The purpose of the event was to strengthen global partnerships and establish future collective actions aimed at promoting gender equality in the OSCE area.
During the conference, OSCE leaders, ambassadors, and officials from OSCE member states and partner countries, alongside representatives from the private sector, academia, civil society, and other international organizations, discussed how member states and partners can collaborate to make societies more inclusive by creating new opportunities for the economic, social, and political empowerment of women.
Felicia Bechtoldt, State Secretary, stated: “Promoting gender equality and increasing the participation of women in economic, social, and political life, including in leadership positions, is one of the main objectives of the Government of the Republic of Moldova. We aim to achieve this objective through the Program for the Promotion and Assurance of Equality between Women and Men in the Republic of Moldova for the years 2023-2027, implemented by the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection.”
In her intervention, the State Secretary reported on the Government's achievements in 2023, specifically regarding:
– the approval of the National Program for the Prevention and Combating of Violence against Women and Domestic Violence for 2023-2027. The program is structured around the four pillars of the Istanbul Convention and aims to align our legislation with the provisions of the Convention, strengthen the range of specialized support services for victims, tailored to the needs of victims and their children, enhance the multidisciplinary intervention system's response, and the justice system's response in investigating, prosecuting, and adjudicating cases, as well as developing programs for domestic abusers;
– the establishment of the Agency for the Prevention and Combating of Violence against Women and Domestic Violence, which will implement, coordinate, monitor, and evaluate legislation and public policies in the field of violence against women and domestic violence;
– the development and launch of a Roadmap with actions that will encourage female entrepreneurship by improving women's access to financing and investment opportunities, business development, and vocational training.
Source: Ministry of Labor and Social Protection
