Government hopes to build “a more inclusive Bermuda” through drafting a National Gender Policy aimed at “removing impediments and barriers wherever they exist”.

Announced in the Throne Speech, a National Gender Policy “will establish a framework for including gender perspectives in all activities of Government and society, helping to bring equitable considerations to decision-making that involves the differing needs, constraints and priorities of men and women”.

The Ministry of Community, Culture and Sports, through the Department of Human Affairs, will work in collaboration with “similar jurisdictions in the region” to produce a policy on par with best practices around the world.

Responding to the announcement, a statement on behalf of the Rainbow Alliance, Two Words & A Comma and Kinsfolk Bermuda said they support any effort to address gender inequity, but added the statement was “too vague ... to substantially comment on the policy itself.”

A group spokesperson said a broad public consultation on the policy is a must.

“In a world where people are still systematically discriminated against and oppressed because of their marginalised gender identities, efforts to address gender equity are necessary, and must include women, men, and those that fall between and outside traditional categories,” said the spokesperson, calling for a “progressive policy” that recognises “the broader context in which gender oppression occurs, including the intersections of class, race, sexuality, ability, gender identity/expression, and age”.

The spokesperson added: “A holistic approach, accounting for all of these factors, is absolutely necessary if the government is to make any real change for Bermudians affected by oppression based on their gender.”