site.bta80,000 Plus Bulgarian Women Are Self-Employed - Deputy PM

80,000 Plus Bulgarian Women Are Self-Employed - Deputy PM

Sofia, March 8 (BTA) - In the past year some 84,200 Bulgarian
women were self-employed, which means that they have dared to be
economically independent, Deputy Prime Minister Meglena Kuneva
said at a discussion, Women in Governance - European Challenges,
organized on the occasion of the International Women's Day,
March 8.

Apart from EU Commissioner for International Cooperation,
Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response Kristalina Georgieva,
Minister of Labour and Social Policy Ivailo Kalfin also took
part in the forum.

The issue about the quotas for women in the governance should be
debated in public because there is no unequivocal stand on the
issue in Europe, apart from the Northern countries, where such
quotas have already been introduced, Kuneva also said. In her
opinion, the problem with the equal payment of women and men
should be resolved at legislative level in Bulgaria.

Finland and Sweden have made considerable progress regarding the
equality of genders, followed by Spain and Denmark but Bulgaria
lags behind in terms of women's representation to parliament,
Kristalina Georgieva said. In her opinion, a wider participation
of women in governance enhances performance.

Minister Kalfin said that a Bill on equal treatment of women and
men is expected to be moved to Parliament by the middle of the
year. Measures for flexible working time and a voucher system as
a means of improving the status of working women are also
developed, he said.