Overview of the AMMW-3 (Photo: VNA)Hanoi (VNA) – The third ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Women(AMMW-3) concluded in Hanoi on October 25 after eight working days, seeking regionaland national measures to improve social welfare for women and girls.
Meeting the media after the event’s conclusion, Nguyen Thi Ha, DeputyMinister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, head of the Vietnamese delegationat the event, said throughout the meeting, participants joined several meetings,policy dialogues and conferences on women and the economy.
They discussed integrated agenda on women’s economic power in the ASEAN,as well as an ASEAN action plan on elimination of violence against women, alongwith challenges related to gender equality and ensuring women and girls’ rightsin the region, including climate change, natural disasters, digital era’s impactsand discrimination against women.
At sideline conferences and a closed meeting on October 25, ministers exchangedideas on social welfare for women and girls towards the ASEAN Vision 2025. Theyagreed that women and girls are still disadvantaged groups in accessing andenjoying opportunities and resources due to gender preconceptions. Theyexpressed hope that in the future, ASEAN countries will work more closely inbuilding cooperation programmes.
The ministers also pointed to progress in ASEAN collaboration in promotinggender equality and the empowerment of women and girls, along with current trends,and challenges facing the groups in ASEAN and ways to deal with the problems.
The AMMW-3 issued a joint statement which will be submitted to the ASEANSummit in November 2018 in Singapore. The statement focuses on training and providingnew skills for women and the formation of life-long learning networks in ASEANto match changes in employment amidst the fourth industrial revolution; theensuring of sustainable employment for all people and the removing of allobstacles facing women in accessing resources and jobs; the improvement of socialwelfare for women and girls; and the expansion of policy coverage.
At the meeting, Vietnamese Minister of Labour, Invalids and SocialAffairs Dao Ngoc Dung took the charge of the Chair of the AMMW-3 for the2018-2021 tenure.
Deputy Minister Ha said that as the new AMMW-3 Chair, Vietnam has givenfive initiatives, including the theme of the meeting – social welfare for womenand girls.-VNA
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