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The Labour and Welfare Bureau and various women's groups will organise a wide range of public education programmes to enhance public understanding of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and publicise the spirit and core values of the convention.
Officiating at the opening ceremony of the campaign this afternoon (April 18), the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, said, "The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government has left no stone unturned in observing the spirit of CEDAW and promoting public awareness since its introduction into Hong Kong in 1996.
"The Government has been working closely with the Women's Commission (WoC), women's groups, social welfare organisations and various sectors to promote the well-being and interests of women in Hong Kong over the years."
He pointed out that women's participation rate in the labour force was close to 50% in 2008 while their participation in courses sponsored by the University Grants Committee had exceeded 53% - higher than that of men.
On "gender mainstreaming", a concept strongly advocated by the WoC, Mr Cheung noted that so far more than 30 policy or programme areas closely related to women had adopted the checklist specially devised by the WoC to help government officials adopt gender perspectives in a more systematic way in the formulation of policies and work plans.
"The Government has done much in policies related to women in promoting gender equality. We will continue to work with various sectors in the community in this direction and strive for improvement," he said.
In the coming six months, the Labour and Welfare Bureau will organise roving exhibitions, interactive educational dramas and a series of promotional materials to promote CEDAW.
Various women's groups, including the Hong Kong Federation of Women, Hong Kong Island Women's Association, Hong Kong Women Development Association, Hong Kong Women's Coalition on Equal Opportunities and Kowloon Women's Organisations Federation will also arrange a host of district educational activities to help the public better understand the essence and messages in CEDAW.
Other officiating guests at today's opening ceremony included the Chairperson of the Women's Commission, Ms Sophia Kao, council member of the Hong Kong Federation of Women, Dr Koong May-kay, Chairperson, Hong Kong Island Women's Association, Ms Yau Shui-fan, the Vice Chairperson of the Hong Kong Women's Development Association, Ms Wong Mo-tai, representative of the Hong Kong Coalition on Equal Opportunities, Ms Liu Pui-shan, and the Vice Chairperson of Kowloon Women's Organisations Federation, Ms Chiu Fung-yi.
Ends/Sunday, April 18, 2010
Issued at HKT 14:21
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