 1990 of an all-women orchestra
composed of forty-two musicians belonging
to and sponsored by BPW Italy. Called the
"Ensemble Femminile Italiano,"
the orchestra was founded by the Chairperson
of BPW Italy's Music Committee, Lydia Mandich
Fuser, a harpsichordist. She also provided
initial funding for the orchestra.
The
Santiago Club of Chile sponsored a short
story writing contest in 1991. Open to women
from Spanish-speaking countries of Latin
America, it was judged by leading Chilean
writers and Club President, Elena Torres
Seguel.
EMPLOYMENT
COMMITTEE/ILO
The
Employment Committee, under the leadership
of Mara Mosca (Italy), surveyed affiliates
on the following aspects of working conditions
of women worldwide: legislation regarding
women's working conditions, equal opportunity
laws and policies, existing ratification
and current implementation by national governments
of the UN Convention on the Elimination
of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women
(CEDAW), women's work patterns and access
to credit.
The
Employment Committee conducted a workshop
during the 1991 Congress where professional,
technical, educational and environmental
training opportunities available to women
were discussed.
In
her position as IFBPW's first Representative
to the ILO Training Centre (International
Centre for Advanced Technical and Vocational
Training - Turin, Italy), which complemented
her position as Chairperson of the Employment
Committee, Mara Mosca coordinated the dissemination
of information about up coming ILO training
courses to qualified BPW members around
the world. The ILO Training Centre had been
established in 1964 by the ILO in collaboration
with the Italian government to provide international
expertise to meet the advanced training
needs of the ILO's Member States. Mara Mosca
reported that training courses for women
from developing countries were only recently
introduced by the ILO because of growing
recognition that women often play key roles
in low-income societies and become important
social and economic motivators in their
communities. Since it was recognized that
the formation of associations (such as BPW
Clubs) often was the first step in a nation's
development process, Mara Mosca, by invitation
of the ILO, held seminars during each course
offered by the Training Centre on the role
of associations in developing countries
and other related themes. She acted as a
liaison between the IFBPW and the ILO Training
Centre mainly by notifying the membership
about training courses for women in entrepreneurship,
small and medium-sized business enterprises
and training of trainers. Mara Mosca introduced
all women participants in courses at the
ILO Training Centre to BPW members and arranged
for them to attend BPW meetings.
Gwendoline
E. Burnley, Founder President of the Limbe
Club in Cameroon, expressed appreciation
to the International Federation and Mara
Mosca for making it possible for two Club
members to attend a course at the ILO Training
Centre in 1991. Upon returning to Cameroon,
the members had begun valuable work with
the Small Business Training Programme sponsored
by the Limbe Club.
Angela
Butler (Switzerland), ILO Representative,
attended the Seventy-Seventh (1990) and
Seventy-Eighth Sessions (1991) of the International
Labor Conference. She noted three developments:
a revision of the ILO Night Work Convention
(No. 89) which replaced outdated ideas that
had become restrictive to women and detrimental
to their career prospects, new standards
governing the conditions of work in hotels,
restaurants and catering establishments,
and concerns about conditions of work and
employment in the informal sector and the
social protection of home-based workers.
A resolution on "ILO Action for Women
Workers" outlining priorities for the
future was adopted at the 1991 Conference.
The ILO Representatives reported that participation
of women in the official delegations to
the International Labor Conference had risen
from 11.9% in 1989 to 12.3% in 1991, still
far too low, and an area for continued action
and lobbying by affiliates. The ILO had
set its target for number of women in delegations
at thirty per cent by 1995. Assuming the
continuation of current trends, that target
would not be met.
HEALTH
COMMITTEE/WHO
Health
Committee Chairperson Lucia Villamizar de
Hill (Colombia) listed the following priorities
of her committee's plan of action for the
biennium: continued activities by affiliates
in cooperation with the UNICEF Child-Maternal
Survival Program and the WHO program on
Health for All by the Year 2000, support
of the Convention on the Rights of the Child,
study of moral and legal dangers inherent
in new reproductive technologies, and prevention
of AIDS.
