Vice President Sara Duterte said Thursday that now is the best time to work together and "capacitate Filipino women" in the Philippines.
Duterte's realization came as she lauded a women's group for managing to overcome challenges of digitalization and becoming a valuable partner of the national government in finding ways for the sector to grow and be empowered.
"Your efforts to champion the utmost welfare of women in this day and age—where gender inclusivity demands to be addressed in narrowing the existing technological divide—are indeed laudable," Duterte said during the Philippine Federation of Local Councils of Women (PFLCW) 18th General Assembly.
The Vice President said women must be capacitated by "providing them with the necessary skill sets, knowledge, and resources required to successfully navigate the digital world."
In fact, she said, there is a national government initiative—The Women-Helping-Women: Innovating Social Enterprises Program—that taps the power of technology as a valuable platform to ensure the success of women’s entrepreneurial projects.
Duterte said the grant program provides a wide range of gender-focused support for women entrepreneurs, such as start-up incubation, mentoring, business support, capacity building, marketing, and market validation.
There is also another program the government offers, Duterte said. It is the Mag Negosyo Ta ‘Day (MTD), an entrepreneurial project that assists women and members of the LBBTQI+ by augmenting their daily income, making them economically empowered and independent.
"It was really successful because we saw transformation in lives. It was so successful with women that we decided to also share it to the LGBTQI+ community," Duterte said.
Duterte said that enabling Filipino women to develop their capacities will allow them to "flourish and build opportunities for other women to grow and innovate."
"Together, let us highlight the importance of improving women's access to opportunities, resources, and tools that will help them thrive during this digital age and, more importantly, empower them to succeed," she said.
“Hand-in-hand, I am optimistic that we will be able to welcome more women who will be proactive players in digital transformation," she added.