A greater emphasis had to be made on the different roles of women and men as parents and the need for both to share their children’s care, the Ghaqda Nisa Laburisti said in its message for Women's Day, being celebrated tomorrow.

It said that this was the 100th anniversary of when the US first celebrated the day and women in developed regions had since made great strides forward.

But there still remained whole regions where women were still treated as their husbands’ or fathers’ property.

So people in developed countries had to work to end cruelty to girls through genital mutilation, the abortion of female foetuses in environments where the life of a woman was less important than that of a man and to fight poverty and ignorance which kept whole peoples behind.

Maltese women might be much better off than their mothers and grandmothers were but they were facing new challenges.

It was not enough to feel satisfied with the number of girls following post secondary and tertiary courses if their education was not preparing them, first and foremost, for the job market, jobs which reflected the principle of equal payment for equal value.

Moreover, the intrinsic value of work as a means of independence for women, as well as something to sustain women and their children, should be emphasised and explained to girls from a very young age.

The private sector should be encouraged to promote flexible employment and the state parental leave.

The GhNL said that one had to remain vigilant and strengthen the protection of families.

Efforts had to be intensified to infrastructurally sustain capable women in management positions, it said.