Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC) announced yesterday that it has signed the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) ‘Declaration on Gender Responsive Standards and Standard Development’; and thereby  “strengthened its ongoing commitment to gender equality”.

The avowed aim of UNECE’s Declaration is  to help achieve gender equality, and empower women and girls throughout jewellery supply chains.

UNECE Executive Secretary, Olga Algayerova said: “Multi-stakeholder dialogues and concerted efforts across all sectors are needed to advance gender equality as a key driver for the 2030 Agenda. Standards offer powerful tools to harness this potential. I welcome the Responsible Jewellery Council among the 65 organisations worldwide to date who, by signing the UNECE Declaration, have committed to take concrete action for gender inclusive standards development, gender responsive standards and gender balance, at all levels.”

Responsible Jewellery Council’s Executive Director, Iris Van der Veken said: “We are proud to be part of the United Nation’s gender equality movement, the signing of this declaration marks a great milestone in RJC history. While the issues on gender equality are complex and deeply-rooted, businesses can play a critical role in changing attitudes, building responsible practices throughout the value chain, and creating inclusive and safe work environments. The RJC focuses on increasing awareness of the gender gap within the jewellery and watch industry - and supporting members on their journey of continuous improvement.”

Chair of the Responsible Jewellery Council, David Bouffard said: “It is our shared responsibility as an industry to drive gender equality forward. In order to make an impact and help reduce the gender gap, businesses need to embed gender equality practices into their corporate strategies. Through our partnership with the UNECE we will be focusing on further developing materials to support RJC members, to help them take practical steps towards improving the gender balance in their companies, and throughout the jewellery supply chain.”

The UNECE Declaration, which, since its launch in 2019 has  been signed by 65 standards organisations around the world, “recognises and supports” organisations like the RJC to implement action plans to improve gender balance, empower women, share practices and inspirational stories across the world.   

“Gender quality is Goal 5 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) in the United Nations 2030 Agenda and has been embedded as an integral part of the RJC’s Code of Practices standard,” RJC said.

Further, the organisation noted that The World Economic Forum’s ‘Global Gender Gap Report 2020’ had found that it will take more than 100 years to close the gender gap at the current rate of progress. “By focusing on empowerment and promoting inclusion through standards will help towards economic growth, ensuring safe and secure working environments for all workers,” RJC said in conclusion.