Oral Answers to Questions Debate
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Mark Spencer
Main Page: Mark Spencer (Conservative - Sherwood)Department Debates - View all Mark Spencer's debates with the Department for International Development
(8 years, 5 months ago)
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Justine Greening
The hon. Gentleman makes a very important point, and I will certainly relay it to my colleagues in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
Mark Spencer (Sherwood) (Con)
T7. Will the Secretary of State update the House on what she is doing to bring economic empowerment to women, especially in the world’s poorest countries?
Justine Greening
What a very important question my hon. Friend asks. I am very proud to be a founding member of the UN Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Women’s Economic Empowerment, which will report in September. This is central to DFID’s work. Indeed, since 2011 we have helped 2.5 million women to improve their land rights and 35 million women to access financial services. With financial independence comes much broader independence, so this is absolutely vital.