United Nations Population Fund together with the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine officially presented and launched the information campaign "4 Hands Happiness"
Information campaign "4 Hands Happiness" developed by UNFPA and the Ministry of Social Policy aims to undermine the established in the Ukrainian society stereotypes about the traditional distribution of family responsibilities and to promote sharing of household work and childcare. The campaign also highlights the importance of the participation of fathers in caring for a small child.
Welcoming the participants of the press-conference Mr. Serhiy Ustymenko, Deputy Minister of Social Policy of Ukraine, thanked journalists for their attention to the problem of gender stereotypes and stressed that "the role of media in combating gender stereotypes is crucial, because such stereotypes are widespread and deeply rooted in the minds of people. In Ukrainian society women themselves must know and believe that they have to fight for their rights and that there are existing mechanisms for it. Association Agreement with the EU even includes a separate section on non-discrimination, equality between women and men. "
Although the role of women in different spheres of public life is growing worldwide, particularly in Ukraine (so, according to the results of the last parliamentary elections, 11% of the total number of seats in the Parliament belongs to women, which is the highest rate since independence Ukraine) but their representation both in Parliament and in senior positions in other sectors remains very low compared with the world average. In everyday life women often suffer from violence. According to a survey conducted by UNFPA in 2014, 19% of women aged 15-49 years at least once in their lives suffered from physical violence, and 8% - from sexual violence.
Commenting on these data, Ms. Nuzhat Ehsan, UNFPA Representative in Ukraine, noted that "these figures are totally unacceptable, and the cause of these problems is the gender stereotypes that are deeply rooted in society. We want to show people that they have a choice, because it is a fundamental right of every person. Therefore, women as men are not required to live only in those social roles that are required by the society, and they can choose their own path). Ms. Ehsan stressed that the need to combat gender stereotypes motivated to start this information campaign, because "doing things together is more pleasant and comfortable way of fulfilling homework, which also gives a woman the opportunity to find time for self-realization in other areas."
Gender expert Mr. Mykhaylo Koryukalov emphasized that the problem of uneven distribution of family responsibilities is one of the aspects of gender inequality. "Women spend much more time on family duties than men, what results in a limited opportunities for their professional development. Surveys show that among people who spend more than 30 hours a week on housework, there are three times more women than men. "
During the press conference project website http://zags.org.ua/, outdoor advertising and video clips, which are the main components of the information campaign, were also presented to the public. The campaign "Happiness in 4 hands" will also include a number of other events, presentations in television programs, interviews for magazines, events with media to draw public attention to the topic of family happiness.
The campaign aims to distribute in Ukrainian society during 2015, particularly among young people, the idea of usefulness and pleasure of equal distribution of family responsibilities and parenting and show it as an optimal model of behavior in the family.
During this period the campaign will draw attention to the problems of unequal distribution of family responsibilities, focus on woman carrying considerable amount of unpaid work and offer men and women a new model of behavior in the family, in particular to urge men to use their paternity leaves.
