Beijing: In the 21st century, building a better life is impossible without the all-round progress of women’s causes, and it requires women to contribute more wisdom and strength. Gertrude Mongella, secretary-general of the Fourth World Conference on Women held in the Chinese capital Beijing in 1995, emphasized this on Monday in Beijing.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, Mongella expressed the need for further implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, which were adopted at the 1995 conference. As the world marks the 30th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women, the Chinese capital is hosting the Global Leaders’ Meeting on Women from Monday to Tuesday.
Mongella stressed the importance of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action taking root in Tanzania. After the 1995 conference, she immediately brought these essential documents back to Africa. She recalled presenting them to then-President Benjamin Mkapa at a women’s event in Tanzania, highlighting the desire for these ideas to be implemented.
During the Beijing conference, societies were beginning to encourage women to access computers and information technology. However, in Africa, women were often left behind due to a lack of basic literacy and numeracy skills. Mongella emphasized that literacy and basic education are key links to unlocking subsequent empowerment.
Mongella noted the industrious nature of Chinese women, who have long been involved in industrial development, education, and the textile sector. She observed their participation in China’s advances in science and technology, strengthening her confidence in the power and creativity of Chinese women.
She urged greater efforts by governments and societies to implement the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, expressing hope for collaboration between Chinese and African women to share information, knowledge, and technology for global progress.
Mongella highlighted the impact of Juncao technology, taught by Chinese experts, which has helped many Tanzanian women find a path out of poverty. By leveraging this technology, Tanzanian women have discovered new hope and confidence in development, taking significant steps toward self-reliance and empowerment.
Reflecting on her role as secretary-general of the 1995 conference and her continued work within the UN system for women’s development, Mongella emphasized her efforts to bring women’s voices to larger platforms and conference consensus back to communities.
As the world reconvenes on these issues, Mongella underlined the need to identify progress indicators and address areas of backsliding. She called for the true implementation of the spirit of the documents and the inclusion of men and boys as partners in achieving gender equality. Mongella concluded that the Beijing conference provided the blueprint, and today’s summit is about updating and supervising its implementation.