WHO
GRANTS IFBPW CONSULTATIVE STATUS
The
World Health Organization (WHO) of the United
Nations recognized the International Federation
as a non-governmental organization (NGO)
with consultative status in January of 1991.
This was welcome news to the Health Committee
since it had worked toward this goal since
its establishment in 1983. The five areas
chosen for collaboration between IFBPW and
WHO were: the Safe Motherhood Initiative,
Women and Nutrition, Women and AIDS, Women
and Tobacco, and Women and Aging. A member
of the Health Committee, Michele Gerber
(Switzerland), was selected to serve as
the first WHO Representative and attended
the Forty-Fourth Session of the World Health
Assembly in May of 1991.
The
Health Committee Chairperson reported on
health-related activities of two affiliates.
In recognition of World AIDS Day on December
1, 1990, the BPW Association of Bermuda
held a public discussion on the subject
of young women and AIDS. All girls in secondary
school were invited to hear presentations
by three health care professionals and learned
that the number of women with AIDS was increasing
each year. By sponsoring this discussion,
the BPW Association raised the awareness
of a large audience about how to help in
the fight against this deadly disease. As
a means of addressing nutrient deficiencies
in the diet of many Nigerians and raising
capital for social projects, BPW Nigeria
adopted soya milk processing as a national
project.
LEGISLATION
COMMITTEE
Legislation
Committee Chairperson Minnie McNeal-Kenny
(USA) listed issues that her committee had
focused on during the biennium: ratification
and implementation of the Convention on
the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
Against Women; ratification and implementation
of the Convention on the Rights of the Child;
and incorporation of the Nairobi Forward-looking
Strategies into the public policies of governments.
A great
concern of IFBPW encompassed issues affecting
children with the recognition that healthy
children and healthy families were a precondition
for sustained economic and social progress.
The Convention on the Rights of the Child
was ratified and came into force during
the biennium because governments recognized
the importance of protecting the growing
minds and bodies of young children.
PROJECTS
COMMITTEE
LITERACY PROGRAMME
President
Swan reported that the International Federation
was working with the Associate Club in Nepal
on the development of literacy projects.
The Nepal Club launched its Literacy Programme
in May 1991 with encouragement from the
International Executive Committee which
had decided to support this project as IFBPW's
contribution to the follow-up for the International
Literacy Year 1990 and in support of UNESCO's
"Plan of Action to Eradicate Illiteracy
by the Year 2000." For several years,
BPW New Zealand had assisted members of
the Nepal Club by paying their International
dues as they were unable to purchase foreign
currency. Therefore, when the International
Executive Committee invited BPW New Zealand
to assist the Nepal Club in beginning a
Literacy Programme for Women, the response
was immediate and generous. BPW Belgium
and other affiliates and individuals also
gave financial assistance. This Programme
was particularly important because Nepal's
adult literacy rate was the lowest in the
world at eighteen per cent. Participants
in the project were women factory workers
ranging in age from seventeen to forty-five.
After working all day, they attended classes
six days a week for one hour each evening.
At Congress in 1991, BPW New Zealand donated
$1,200 to the Nepal Literacy Programme.
The President thanked members of BPW New
Zealand for help and financial support in
setting up the Programme.
 PROJECT
FIVE-O MEXICO
President
Swan attended the official dedication ceremony
on July 30, 1990, marking the completion
of construction of the school building and
library that would, in the future, house
the Project Five-O Mexico School of Nursing
in La Paz, Mexico. Two years previously,
as First Vice President, she had participated
in the groundbreaking ceremony. She told
members at Congress in 1991 that the International
Federation and all affiliates should be
proud of the accomplishment and that special
thanks were due to Silvia Salazar Salazar,
Project Coordinator, and Maria del Pilar
Martinez Castro, Architect, for "all
the time and energy that they had invested
in seeing the project through to its successful
completion." The library had been furnished
with the most up-to-date medical books given
by universities, medical societies, physicians
in the state of Arizona, USA, and members
of BPW/USA - Arizona. The Arizona members
had coordinated the massive effort with
help from the North Phoenix Rotary Club
and AeroMexico Airlines. The President informed
the membership that negotiations were now
in progress with CONALEP (Colegio Nacional
Profesional Tecnico - the Technical Institute
of Mexico) in reference to operating the
School of Nursing.
