Pakistan China Monitoring Desk Islamabad
Chinese President Xi Jinping called on the international community to carry forward the spirit of the 1995 Beijing World Conference on Women and to accelerate global efforts toward women’s all-round development.
He made these remarks while delivering the keynote address at the opening ceremony of the Global Leaders’ Meeting on Women, held in Beijing to mark the 30th anniversary of the landmark conference.
The Global Leaders’ Meeting on Women, convened today in Beijing under the theme “One Shared Future: New and Accelerated Process for Women’s All-Round Development,” brought together around 1,000 participants, including heads of state, government, and parliamentary leaders from nearly 100 countries, along with representatives of international organisations and development partners.
He also proposed jointly establishing a governance pattern to protect women’s rights and interests, and writing a new chapter in promoting global women’s cooperation
President Xi emphasized that women are “important creators and promoters of human civilization” and urged global leaders to foster an enabling environment where women can grow, thrive, and contribute to peace and progress.
Xi said that the proposals were introduced to build a wider consensus, open up broader pathways and take more practical actions for this cause, as women’s all-round development is still facing complex challenges.
President Xi outlined four key proposals: ensuring women’s safety and participation in conflict resolution; promoting women’s high-quality development through innovation and technology; improving governance and legal frameworks to protect women’s rights; and deepening international cooperation under the United Nations framework.
Highlighting China’s achievements, Xi noted that women now comprise over 40 percent of the national workforce and play leading roles in innovation and governance. He announced new commitments, including a US$10 million donation to UN Women, US$100 million in development cooperation funds, and 1,000 women-centered livelihood projects.
“Standing at a new historic starting point,” Xi concluded, “let us work together to build a better and more equal future for all humankind.”
The Chinese president called for joint efforts to nurture an enabling environment for women’s growth and development, and foster robust drivers for the high-quality advancement of women.
The Chinese president said that over the past three decades, guided by the spirit of the 1995 conference, the global women’s cause has flourished, contributing to the progress of human civilization.
Hailing women are important creators, promoters and inheritors of human civilization, Xi stressed that it is the international community’s shared responsibility to advance the development of women.
While introducing China’s achievements in advancing women’s all-around development domestically, Xi also stressed China’s constant efforts in working with UN and other countries to improve women’s well-being and advance women’s development in other countries, especially less-developed and developing countries.
Xi announced that over the next five years, China will donate an additional $10 million to UN Women and earmark $100 million from the Global Development and South-South Cooperation Fund for cooperation with international organizations on projects to promote women’s and girls’ development.
China will support 1,000 “small and beautiful” livelihood projects benefiting women and girls, and invite 50,000 women to China for exchange and training programs, he said.
China will also establish a center dedicated to promoting global women’s capacity-building, through which it will collaborate with relevant countries and international organizations to cultivate more outstanding female professionals.
Foreign dignitaries including UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed and Iceland’s President Halla Tomasdottir welcomed the initiatives and measures proposed by Xi, and thanked China for hosting the meeting during their speeches.
All of them emphasized the significance of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action adopted at the 1995 UN Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, which has been widely recognized by the international community and serves as a roadmap for advancing women’s causes.
Lauding China’s achievements and experiences in eliminating poverty, promoting gender equality, and advancing women’s rights at home and abroad, the foreign dignitaries acknowledged that women play an irreplaceable role in human civilization and social progress, and gender equality and women’s development are key factors for the sustainable development of human society.
They stressed that the international community should take this meeting as a new starting point, carry forward the spirit of the UN Fourth World Conference on Women, strengthen solidarity, deepen cooperation, engage in mutual learning, and promote the achievement of the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, driving new progress in the global women’s cause.
