Speaker of the Federation Council opened the plenary session of the Third Eurasian Women’s Forum and recapped Regional Week
Speaker of the Federation Council Valentina Matviyenko gave the opening speech at the plenary session of the Third Eurasian Women’s Forum. She said this session is a kind of prologue to the Forum that will help set the tone for the main day of the event with the first results and decisions.
Matviyenko stressed that the work carried out to prepare for the Forum basically proceeded for three years without any breaks, specifically at the level of the Council of the Eurasian Women’s Forum. The “portfolio” already includes 23 projects in which not only Russian companies, scientific, and public organizations, but major international associations as well are involved.
As an example of this, Matviyenko cited the project ‘Women Scientists and the Global Challenges of Our Time’, which has received support from UNESCO, the Russian Academy of Sciences, the French Academy of Sciences, the Eurasian Patent Office, and major Russian universities. Partners of the project ‘Women for Sustainable Industrial Development’ include UNIDO, other UN organizations, industrial holdings, and corporations.
Matviyenko recapped the main results of Russian Regional Week, which was held in the run-up to the Forum. She said the main event was the ‘Women’s Health for the Wellbeing of the Nation’ marathon. More than 400 organizations from 57 Russian regions have joined the marathon, and over a million people took part in it.
She pointed out that the marathon events will be broadcast on the ‘Women for a Healthy Society’ digital platform, which was created by the participants of the ‘Woman Leader’ educational programme. "The main goal of the work here is to develop approaches to ensure a large-scale campaign for post-COVID rehabilitation and inclusive vaccination.”
The Federation Council speaker also noted such projects as the ‘Children: The Future of the World’ marathon and the ‘Compass of Women’s Leadership’ marathon, which passed through all of Russia’s 11 time zones – from the Far East to Kaliningrad. Among the highlights of the week, Matviyenko cited the session ‘Women in the Agro-Industrial Complex’, which was chaired by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Viktoria Abramchenko. Matviyenko said she supported the idea of establishing a prize of the Eurasian Women’s Forum for ‘Women in the Agro-Industrial Complex’. “I think this is a very good initiative, and such a prize will support rural women,” she said.
The issues raised at the ‘Voice of Women’s Business’ marathon will continue to be discussed on the ‘Women’s Mission in Digitalization and Economic Development’ platform.
Matviyenko said Russian Regional Week generated great interest from the public with an increase in the number of new visitors to the websites of the Eurasian Women’s Forum and partners.
The Federation Council speaker stressed that the main goal of the global women’s community is to improve people’s quality of life as well as build mutual understanding and trust between countries and peoples in the name of peace and sustainable development.
Abramchenko pointed out that the era of aggressive consumption of resources is gradually coming to an end. “The time has come for lean production and consumption. Otherwise, the consequences will be irreparable,” she said.
She stressed that Russia has chosen the path of being an environmentally and climatically responsible state. “By 2030, the necessary measures will be implemented to establish a green economy. Russian President Vladimir Putin has provided us with national development goals until 2030. These tasks have been formulated very clearly, and they have been synchronized with the principles of sustainable development,” she said.
Abramchenko noted that many women are directly involved in implementing these tasks in Russia and on international platforms.
The deputy prime minister spoke about preparations for global environmental reforms in the country and the need to fully implement the principle of extended producer responsibility. “One hundred percent of packaging must be recycled. Based on instructions from the president, we are introducing the ‘polluter pays’ principle in the waste management reform in an effort to motivate manufacturers to use the most eco-friendly materials and packaging in order to stop producing goods that cannot be recycled. I am certain that, with the support of the Federation Council and the eco-community, this legislative initiative will be implemented in the near future,” she said.
Vietnamese Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan made a video conference presentation. She said that the Forum is bringing together the majority of women around the world. “The role of women today is extremely important. We can make the world more just and help fight global challenges,” she said.
Chairwoman of the National Assembly of Azerbaijan Sahiba Ali gizi Gafarova believes that the topics discussed at the Eurasian Women’s Forum provide an opportunity to consider the most pressing issues of modern life and enhance women’s status around the world.
Gafarova stated that fully unleashing women’s potential would be the foundation for building a healthy society.
Chairwoman of the Senate of Uzbekistan Tanzila Narbaeva noted that the Third Eurasian Women’s Forum once again demonstrated women’s growing role in resolving the socioeconomic issues facing their countries. The Forum demonstrates new approaches to the women’s agenda, she said.
Narbaeva stressed that Uzbekistan is ready to share its experience in various areas and is open for cooperation. She invited the participants to take part in the women’s forum during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in 2022, which will be held in Samarkand.
Chairwoman of the lower chamber of parliament of Turkmenistan Gulshat Mammedova said the Eurasian Women’s Forum is an important platform for interaction between women and helps to harmonize efforts in addressing various issues of our time as well as exchange views and experience in promoting women’s rights.
Russian Minister of Labour and Social Protection Anton Kotyakov gave an address at the plenary session. Speeches were also delivered by President of the Assembly of Mozambique Esperança Laurinda Francisco Nhiuane Bias, President of the National Assembly of Bangladesh Shirin Sharmin Chowdhury, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Chief Physician of the State Budgetary Institution of Health of the Moscow Region Larisa Borisova, Deputy Chairperson of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Pia Kauma, Deputy Chairperson of Mongolia and Head of the Mongolian-Russian Parliamentary Group Saldan Odontuya, President of the Senate of Gabon Lucie Milebou Aubusson, Deputy Chairperson of the Parliament of Kyrgyzstan Aida Kasymalieva, President of the Senate of Zimbabwe Mabel Chinomona, Deputy Chairperson of the People’s Democratic Party of Tajikistan and Chairperson of the National Committee for Population and Development Hairiniso Yusufi, Head of the ‘Woman Leader’ Project Maria Afonina, and Head of the Women’s Parliamentary Faction in the Assembly of the Islamic Council of Iran Fatemeh Kesempur, among others.
During the plenary session, an official ceremony was held to cancel a postage stamp dedicated to the Eurasian Women’s Forum.
The Third Eurasian Women’s Forum was organized by the Russian Federation Council and the Interparliamentary Assembly of Member States of the Commonwealth of Independent States. The operator of the Forum is the Roscongress Foundation.
Official website of the Third Eurasian Women’s Forum: 2021.eawf.ru.
The general partner of the Forum is the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade; strategic partners: Promsvyazbank, Bank FC Otkritie, Rosseti, and RZD-Medicine; official partner - Arconic Corporation; business programme partners: Russian Export Centre, KFC, and Rostelecom; partner of the environmental platform: Moscow School of Management SKOLKOVO.