The
International Gift Shop, coordinated by
Projects Committee member, Lucia Quachey
(Ghana), raised approximately $2,000. Twenty-five
per cent of the proceeds were deposited
into the International Aid Fund and seventy-five
per cent into the Young BPW Fund. These
Funds were used to pay the travel expenses
to Congress of members in financial need.
UNITED
NATIONS COMMITTEE/UNITED NATIONS LIAISON
OFFICER
United
Nations Committee Chairperson Pam Radge
(UK), and UN Liaison Officer and Second
Vice President, Beth Mugo (Kenya), worked
together to provide leadership of the International
Federation's work that related to the United
Nations. The UN Liaison Officer reported
that since the last Congress, the International
Federation had been granted consultative
status with the World Health Organization
(WHO), the United Nations Conference on
Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the United
Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM).
She described the UN Conference on Environment
and Development (UNCED) to be held in 1992
as "our [IFBPW's] foremost future commitment."
During the biennium UN Bulletins and Notes
were published to update members on IFBPW/UN
issues.
Preceding
the extended Thirty-Fourth Session of the
Commission on the Status of Women (1990),
an NGO Consultation for organizations in
consultative status with ECOSOC (the principal
organ of the UN to which the CSW reports),
was held in Vienna with a strong IFBPW delegation
led by President Yvette Swan. The theme
of the 1990 NGO Consultation was "Popular
Participation in the Implementation of the
[Nairobi] Forward-looking Strategies."
Workshops were held with President Swan
leading one on the theme "Women in
Decision-Making Positions and Employment."
The
Thirty-Fourth Session (1990) of the Committee
on the Status of Women (CSW) was extended
to provide the first opportunity for a review
of the progress to date in the implementation
of the "Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies
for the Advancement of Women" adopted
at the World Conference in 1985. The decision
to hold a World Conference in 1995 to renew
and appraise the implementation of the "Forward-looking
Strategies" was made during this Session.
Once again the CSW was designated as the
UN Preparatory Body for the Conference.
The IFBPW Representative to the UN in New
York, Claire Fulcher (USA), expressed concern
about deteriorating economic conditions
and indifferent or negative attitudes which
combined to increase the feminization of
poverty but also noted that the World Conference
on Women planned for 1995 provided a positive
goal for all IFBPW members working towards
women's advancement."
The
UN Committee Chairperson reported that the
priority themes selected by the Commission
on the Status of Women for 1991 were Equality:
Vulnerable Women; Development: Machinery
to integrate women in the development process;
and Peace: Refugees and displaced women
and children. Following up a resolution
passed at Congress in 1989 on discrimination
against women on the basis of age, a questionnaire
was used to gather information on the issue
from affiliates in the five regions of IFBPW.
The responses formed the basis for a statement
that was presented to the Commission's Thirty-Fifth
Session (1991) intended to ensure that older
women be included in the definition of Vulnerable
Women and that they be guaranteed a variety
of retirement options as well as access
to retraining programs. Pam Radge thanked
UN Representatives, Esther Hymer (USA) and
Maria Pollak (Austria), for all their help
during the biennium. The Chairperson coordinated
a "Women and the United Nations"
Workshop at Congress. Participants visited
the Headquarters of the United Nations Environment
Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations
Human Settlements Programme (HABITAT) as
part of the Workshop.
