The Ministry of Equality in conjunction with the Gibraltar Garrison Library last night marked International Women’s Day with a panel discussion event, ‘Inspire Inclusion’. Panelists for the evening were Rebecca Figueras, Senior Youth Worker and Hannah Mifsud, playwright, creative and tutor at the Gibraltar Academy of Music and Performing Arts (GAMPA) and the discussion was moderated by Adriana Lopez.

Both panelists gave an overview of their professional journeys to date and spoke of their work in creating equitable opportunities within their respective professional contexts. The discussion also explored the genesis and research leading to GAMPA’s performance piece, ‘La Maleta’ which is a collaboration between the Ministry of Equality and GAMPA and which will take place on Thursday 7^th and Friday 8^th March.  ‘La Maleta’ pays tribute to the generation of women who lived through the evacuation and will, no doubt, resonate with many Gibraltarian families. Tickets are available on www.buytickets.gi.

The event closed with a lively Q and A which saw numerous contributions from the floor and from invited guests.

The Minister for Equality, the Hon Christian Santos GMD MP, said: “This is the first International Women’s Day that I mark in my official capacity as Minister for Equality. Tonight’s discussion was varied and insightful and I am very heartened by the contributions from the floor which show that everyone present is keen to address gender equality issues. I would like to thank Dr. Jennifer Ballantine from the Gibraltar Garrison Library for collaborating with the Ministry of Equality on this occasion. I am very much looking forward to, ‘La Maleta’, later this week which I am sure will prove to be a stellar performance exploring aspects of the female Gibraltarian identity at a very particular juncture in our recent history.”