Minister of

Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Olivia ‘Babsy’ Grange says the

Government remains committed to addressing issues affecting boys and men in the

society as part of measures in promoting equality and eliminating gender-based

violence.

“The

Government of Jamaica’s medium-term socio-economic policy framework indicates

that there are increased concerns for males, who are being labelled by some… as

marginalised. The Ministry has put several mechanisms in place to encourage men

to become active agents of change and work collaboratively in achieving gender

equality,” Grange said.

She was

addressing the opening of a two-day Men and Masculinity Workshop at the

Courtyard by Marriott hotel in New Kingston on Thursday, September 26.

Grange noted

that despite the achievements in reducing the gap between males and females in

various social sectors, several inequities continue to plague the Jamaican

society.

She said

that among the concerns are the high rates of violence and fatherlessness among

males and male underrepresentation in the economic and educational sectors,

noting that these require “urgent attention”.

She noted

that the Bureau of Gender Affairs, through its Special Service Desk for Men,

has been reaching out to males.

The bureau

has also collaborated with various stakeholders to host sensitisation

initiatives along with skills training, capacity-building and interventions

aimed at addressing issues that affect men and boys.

The Men and

Masculinity Workshop is being hosted by the ministry in collaboration with the

Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat and the European Union and seeks to

sensitise and empower leaders of male-based groups.

The staging

of the two-day session under the theme ‘Rethinking masculinity, understanding

gender equality as a means of ending gender-based violence in Caribbean

schools’ is the direct result of recommendations emanating from a Youth,

Masculinity and Violence Report, which the CARICOM Secretariat commissioned in

2012.