Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 23 December 2020, the first meeting on the establishment of the Dialogue of Women Leaders of Central Asian States was held, organized in the format of videoconference.

The event was attended by representatives of five Central Asian countries, heads of the UN Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia and the UNDP Regional Office for Europe and the CIS.

The Republic of Uzbekistan was represented by the Chairman of the Senate of the Oliy Majlis Tanzila Narbaeva.

The meeting discussed the role of women in strengthening interstate cooperation in Central Asia, their participation in state and public affairs, assistance in transformations and implementation of reforms, including those carried out to ensure gender equality, protect the rights and interests of women.

The participants were informed in detail about the measures taken under the leadership of the President of Uzbekistan in this area.

It was noted that one of the priority directions of Uzbekistan's policy is to ensure gender equality in the country. The fact that women are assigned the most responsible positions testifies to the great trust and respect of the head of our state towards them, said the head of the upper house of parliament Tanzila Narbaeva.

The work carried out in Uzbekistan to ensure the employment of women, provide them with housing, the necessary conditions to enhance their role in society, in general, all work in this direction is positively assessed in Central Asia, as a country with extensive experience and significant results.

During the event, the parties noted that the activities of the created informal mechanism "Dialogue of Women Leaders of Central Asian States" will contribute to maintaining peace, stability and security in the region, strengthening trust between countries, achieving sustainable development, empowering women in the system of state and public administration, entrepreneurship, stepping up the implementation of projects and programs aimed at protecting the rights and interests of women, girls, youth and children, ensuring gender equality.

As noted by the Special Representative of the Secretary General for Central Asia, Head of UNRCCA N. Gherman, the center is ready to help provide a platform for discussions, further work, including expanding access to regional and global partnerships, exchange of experience. This, in turn, will contribute to the expansion and enhancement of the efforts of women leaders, increasing their influence at the regional and global levels.

Effective work to ensure gender equality, increase the role of women in our country was highly appreciated by all participants in the event. In this regard, at the suggestion of the head of the UNRCCA, the chairmanship of the Dialogue of Women Leaders of Central Asia in 2021 was entrusted to the Chairman of the Senate of the Oliy Majlis T. Narbayeva.

During the meeting, the parties also considered proposals on possible areas of cooperation and priority areas for the informal structure for the first year of work.

It is planned to solve a complex of organizational issues and carry out meaningful work to ensure the activities of the informal Dialogue of Women Leaders of Central Asia.

The main goal is to exchange experience, borrow from each other the positive qualities of work and apply them in their countries.

The new format of interaction between the states of the region will become an effective mechanism for developing joint solutions to enhance the role of women in our countries.