The
IFBPW Alternate Representative to the UN
in New York, Esther Hymer (USA), was pleased
to report to Congress that the quadrennial
evaluation by ECOSOC, the principal organ
of the United Nations with which the International
Federation had consultative status, resulted
in renewal of consultative status Category
I in 1991 for another four years.
In
addition to representing IFBPW at the General
Assembly, ECOSOC, CEDAW, the CONGO Board,
and the Commission on the Status of Women,
the IFBPW Representative to the UN in New
York, Claire Fulcher (USA), was the Convenor
of the NGO UNIFEM Committee; the Committee
was composed of representatives of twenty
international women's organizations with
consultative status at the UN. She reported
that IFBPW members were involved in the
formation and leadership of National UNIFEM
Committees and in educating the public and
governments on women in development issues
(WID). IFBPW had presented a statement in
support of UNIFEM on behalf of fifteen international
women's organizations at the Thirty-Fourth
Session of the Commission on the Status
of Women (1991).
During
the previous biennium, IFBPW had been granted
consultative status with the United Nations
Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).
Collaboration began immediately under the
leadership of the first UNIDO Representative,
Willy van Iersel (Netherlands), resulting
in a joint IFBPW/UNIDO seminar on "The
Role of Women in Industry in Latin America"
in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1991.
Both
UNICEF Representatives, Ildaura Murillo-Rohde
(USA) and Rosa Thea Creton (Switzerland),
reported that 1990 was a very important
year for UNICEF. Eighty government leaders
had met at the United Nations World Summit
for Children (1990) to plan for the development,
protection and survival of children. Work
on the Convention on the Rights of the Child
as well as the "Education For All"
initiative were priority issues of UNICEF.
Rosa Thea Creton attended the NGO Committee
meetings on the Convention on the Rights
of the Child. Ildaura Murillo-Rohde was
on the NGO Committee responsible for the
planning of the 1994 International Year
of the Family.
Congress
delegates in 1991 approved a resolution
submitted by the United Nations Committee
suggesting that affiliates observe International
Women's Day annually on March 8 by honoring
leading women and by planning special events
to mark the occasion. International Women's
Day had been first proclaimed in 1910 at
an international women's conference in Copenhagen,
Denmark, attended by one hundred delegates
from seventeen countries (UN Focus: Women,
UN Department of Public Information, 1992).
It was first designated for observance by
the United Nations in 1975. It was a day
designated in many countries as a national
holiday, a day to reflect on decades of
struggle for women's equality. In a special
message on International Women's Day in
1990, the United Nations Secretary-General,
Perez de Cuellar, noted that "one hundred
and one countries had ratified the Convention
on the Elimination of Discrimination Against
Women (CEDAW). The United Nations monitoring
of action taken by Member States party to
the Convention", he said, "had
contributed to a reexamination of traditional
attitudes regarding women."
YOUNG
CAREER WOMEN (YCW) TASK FORCE
The
Young Career Women (YCW) Task Force, appointed
at Congress in 1987, was again chaired by
Maxine Hays (USA). The three other members
of her Task Force had been participants
in the YCW Programme at Congress in 1989.
Formal selection criteria, selection procedure
and an application form for Young Career
Women had been developed during the biennium.
The maximum qualifying age had been raised
from thirty to thirty-five in order to provide
a larger pool of young women from which
to make a selection. Although the Fund '91
for Young BPW and the International Aid
Fund provided some assistance to Young Career
Women, it was limited. Therefore, affiliates
had been encouraged to undertake fund raising
in order to sponsor their own Young Career
Women. Over thirty-five Young Career Women,
representing twenty countries, attended
the 1991 Congress. Monique Siegal (Switzerland)
moderated the Young Career Programme which
had as its theme "Do's and Don'ts of
an International Career." As a result
of the growth of the Young Career Women's
Programme since the 1985 Congress, a Young
Career Women Committee (Ad Hoc), to be chaired
by a YCW, was appointed at Congress in 1991
to carry the Programme forward. Fabiola
Kun, a Young Career Woman from BPW Mexico,
volunteered to edit a quarterly YCW newsletter
and plans were made to publish an International
Directory of Young Career Women. The Young
Career Women Programme, begun in 1985, had
indeed become an integral part of IFBPW.
