Two campaigns supported by Investing in Women, an initiative of the Australian Government, are engaging males as advocates of women’s economic empowerment through digital and innovative offline efforts to drive conversations around the benefits of normalising men’s roles in the home.
In Indonesia, the #KitaMulaiSekarang or “Let’s start now” campaign run by Yayasan Pulih (Pulih Foundation) and Aliansi Laki-Laki Baru (New Male Alliance) highlights how both women and men benefit when domestic responsibilities are shared equally.
Sharing roles at home enables women with children to access to career opportunities, and men to build strong bonds with their children, something research shows that Indonesian men value and the campaign highlights as a benefit they can access by spending more time at home.
The #KitaMulaiSekarang campaign is also running roadshows to build awareness about the benefits of workplace gender equality among university students, particularly young men.
In the Philippines, the #inFAIRness campaign is taking a similar approach by aiming to show the community positive actions that everyone can take to support gender equality at work and in society.
The #inFAIRness movement, led by Samahan ng mga Pilipina para sa Reporma at Kaunlaran, Inc. (Spark! Philippines) and marketing solutions firm Mr Click, is sparking conversations using digital channels and distributing stickers with gender-positive messaging on jeepneys, buses and other modes of public transport in Manila, Cebu and Davao, where urban commuters spend a huge portion of the day, and where misogynistic messaging abounds.
The campaign is also partnering with the Philippine Marketing Association to address gender bias in advertising through a series of gender awareness workshops.
“The goal of inclusive economic growth lies at the heart of our efforts at driving progress in workplace gender equality. We cannot be inclusive without getting men involved,” Investing in Women Advocacy and Communications Director Donna-Jean Nicholson said.
#KitaMulaiSekarang and #inFAIRness are only two of eight campaigns that Investing in Women is supporting in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam to change public attitudes that prevent progress in workplace gender equality and women’s economic empowerment.
In the Philippines, Investing in Women is also partnering with education technology firm Edukasyon.ph, non-profit Philippine Business for Education and Evident Communications for campaigns helping young girls take on non-traditional education and career tracks.
Publisher Katadata and creative agency Berakar Komunikasi in Indonesia developed parallel campaigns that question gender stereotypes in occupations, while the People Management Association of the Philippines is looking into work-life balance for both women and men.
In Vietnam, Oxfam and CARE are campaigning to make the Labour Code more gender inclusive. The Australian Government, through Investing in Women, is also providing Vietnam technical assistance in addressing gender equality challenges in the law.