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condition for a developed society that women are inte-
grated into economic life by establishing a balance between
family life and work life. For a more fair and livable world,
regulations must be more inclusive by protecting women.
Supporting women’s participation in work life, especially in
developing countries like Turkey, is vital for women’s access
to economic freedom and their contribution to the national
economy. In order to encourage women’s participation in
work life and to ensure they are retained, the “affirmative
action” for women which was approved in the referendum
in 2010 in Turkey must be implemented.
In the global competitive environment, one condition of
development for a country is to make efficient use of, and
mobilize, all its resources. Therefore, ensuring women’s
sufficient participation in the workforce is a priority area of
policy for countries. In the Beijing Declaration and Action
Plan approved at the Beijing Conference in 1995, the targets
defined for the article “inequality in any type of activities for
production and access to resources in economic structures
and policies” include “elimination of occupational discrimi-
nation and any kind of discrimination in employment and
extending aligned work and family responsibilities for women
and men.” Strategic targets include not only the elimination
of educational, employment and occupational discrimination,
but also the alignment of family and work life for women and
men. In fact, the family as the founding element of society,
and access to economic needs ensuring a sustainable life, are
highlighted as the greatest variables of protecting the funda-
mental qualities of being a society. To that end, we must
protect the family and the balance between work life and
family life in a just and fair manner for social welfare and
sustainable development. It is very important for a sustain-
able order of society to defend fundamental dynamics like
the family which keeps alive society and its conscientious and
moral values. It is also imperative for the continuity of the
family as the backbone of society to establish and safeguard
the balance between the domestic and public roles of women
who are included in economic life.
The importance of this issue in terms of global develop-
ment was proved once again as this year’s G20 officially
approved the subject of increasing women’s presence in
the economy and the economic empowerment of women.
During the period of Turkey’s G20 leadership from
December 2014, this was brought to the agenda again since
employment plans and growth strategies were among the
areas considered important in supporting sustainability
and development. As part of the efforts to improve social
protection and working conditions, flexible working models,
regulations related to maternity and breastfeeding leave,
and provision of preschool and childcare services to allow
women to balance their family and work life, are included
in the policy areas of the Women 20 (W20) initiative group
in line with the commitments adopted by G20 member
countries. In addition to areas such as education, employ-
ment, leadership and entrepreneurship highlighted at the
W20 National Solidarity Meeting, the article “work and
life balance by developing and/or improving infrastructural
mechanisms for social care (child, elderly, sick and disabled
care)”, proposed by the Women and Democracy Association
(KADEM) as a member of the W20 committee, became a
Image: KADEM
The International Women and Justice Summit was hosted by KADEM in Istanbul on 24-25 November 2014
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