International Women’s Day in Israel Becomes Mainstream Celebration of Gender Rights

March 10, 2008

Israeli organizations marked International Women’s Day on March 8 with a wide range of activities to publicize gender inequality and women’s rights. While the NIF family pioneered events for this annual occasion in the 1990’s, International Women’s Day has today become an integral part of the national calendar with municipalities and other public bodies around the country holding special festivities.

• The Ministry of Industry and Trade published data to demonstrate that women’s pay and employment status still falls far short of their male counterparts. Men earn 58% more than women; only 3.2% of women hold management positions compared to 5.7% of men; and only 2.4% of women work in high-tech, the highest paying sector, compared to 8.4% of men.   For more information, see the recent article in Haaretz.
• Yediot Ahronot, Israel’s largest circulation newspaper, ran a five page feature in its weekend magazine “Seven Days” about NIF grantee Achoti - Sister for Women in Israel. The article described Achoti, which was established eight years ago to promote the rights of Mizrachi women, as “one of Israel’s most important social movements.” Featured articles portrayed five different Israeli women including Almaz Panta, 45, an Ethiopian immigrant widow and mother of six from Hadera who set up an organization called It’s Possible to promote equality in the Israeli-Ethiopian community.