How to get more women in top diplomatic posts? Show them what it’s like

The French writer Stendhal once said: “A vocation is having one’s passion as a profession.” Since joining France’s Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, I have not once regretted choosing this enriching and stimulating profession, with its daily dose of challenges and victories in an increasingly complicated international context. I can therefore say that being a diplomat is my vocation. And yet, in other times and other places, it would not have been possible for me to practise this fascinating profession. Certain barriers had to be broken down, often by exceptional women such as Suzanne Borel and Marcelle Campana, to open up the field of diplomacy to women. Borel was France’s first female diplomat and Campana was one of the first female French diplomats appointed to a senior-level post. A great number of women have had to act with conviction, work hard, trust their intuition, and display courage to cross the barriers that were set. This is what got us closer, step by step, to better access positions often considered to be “out of reach.” Throughout the long journey, certain encounters can be defining when choosing a field, deciding to apply to an internship, a program, or a job. Too often, women hesitate and limit themselves, either for lack of female role models or through self-censorship. I was lucky enough to meet a remarkable woman who believed in me and pushed me to apply to the Ecole Nationale d'Administration, a French “grande école” that prepares students for the higher ranks of the French civil service. Without her, I would have missed out on the opportunity to practise my vocation. I therefore deeply believe in the need to accompany women specifically—and young women especially—to expose them to all aspects of a profession, and to show them the challenges and rewards that come with it. This way, they can see that it is in fact possible to reconcile it all and make their vocation a reality. French Ambassador Kareen Rispal, left, and University of Ottawa student Juliana Trapolino, who shadowed the ambassador for a day on April 3. Photograph courtesy of the French Embassy Because my passion is my profession and because I am the first female ambassador of France in North America, I am pleased to be launching the Ambassador for a Day program. Every year, this initiative will allow a dozen young women studying international relations at the University of Ottawa to come spend a day with me at the embassy. They will see what being a diplomat is like—far removed from clichés and preconceived notions—and to be ambassador for a day, and perhaps also in the future. This program is part of a larger initiative for gender equality at the centre of French President Emmanuel Macron’s priorities. The French Embassy in Canada is playing its part in this fight, which must lead to progressively bridging the gap in situations where inequalities persist in terms of income, representation, or access to high office. The feminist diplomacy led by France this past year has sought to promote these priorities. In 2018, more than half of the projects funded worldwide by the French Development Agency (AFD) were aimed at reducing gender inequality. The universalization of the Istanbul Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence has become a priority within our network. Paris will be hosting a conference in July on the education of girls in Africa, in collaboration with the Sahel Alliance. And France’s G7 presidency in 2019 is making this fight a priority, thereby ensuring continuity with Canada’s 2018 presidency. For these reasons, I am proud to have been appointed by the French president to the G7 Gender Equality Advisory Council, chaired by Nobel Prize winners Nadia Murad and Denis Mukwege, alongside my colleague and friend Isabelle Hudon, Canadian ambassador to France. Through the adoption of the Biarritz Partnership, this council seeks to promote progressive legislative frameworks for gender equality within the international community. Gender equality is a guiding principle for me and a prime focus for both France and Canada. The French Embassy in Canada regularly organizes events to increase the visibility of these issues, such as the Good France 2018 Dinner in support of Women Deliver, the Prize for Women in Science with L’Oréal and UNESCO, and the Heroines evening in March 2019 for International Women’s Day. There is still a long way to go. Global statistics remind us of the reality: only six countries in the world have granted women equal rights, according to the World Bank in 2019; globally, 50 per cent of women are in the workforce as opposed to 80 per cent of men, according to the IMF, and they earn on average 25 per cent less. And 30 per cent of African women entrepreneurs cease their activities due to lack of funding. There is still a long way to go for our countries too; violence and discrimination against women, particularly against those most vulnerable, is still too prevalent. The fight for equality can only be led through mobilization at all levels of our society. It must also be led with men because their involvement is crucial in promoting women’s rightful place among them. Equality is not a utopia. Every day we will progress, and eventually we will win. Our future depends on it. Kareen Rispal is the ambassador of France to Canada and a member of the G7 Gender Equality Advisory Council. The Hill Times

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How to get more women in top diplomatic posts? Show them what it’s like

As the first female ambassador of France in North America, I just started a program to allow female Canadian students be ambassador for a day—and perhaps also in the future.

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