In celebration of International Women’s Day on 8 March 2021, more than 80 stock exchanges around the world took part in a global event focused on gender equality by hosting Bell Ringing ceremonies (in person and virtual events) to help raise awareness for women’s economic empowerment.
The “Ring the Bell for Gender Equality” initiative is a partnership between the International Finance Corporation, the Sustainable Stock Exchanges initiative, UN Global Compact, UN Women, the World Federation of Exchanges, and Women in ETFs.
CFA Society South Africa was delighted to collaborate with four stock exchanges in the Southern African Development Community (SADC): Namibia Stock Exchange, Lusaka Security Exchange, Botswana Exchange, and Zimbabwe Stock Exchange.
The event raised awareness of the theme “Women in Leadership: Achieving an Equal Future in a COVID-19 World”. The initiative celebrated the tremendous efforts by women and girls around the world in shaping a more equal future and recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Women leaders and women’s organizations have demonstrated their skills, knowledge and networks to effectively lead in COVID-19 response and recovery efforts.
The four-stock exchange bell ringing events in the SADC took pace virtually from 8-10 March 2021 and the local society secured prominent keynote speakers and panellists to discuss the event theme.
“It was such an honour to be involved in this initiative with the Lusaka Stock Exchange. The opportunities exist now which can enable women to be the drivers of their own destiny. You need to be clear on your career aspirations and be open to be mentored and coached, but both female and male colleagues. Women need to take ownership of knowing what they want to do and not be afraid to seek assistance on how to achieve these aspirations, surrounding themselves with enablers to reach their goals,” said Franita Neuville, CFA, volunteer at CFA Society South Africa.
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