Today, the world is celebrating International Women?s Day 2005. All over the world, political leaders will probably say how much women have brought to society and how they are striving to have better representation at important levels of society. Because today is the Maha Shivaratree festival, the event in Mauritius will be celebrated on 10 March with the theme ?Engendering Politics?. The official function will be held at the International Conference Centre at Grand-Bay on 10 March 2005 from 10.30 a.m to noon. It will be followed by a cultural programme with the participation of women?s associations. One of the main problems in Mauritius remains the fact that women are not sufficiently represented in political circles. Most of them are stuck as secretaries in offices and very few are on the political scene. But this situation is not very different from the one in large companies: most high executives are men. Different reasons are given to explain this situation. Some say women are not ambitious enough to reach high-ranking jobs and ?prefer? to be stuck in their traditional roles. Others say politicians are not making the right moves. Some also say that men are not ready to share their power in society with women. All these theories must have some truth in them. What is sure, however, is that the most important thing needed is a change in mentalities ? both for men and women. It is only then that positive change will be possible.

The initiative taken by Tropic Knits to pay tribute to their female workers on Thursday appears as a step in the right direction. The management is organizing an eventful afternoon ?to recognise the contribution of women to the success of the company and the textile sector.? For those ladies, who have always been behind the scenes, this is surely a great source of satisfaction.