People take part in a women's strike in Brussels, Belgium, March 8, 2019. Thousands of women went on strike across Belgium on International Women's Day to campaign for women's rights and gender equality, local media reported. [Xinhua/Zhang Cheng]
The international community needs to minimize the impact of COVID-19 on women, strive for genuine gender equality, ensure that women advance at the forefront of the times, and enhance global cooperation in advancing women's development, Xi said at a high-level meeting on the 25th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women.
BEIJING, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) — Experts worldwide said that the proposals raised by Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday will consolidate global consensus on promoting gender equality and boosting comprehensive development of the cause of women against the backdrop of the raging COVID-19 pandemic.
A Palestinian girl adjusts a face mask for her sister at their house in Gaza City, on Sept. 14, 2020. [Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua]
The international community needs to minimize the impact of COVID-19 on women, strive for genuine gender equality, ensure that women advance at the forefront of the times, and enhance global cooperation in advancing women's development, Xi said at a high-level meeting on the 25th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women.
Gertrude Mongella, secretary-general of the Fourth World Conference on Women, said that Xi's proposals have demonstrated the Chinese government's long-held position of attaching importance to the development of women's cause.
The women's rights advocate in Tanzania also said that China has always been committed to improving women's rights and interests and effectively lifting the status of women.
It is hoped that all countries can continue to work together, strengthen cooperation, increase investment in the cause of women, and promote the continuous development of global cause of women, she added.
Andrey Karneev, professor and head of the School of Asian Studies of Russia's Higher School of Economics, said that ensuring gender equality is a global trend, adding that China has been working hard to ensure gender equality, and handling issues related to gender equality in a constructive manner so as to guarantee women's rights.
He also said that China's experience is very valuable for other countries.
Hala Mansour, a sociology professor at Ain Shams University in Egypt, said "The international community has a role in helping women in developing countries, trying to support women by raising awareness, supporting training and rehabilitation, establishing joint projects."
A girl gets a red dot painted on her forehead, a tradition called "opening the wisdom eye", during the First Writing Ceremony, a traditional activity held for children before they are admitted to school, at a museum in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Sept. 13, 2020. [Xinhua/Liu Xiao]
She also said that China has great expertise in protecting women's rights, from which Egypt can learn, and the two countries can also cooperate in supporting woman to start small and medium-sized enterprises, and in providing skills training for women.
Juliana Gonzalez Jauregui, a researcher from the Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences of University of San Andres, Argentina, said that China actively supports UN Women's work, and has made great contributions to promoting gender equality and women's empowerment, which is a practice of China's vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind.
Pella Karpathiotaki, a Greek scholar, said that countries around the world still need to do more to ensure that women can enjoy healthy lives, educational opportunities and full social inclusion.
She also said that achieving gender equality and ensuring women's rights and interests are inevitable requirements for achieving a just and sustainable development, adding that China's successful experience in this regard is worth learning from.
Woman workers examine a train during a maintenance operation at a railway station in Guwahati, India, on March 7, 2018. [Xinhua/Stringer]
Mohna Ansari, former commissioner at Nepal's National Women Commission, said that the situation in Nepal has worsened following the pandemic, which has added more challenges to women's lives.
"Instead, what I believe is, we can convert this pandemic to an opportunity to strengthen women's socio-economic condition by encouraging them to break the boundary in a positive way," she said.
(Source: Xinhua)
