On the 12 of March 2021, the WCO attended a virtual conference organized by the National Superintendence of Customs and Tax Administration of the Republic of Peru (SUNAT) entitled “Public Policies: Progress and Challenges related to gender equality”.
Gathering approximately 1000 officers from all over Peru, this virtual conference provided an opportunity for SUNAT to raise awareness on the administration’s work on gender equality, including the launch of a new Institutional Gender Equality Policy. SUNAT has launched various initiatives in the past years to promote this topic, including setting up a Commission for gender equality, conducting a gender diagnostic of the administration, developing a plan to prevent sexual harassment and organizing various awareness raising events and trainings on gender equality related topics such as gender stereotypes, prevention of sexual harassment in the workplace, the importance of using a gender sensitive and inclusive communication, and career opportunities for women in the public sector. The Commission is responsible for developing a yearly activity plan which accomplishment is a performance indicator for the Administration.
The virtual conference also covered presentations on the situation of women and men in the public sector in Peru and on the importance of including an intersectionality perspective. The panelists included a representative from the Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Populations and the National Civil Service Authority in Peru. The WCO presented on its work to promote gender equality and diversity in Customs, and provided an overview of all the tools and initiatives launched in the past year including the newly adopted Declaration on Gender Equality and Diversity in Customs and the Compendium providing practical examples from Customs administrations around the world.
The conference was closed by the National Superintendent of SUNAT, Mr. Luis Enrique Vera Castillo who underlined the administration’s commitment to promote this topic further. The WCO congratulates SUNAT for this initiative and looks forward to continue its close collaboration through the Virtual Working Group.
For further information, please contact the Capacity Building Directorate, capacity.building@wcoomd.org.