Stats show unequal treatment against women

The percentage of women on boards in Barbados in 2020 was found to be 29 per cent when the International Women’s Forum (IWF), Barbados Chapter commissioned DB Research Services to conduct a study of the Women on Boards Gender Diversity Index (GDI) for Barbadian entities.   

The women on boards GDI reflects the average number of corporate board seats held by women. The results of the study indicated that the GDI was 24.2 per cent in the private sector, 36 per cent in non-governmental organizations and 38.6 per cent in governmental/statutory boards.

The president of the IWF Barbados Chapter, Donna Every, said: “The predominance of men on boards indicates that there is still a long way to go toward gender equity in the boards of both public and private sector entities.

The IWF is committed to being a voice that advocates
for change in the boardrooms of Barbados and to helping
to overcome the obstacles that hinder the appointment of women to boards.”

The majority (90 per cent) of boards in the sample reported that their board member selection process involved either a committee nomination and approval mechanism, candidate interviews, or the appointment by a governmental representation or minister in the case of statutory boards.

The report revealed that in terms of sectors, tourism/hospitality had the highest scores with 50 per cent of women on boards while retail businesses had the lowest GDI scores with only 8.3 per cent of women on their boards.

Carole Eleuthere-Jn Marie, convenor of the IWF “Women on Boards” sub-committee said that to better understand the barriers there is also need to widen the discussion to include direct feedback from women in senior organizational roles who have the required qualifications and interest in serving on Boards, yet are either not considered or said to be not ready.   

She also noted that many times when women are being considered or even proposed for Board positions there is a tendency to raise the bar for required skills and qualifications, and even when armed with all these prerequisites the journey to the boardroom is still a long arduous uphill struggle.

The IWF sincerely hopes that the discussions, which have started from the results of this survey, will definitely propel organizations to take the necessary steps to ensure their boardroom is reflective of the progress and efficiency that come with gender diversity.   

Eleuthere-Jn Marie added: “Going forward, we believe that there is an opportunity for the IWF to develop a national awards programme  to recognize and publicly commend and award companies and institutions which meet the UN convention minimum of 30 per cent women on boards.

The IWF plans to actively continue the discussions on this subject via various print, audio and other media and will be tracking the impact and results annually through their WOB survey. (PR)