The 3rd Iran-China Women’s Conference was held September 19-23 in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang Province, an autonomous territory in northwest China with a large Muslim population.
The conference aimed to introduce the status and advancements of women in various political, economic, educational, and social spheres, as well as legal efforts made so far to ensure upholding of women’s rights.
A delegation comprising Director General of the Women and Family Department of Islamic Culture and Relations Organization Sediqeh Hejazi, Director General of Strategic Planning Department at the Vice Presidency for Women and Family Affairs, Behnaz Movahedi, and Interior Minister’s Advisor in Women Affairs Fahimeh Farahmandpour, attended the event.
“Women have played a significant role in creating and strengthening ties between Iran and China from ages, and will continue to do so,” said Hejazi in her speech, IRNA reported.
“These ancient relations have been built on the cultural and social commonalities between the two nations.”
Movahedi explicated Iran’s efforts, measures, policies, and approaches to empower and employ women in sustainable development.
“The ground is ready for bilateral cooperation between the vice presidency and All-China Women’s Federation (ACWF),” she said.
A report on the nation’s progress regarding gender equity in structural, legal, social, and economic terms was prepared and presented by Farahmandpour.
“The government has been firm in executing plans to facilitate and ensure women’s balanced performance in both the family and the society,” she noted.
Major areas of focus included education and its role in women’s development, Internet and the security and ethical challenges it poses as well as its impact on women’s development; women’s human rights and education; and the measures taken to connect women of ethnic minorities with women from countries along the silk road.
The first and second rounds of the Iran-China Women Conference were held in Beijing (2013) and Tehran (2014) respectively.
Silk Road Women’s Forum
The event complemented the first Women’s Forum of Countries along the Silk Road organized by Xinjiang Women’s Federation in support of China’s recently-launched ‘Belt and Road’ initiative, which aims to revive the historical trade routes that once linked Asia, Africa and Europe.
The forum was held under the theme “Opportunities and Challenges in Promoting Women’s Employment and Entrepreneurship”.
It hoped to promote greater exchange and cooperation among women and women’s organizations in countries along the Silk Road and help create a win-win situation for the region.
Around 100 people attended the forum, including representatives from 19 nations along the Silk Road such as France, Iran, Zimbabwe, Indonesia and Russia. Other attendees included representatives from the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA); officials from the ACWF; and Chinese women entrepreneurs.
The assembly was addressed by 26 women politicians, officials, entrepreneurs and scholars who shared the experiences of women in their respective countries who are participating in economic and social development, and presented results of their latest research. They also pointed out problems in promoting women’s employment and entrepreneurship and discussed solutions.
The three main topics of the forum were: Internet-plus women’s development, women’s leadership and economic benefits, and women’s employment and entrepreneurship.
At the opening ceremony, Jiao Yang, vice president and member of the secretariat of ACWF, in her speech said that the countries along the Silk Road have abundant resources and diversified cultures, and the thriving regional and sub-regional cooperation among them has made the region a potential world leader in development.
“The Belt and Road initiative has helped maintain the millennium-old friendship among people along the Silk Road and it has boosted all-round cooperation and exchange among these people in the new era,” Jiao said, the ACWF website reported.
“The world economy has been recovering slowly and regional and international cooperation has entered a new stage. Countries must rely on women’s strength and intelligence. They should seek a new, long-lasting driving force for economic development by encouraging women to do their part in reforms and innovations.”
Jiao said the forum highlighted women’s significant role in the economies of their respective countries. “It will help unite women from the participating countries and provide a bigger stage for Xinjiang to act as a bridge for the development of regional trade,” she added.
Expressing hope that countries along the Silk Road can have more exchanges and practical cooperation, she said they can support one another for common development through better cooperation networks and an effective work mechanism.
“The ACWF will, as always, promote exchanges among women in the countries along the Silk Road and deepen cooperation in various fields. We will support women’s federations at all levels,” Jiao declared.
Attendees also visited the Fifth China-Eurasia Expo, held from September 20-25 in the same city on the periphery of the events
