State Secretary for Europe Andreja Metelko-Zgombić was one of the panellists at a ministerial round table held as part of the Global Summit of Women, which took place 4-6 May 2023 in Dubai. The forum has been for 33 years bringing together women from private, public and nongovernmental sectors around the world with the aim of advancing the economic position of women and girls through the exchange of experiences and best practices.
The main topic of this year’s summit, which saw the participation of women from more than 70 countries, was “Women: Leading a New Climate of Change” in the context of new global trends and challenges – economic, climate, demographic, social, and security.
The participants in the round table, representing, apart from Croatia, the UEA, U.S., Cambodia, Malesia, France, Cameroon, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, exchanged experiences concerning projects and other activities their countries are undertaking to strengthen the economic position and equality of women.
Metelko-Zgombić presented examples of Croatia’s good practice in the context of international development aid and projects aimed at including women and girls in social and economic life, with emphasis on their right to education and employment. She outlined the positive experience with implementing such projects that Croatia had financed in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, North Macedonia, Serbia, Kosovo, Tanzania, and Kenya, aimed at the economic empowerment of women through the development of skills and potential and by changing the stereotypes.
Recognizing the importance of supporting women in crisis situations, Metelko-Zgombić reflected on the informal initiative of EU ministers and state secretaries for Europe to raise awareness about the specific perspective of women in the current European and international issues, as part of which last year they visited Ukraine to show solidarity with and support for Ukrainian women, as well as to Moldova.
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