Ican understand the thoughts that cross the mind of the mother of three waiting in the corridor of the family court this morning, when - to while away the time - she skims over the newspaper and learns that this year's theme for international women's day is: Equal Rights, Equal Opportunities, Progress For All. She couldn't be bothered with March 8 platitudes; what is on her mind is that last night her children went to bed on empty stomachs. You guessed it, she's the umpteen victim of a maintenance defaulter who keeps shirking the responsibility of supporting his offspring and their mother who is painstakingly bringing up their children on her own.

She waits, not knowing whether the father of her children and the husband she has long given up on, would turn up this time. At least, he has been summoned. After countless attempts by the police and after months of playing hide and seek, the writ was finally delivered to him. This is not her first visit to court; she is one of many returnees following upon protracted maintenance claims. We know that this is going on all the time; Malta is full of separated women - or in the process of separating - raising their children in poverty while the fathers, who earn the money, would do anything not to fulfil their financial obligations. But, even so, this matter continues to be under-prioritised by the policy-makers.

The maintenance issue is not just about money but also about attitudes and mindsets. In general, defaulters want to get at their wives, knowing that the latter are economically dependent on them as they are unable to earn a living, having to take care of young children, and, obviously, private childcare is out of financial reach. By defaulting, these men generally want to show who still has the power and the control in a patriarchal society. The voices of women in these predicaments are often silenced, both by the men's refusal to honour their duty and by the system's weaknesses that allow for its exploitation.

In the meantime, months and, sometimes, years pass and these women and their children scrabble by on charity, the benevolence of their relatives and, in some cases, government handouts, whereby the taxpayer foots the defaulters' bills. They live a tranquil life while the children and their mothers never know whether there is going to be enough money to last the day, still less the week.

There are cases where the court orders payment of maintenance to be deduced directly from the husband's pay cheque. But in the case of self-employed men, the estranged wives often come to realise that the family assets have been hidden away in the business, which somehow "goes bust" with the onset of marital problems.

The maintenance system needs to be revised and improved so that it does not obstruct women's and children's access to justice. For instance, cases are held up indefinitely due to failure of tracking down defaulters and, in spite of the law, women still face many challenges in this area, which are posed by the very structure that is supposed to protect them.

A case I dealt with last week was not about the payment of some hefty electricity bill but about something much, much less even though it meant a lot to the little girl involved and her siblings. A woman - who hadn't received maintenance money - came to ask for help in order to give her young daughter a few euros for a school trip, which she couldn't afford because in the same week she had to buy medicine for her two-year-old twins. The father, who runs his own business, left home a year ago.

When we talk about the feminisation of poverty, don't think that it's some new buzz phrase. Many times, maintenance money is the only source of income that stands between the mother, her children and poverty. Therefore, it would be a big mistake to under-prioritise the provision of maintenance as the number of cases in this area keeps increasing. This, especially since the court system is saddled with institutional barriers that don't help to put money into these women's empty pockets.

So, today, International Women's Day, while globally celebrating the economic, political and social achievements of women, we must also acknowledge that many women still face various challenges in order to gain the peace of mind some of us take for granted.

We need to evaluate how the various stakeholders - magistrates, prosecutors, police officers, lawyers, respondents, complainants, employers - regard maintenance, in order to be able to address the challenges. We need to look at the attitudinal notions that come in the way of the payment of maintenance. We need to take an active role in ascertaining that issues of maintenance, afflicting hundreds of women and children, are put on the national policy agenda on the same level of other pressing societal concerns. We need to ensure that social structural problems are overcome. For this to happen, there must be a genuine commitment on the part of the government, the law courts and the police.

Far from being a threat to the family, the further progress of women's rights may be our best hope for better-functioning families in all their forms and sizes.

You are welcome to a lecture on Women And Politics, which will be delivered by Elizabeth Meehan at the Valletta campus, St Paul Street, Valletta, this Thursday at 7 p.m.

Dr Dalli is shadow minister for the public service and government investment.