Seung Myung-ho, second from left, chairman of The Korea Times and its sister paper, the Hankook Ilbo, shakes hands with Patriots and Veterans Affairs Minister Kang Jung-ai before the Korea Times Forum at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Seoul, Wednesday. On the left is SMEs and Startups Minister Oh Young-ju, and on the right is Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Minister Song Mi-ryung. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

Women leaders and professionals in both the public and the private sectors gathered together to discuss how to transform the power of women's voices into societal change at the Korea Times Forum, Wednesday.

Under the title, “Toward diversity, inclusiveness and equality,” this year's forum focused on improving women's representation in government and business.

Reflecting the plentiful attention being paid toward the theme, numerous women leaders from various sectors of society participated in the event.

Three of the country's four incumbent women ministers — Patriots and Veterans Affairs Minister Kang Jung-ai, Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Minister Song Mi-ryung and SMEs and Startups Minister Oh Young-ju — attended the forum and shared how they defied the odds and broke the glass ceiling at work.

It was a very rare occasion for Korea's female ministers to gather for a single event organized by a private company, according to them. Unfortunately, Minister of Environment Han Wha-jin, was unable to attend due to her presence at a World Environment Day event.

“This forum holds significance for inviting three out of four women ministers ... Four is not a large number, but it shows that female leadership in the public sector has increased,” Oh said during her congratulatory speech at the forum.

Kang, former Sookmyung Women's University president, recalled how women's participation in social and economic activities were limited and female professors were rare when she was appointed as a professor. “As a woman in academia, I have encountered a number of challenges. As a professor, I had to carry social responsibilities to contribute to human development. As a result, I was able to serve as the president of Sookmyung Women's University and the minister of patriots and veterans affairs. I hope to become an example of inspiration for many who are trying to break the glass ceiling,” she said.

Song also said, “There are definitely more women in the workforce, but gender gaps in job quality persist. I think Korea has become a more gender-equal society, but there is still more work to do, specifically in terms of the political gender divide. A humanistic approach is necessary in achieving gender equality in Korea.”

Violinist Han Soo-jin, who delivered a keynote speech at the forum, urged women to take the lead in fostering an inclusive environment and embrace diversity — not just in terms of gender, but also age, class and ethnicity.

Violinist Han Soo-jin delivers a keynote speech at the Korea Times Forum at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Seoul, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

Other participants said the forum was an opportunity to listen to and meet inspiring women.

Director of U.N. Women Centre of Excellence for Gender Equality Lee Jeong-shim, said the gender ratio in the U.N. at the global level is almost equal. “The U.N. office in Korea has way more women compared to men. I think women leaders can be found in international organizations because they're interested in international affairs and are proficient in English,” she said.

Jenny Ryu, Korea representative of Kent Engineering & Foundry, said she has seen more females in the workforce in recent years, but women are still underrepresented in leadership roles.

“I have seen many of my colleagues, who are women, voluntarily give up on their career for the sake of their family. I think men still hold more leadership positions because they are good at networking and possess higher political skills,” Ryu said.

Philippine Ambassador to Korea Maria Theresa B. Dizon-De Vega said the issues raised at the forum are challenges that all countries, including Korea, face.

“We need a diversity of views on how to handle and respond to these challenges and how to promote more diversity, inclusiveness and equality,” Dizon-De Vega said.

“In the Philippines, there is a large percentage of women in the public service. Speaking for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs alone, in terms of our senior officials, we actually have more women in senior positions than men. We have a gender and development program embedded in all instrumentalities of the government. That includes training in gender sensitivity, gender awareness and public outreach in terms of gender and development.”