20TH
INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS
NAIROBI, KENYA, November 3-8, 1991
"Karibu
Kenya" (Welcome to Kenya) was the greeting
Beth Mugo, President of the hosting Kenyan
Federation, extended to the 720 participants
representing 52 countries at the Twentieth
Congress. She noted that this was the first
International Congress ever held on the
continent of Africa. President Swan was
especially pleased to be able to welcome
members from Eastern Europe to Congress
for the first time since the Third International
Congress in 1938.
"Women
- Environment and Development" was
the theme of Congress with two keynote addresses
on the theme. Njoroge Mungai, Kenya's Minister
of Environment and Natural Resources, spoke
on the topic "Women and the Environment."
He said that "until women's voices
were heard, sustainable development could
not be achieved. The key factor was that
women had to be involved in the planning,
management and implementation process in
all matters pertaining to the environment
and development." Barbel Chambalu,
Coordinator for the Integration of Women
into Development for the United Nations
Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)
spoke about "Women and Development."
She said that cooperation between IFBPW
and UNIDO had been greatly strengthened
during the biennium and the joint IFBPW/UNIDO
seminar in Latin America had proved that
international organizations and international
NGOs working together offer one of the most
efficient ways of promoting the participation
of women in industry at all levels."
A UN
panel discussion at Congress called "Nairobi
1985 - Nairobi 1991, An Assessment of the
Implementation of the Nairobi Forward-looking
Strategies for the Advancement of Women"
was chaired by Beth Mugo (Kenya), Second
Vice President and United Nations Liaison
Officer. Panelists included Margaret Kenyatta,
President of the World Conference of the
United Nations Decade for Women (1985: Nairobi);
Eddah Gachukia, Cochairperson of the NGO
Forum (1985: Nairobi); Barbel Chambalu,
Coordinator of Women into Industrial Development,
UNIDO; and Pam Radge, UN Committee Chairperson.
Barbel Chambalu said that "a 1990 review
and appraisal of the 'Forward-looking Strategies'
showed that despite advances in some areas,
the general pattern was one of loss of dynamism.
There was reason for concern that, unless
implementation was greatly improved, many
objectives would not be met by the year
2000. Real change could only come from within
countries and from women and men individually
and in groups including NGOs. IFBPW and
its affiliates were a strong force in promoting
change, and it was most important that the
organization promote its concerns at the
national level."
The
Programme for Development Cooperation at
the Helsinki School of Economics (PRODEC)
sponsored the attendance of five members
from the African region at Congress who
had also taken part in a four week pre-Congress
PRODEC sponsored "Business Management
for Women" seminar in Nairobi.
PRESIDENT'S
ADDRESS
A highlight
of the biennium was the celebration of the
International Federation's sixtieth anniversary.
The Executive Committee and other IFBPW
representatives celebrated the Diamond Jubilee
(1990) with a dinner hosted by BPW Switzerland
in Geneva, birthplace of the International
Federation in 1930. The Jubilee celebrations
also included a landmark in IFBPW's relations
with the United Nations in the form of a
series of consultations between the International
Executive Committee and senior representatives
of the International Labor Organization
(ILO); the United Nations Conference on
Trade and Development (UNCTAD); and the
World Health Organization (WHO). The purpose
of the consultations was to strengthen working
relations between IFBPW and the UN agencies.
Consultative status with UNCTAD and WHO
was subsequently granted to IFBPW during
the biennium.
 
Quoting
IFBPW's Founder President, Dr. Lena Madesin
Phillips (USA), President Swan said that
"the destiny of this organization is
in the hands of its members. Let us build
together and see what we can make."
She concluded her President's Address by
expressing confidence that "IFBPW fulfills
a need of business and professional women
and that through cooperation, IFBPW will
thrive."
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