Women’s day, flooding
Digital gender gap
THE theme for this year’s International Women’s Day is ‘DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality’. The theme highlights how technology is crucial to advancing rights, but a growing digital gender gap is impacting everything from women’s job opportunities to safety online.
The UN highlights that 259 million fewer women have access to internet than men, and women are largely underrepresented in science, technology, engineering and mathematics careers. Hence, according to the UN, bringing women into technology results in more creative solutions and has greater potential for innovations that meet women’s needs and promote gender equality.
Their lack of inclusion, by contrast, comes with massive costs. While IWD is a chance to raise awareness on rights gaps, we must celebrate progress and the achievements of individual women.
Organisations, homes and communities will be celebrating IWD today with speeches, cake cutting and giving respect and honour to women. It is important that we also show them this respect and honour every day. I wish our girls and mothers a happy and blessed IWD!
RAJNESH ISHWAR LINGAM Nadawa, Nasniu
Town issue
THE Hospital Rd and Nadi Bus Stand were closed to all traffic due to flooding. Nothing unusual though, as we all know that these places get flooded very quickly yet over the years no remedial action seems to be forthcoming and it is so sad.
On the other hand, another area that is now constantly getting flooded and blocks people from entering the town is the roundabout at the temple end of Nadi Town. Have other people noticed the frequency with which this area is also flooded as soon the Qeleloa River bursts its banks. It wasn’t the case before, as far as I can recall.
Luckily spillage from Nadi River, which causes major flooding across the whole town, has significantly been reduced thanks to all the dredging works done by the Government.
At this juncture, one might ask what the Nadi Town Council was doing to address the frequent flooding occurring in and around the market and bus stand areas?
Do they have the expertise and resources to have our town’s ongoing problems such as the one mentioned, traffic congestion, shortage of public toilets and parking spaces just to name a few sorted out. Moreover, the ratepayers would also want to see the town boundary equipped with proper footpaths so that they are able to move to places safely and keep themselves fit at the same time.
Unless you start somewhere, you are not going to reach where you want to reach.
Please know that I support the council fully, but these are few things that I think the council needs to address without delay because they matter in our lives daily.
I hope my contribution is not taken otherwise.
SURESH CHAND
Nadi