OSCE Mission to Serbia and ODIHR support strengthening women’s role in political and public life
Furthering dialogue between women parliamentarians from South East Europe and paths for advancing women’s participation in political and public life was the focus of the regional conference “Equal and Empowered – Stronger Together”, held on 2-3 March 2015 in Belgrade, Serbia.
The conference, organized by the Women’s Parliamentary Network of Serbia, with support by the OSCE Mission to Serbia and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), brought together over 40 women parliamentarians from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Hungary, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia and Turkey.
“Ensuring that women’s voices are heard is a key requirement for empowering women in their striving for equality,” stated Speaker of the Serbian Parliament, Maja Gojkovic. “Men and women are equally responsible for creating an environment that allows women to speak up and express their views,” she said.
Participants also discussed the role of women parliamentarians in enhancing gender equality in their respective countries as well as regionally.
The event aimed at creating a platform for closer co-operation between women parliamentarians from South East Europe. Among other outcomes, women parliamentarians from participating countries signed a Memorandum of Cooperation to this end.
The conference reflected efforts by the OSCE Mission to Serbia and ODIHR to advance women’s participation in political and public life in the OSCE participating States, in line with the 2004 OSCE Action Plan for Promoting Gender Equality.