WHILE more work is needed to increase women’s visibility in nation building, women themselves need to start stepping up and having the confidence to put themselves forward, said general manager Pacific Islands at Essity Eldon Eastgate.
Speaking to this newspaper at the launch this week of the Women Invigorating the Nation (WIN) Convention 2026 event, which will be held next month, Mr Eastgate said such initiatives have helped in encouraging more women participation.
“Women are absolutely pivotal,” he said.
“We invest in women and we invest in Fiji and to me, that’s critical.
“I think the capacity building needs to escalate within women entrepreneurs and women in corporates as well, so I think we have a responsibility and I think we really need to actually shape Fiji using the voice of women.”
While WIN is an annual event specifically designed for women participation, its organisers, the Women Entrepreneurs Business Council (WEBC), one of the nine councils that come under the Fiji Commerce & Employers Federation (FCEF), has also acknowledged the support of their male counterparts and is urging men to come in and be part of the event.
Mr Eastgate, who is also the president of FCEF, said this support is very important.
“Women are absolutely valued, in certain organisations but I think generally we’ve still got a lot of work to put women forward and I also think women really need to start stepping up and having confidence in themselves to actually put themselves forward as well.
“It goes both ways and I think there are certain things like this Convention that will start to elevate and give confidence to women who do participate to actually share their voice and share their talents with the wider communities of Fiji,” Mr Eastgate said.
The two-day WIN Convention 2026 will be held on March 27 and March 28 at the Grand Pacific Hotel in Suva.
