00:00Building on this year's International Women's Day theme, Give to Gain, local industry stakeholders are pushing for a new era
00:07of leadership in construction.
00:09While women are increasingly entering the field, experts say structural changes are still needed to move them from the sidelines.
00:17Director of the Trinidad and Tobago Contractors Association, Patrice Ramkaran, is calling for greater female participation in the construction sector,
00:26challenging the long-standing perception of it being male-dominated.
00:31Construction is built on foundation, and so is progress.
00:36When we invest in women, we invest in a nation.
00:40When we open doors, we do not lose anything.
00:44We gain stronger teams, stronger company, and ultimately a stronger industry.
00:51Meanwhile, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Works and Infrastructure, Ian Ramdin,
00:57says despite regional progress, there is still significant ground to cover.
01:01He is urging women to seize emerging opportunities in the sector.
01:07Trinidad and Tobago actually hold the highest share of employed women in the industry, in the Caribbean,
01:14but this is just 13%, 13%, right?
01:19And let us reflect on this ranking for a moment.
01:22We lead the region, yet our figures are still 13%.
01:25The ILO brief also confirms something that should concern every one of us, right?
01:30Between 2019 and 2024,
01:33the fee employment rate in Trinidad and Tobago fell by 5.7% because of COVID, you know,
01:39the economic downturn compared to the decline of only 3% for men,
01:45meaning our women lost ground at nearly twice the rate of our men over the post-pandemic recovery.
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