- SABANCI HOLDING CHAIRMAN GULER SABANCI’S MESSAGE ON INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY
- “THE MOST PROMINENT AND FORESEEABLE TREND OF THIS CENTURY IS THE PARTICIPATION OF WOMEN IN EVERY PART OF SOCIETY AND BUSINESS”
- “DEVELOPMENT WITHOUT THE EQUAL PARTICIPATION OF WOMEN IS IMPOSSIBLE.”
- “GENDER EQUALITY IS VERY IMPORTANT AT EVERY LEVEL OF OUR ORGANIZATION AT SABANCI. THIS IS ONE OF THE KEY COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES OF OUR ORGANISATION”
- “NGOS AND GOVERNMENT INSTITUTIONS MUST WORK IN TANDEM TO ENSURE SOCIAL CHANGE”
Sabanci Holding Chairman, Guler Sabanci, released a statement to all Sabanci employees to mark the International Women’s Day.
In her message, Guler Sabanci noted the following: “Today’s March 8, Women’s Day. The most prominent and foreseeable trend of this century is the fact that women are becoming more participative in every part of society and business. Research shows that women have been more present in business and elsewhere in the past decade more than any time in the past. Another research outcome is the fact that two-thirds of all consumers making buying decisions are women.
If Turkey is to find itself a place among the largest global economies, it must create equal opportunities for women in economy, politics and social life. Development without the equal participation of women is impossible. We can achieve gender equality in our society by increasing education opportunities for women, strengthening their role in the economy, ensuring their active participation in politics, and preventing violence against women.
Gender equality is very important at every level of our organization at Sabancı Group. We believe that this equality should not only be present during recruitment, but also in benefits, training-development, and promotions. This is one of the key competitive advantages of our organisation.
Business and political leaders and all other stakeholders must support all efforts to improve the human rights of women in Turkey. This is why we regard the Equality at Work Platform, which was founded with the initiative of World Economic Forum and under the auspices of the Ministry of Family and Social Planning, and which we are co-chairing, extremely important.
At Sabancı Foundation we support projects by non-governmental organizations towards social transformation. We support women in building a developmental model for women’s rights through our Grant Programs. We need partnership programs to protect and bolster social transformation and development for the rights of our women and girls. NGOs and governmental institutions must work in tandem. The Sabancı Foundation supported and led the multiple-partner United Nations Joint Program for Promoting and Protecting Women and Girls’ Human Rights, a first in Turkey, between the years of 2006-2010.
Sabancı Foundation has now begun a new partnering program which will serve as the follow-up to this program. We aim to reach 11 provinces in Turkey to further strengthen women’s role and participation in social life through the United Nations Joint Program for Developing Women’s Human Rights, which starts a new three-year period for human rights of local women. This change and transformation is one which we will achieve as women and man, hand in hand, in all sections of society.
I’d like to take this opportunity celebrate March 8, the International Women’s Day of all my female and male colleagues.
I’d like to thank you, my esteemed colleagues, for all your commitment and support in gender equality.”