Experts, summit participants praise president’s proposals as pivotal in driving women’s development

President Xi Jinping’s keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the Global Leaders’ Meeting on Women has drawn widespread acclaim from foreign participants and overseas experts, who hailed his proposals as a pivotal step toward accelerating gender equality and women’s empowerment worldwide.

They said the convening of the meeting holds milestone significance, demonstrating China’s global leadership in promoting and protecting human rights and development, as well as advancing women’s status.

“Women play an important role in creating, promoting, and carrying forward human civilization. And the international community has a shared responsibility to advance the cause of women,” Xi emphasized in his address, calling for tangible actions.

He made four proposals, calling for collective efforts to foster an enabling environment for women’s growth, propel high-quality development for women, strengthen governance frameworks to protect women’s rights, and enhance global cooperation on gender equality.

Recalling the Fourth World Conference on Women held in Beijing 30 years ago, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations Amina J. Mohammed underscored the pioneering role of the Beijing conference, noting that it lit “a fire of possibility” for women worldwide. She said she was very glad to see China and other states “who have kept this flame alive”.

Hosting a second historic conference in Beijing is a reminder of the shared responsibility to deliver on women’s rights, she added.

The senior UN official commended Xi for “leading this Global Leaders’ Meeting on Women and demonstrating his genuine commitment to the women’s rights agenda”.

Anita Amorim, head of the Emerging and Special Partnerships Unit at the International Labour Organization (ILO), said that in the context of South-South cooperation, women’s empowerment offers a strategic lever for resilience and shared growth. She noted that the Global Leaders’ Meeting on Women has served as both a celebration of progress and a critical point of reflection on the persistent gaps in women’s rights and empowerment worldwide.

Amorim said challenges, including conflict, debt distress, and a cost-of-living crisis, have deepened inequalities. She said the meeting came at an essential time, focusing on women’s advancement in the economy and advocating opportunities for both women and men.

She said that over the years, the ILO has cooperated with China through South-South cooperation, bringing tangible benefits to countries in the Global South, especially in the Asia-Pacific region, in promoting employment, skills development, and social protection, while promoting women’s entrepreneurship and gender equality.

Nahla Haidar El Addal, head of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, lauded Xi’s advocacy of supporting women in shouldering more responsibilities, engaging deeply in global governance, and sharing the fruits of governance.

She pointed out that the key challenge in the current global governance system lies in the lack of coordinated, unified, clear, and well-defined rules and a procedural framework, which makes it difficult for countries to form synergy in their actions. Given this, building international consensus and improving governance rules are of critical importance, she said.

Russel Harland, deputy branch secretary and international relations officer of the Surrey county branch of UNISON, one of the largest trade unions in the United Kingdom, said he believes that China is giving vital impetus to the fight against gender inequality by embedding the shared responsibility to advance women’s development, such as urging tangible and accessible policies to channel more quality health and educational resources to all women.

He noted that Xi’s invigorating words are in line with China’s Global Development Initiative, which calls for staying committed to development as a priority.

President Pro Tempore of the Liberian Senate Nyonblee Karnga-Lawrence said, “China’s commitment of $10 million to UN Women is highly significant for African nations, many of which are already partnering with the international organization to empower women.

“We look forward to this partnership and hope that small countries, in particular, will benefit from it,” she added.

Marija Petrovic, a journalist from Serbia who covered the event, voiced her strong support for Xi’s emphasis on improving girls’ and women’s rights in education.

She said it is essential for girls to have education and their own money, as independence grants them the freedom to make their own choices.

Other analysts noted that China, which has made historic progress in uplifting the well-being of women, can serve as a role model for other countries that wish to promote gender equality and highlight women’s key role in global development.

In his address at the opening of the Global Leaders’ Meeting on Women, President Xi said that it is the international community’s shared consensus to advance the development of women.

“Women in every corner of the world are bound together by a shared future. At present, complex challenges still hamper their all-round development,” Xi said, noting that more than 600 million women and girls around the world are still mired in war and conflict, and around 10 percent are trapped in extreme poverty.

Namtip Aksornkool, former head of the UNESCO Gender Focal Point of literacy and basic education, said the high-level meeting will help promote international collaboration. She also emphasized the critical role of women in global issues and highlighted that women’s rights are human rights.

Aksornkool said that China has achieved significant progress in women’s education and leadership.

She said she hoped that, as the host of the high-level meeting, China will share its successful policies and inspire other nations to invest in women’s potential.

Anna Rosario Malindog-Uy, vice-president of the Asian Century Philippines Strategic Studies Institute, said Xi’s speech indicates that he puts a premium on women’s issues.

Malindog-Uy said this was “a deliberate signal” aimed at both domestic and international audiences. “Domestically, it reinforces the government’s commitment to gender equality. Internationally, it positions China as an active participant in global dialogues concerning women’s rights and development,” she said.

Malindog-Uy said the meeting will serve as a platform for China to showcase its achievements in promoting women’s development and to advocate global cooperation in addressing challenges that women face worldwide.

“The meeting is also an opportunity for China to announce new initiatives or policies aimed at further advancing women’s rights and opportunities, both domestically and internationally,” she said.

Sayamol Charoenratana, director of the Center of Excellence for Human Security and Equity at Chulalongkorn University in Thailand, said that Xi’s proposals are important “because the world is now changing dramatically”.

She said the two-day Beijing meeting, which gathered leaders from around the world, provided an opportunity to reinforce women’s contributions to both international and regional development, especially in the Global South.

“For many decades, there has been a deep stereotype that usually places women in supporting roles instead of being decision-makers. Women are mostly attached to roles related to family and community,” Sayamol said, adding that gender inequality is “a prominent problem in developing countries”.

Zoe White, executive president of the Australia China Economics, Trade, and Culture Association, said the high-level meeting on women in Beijing was “a new milestone” in promoting global women-related causes.

“The Global Leaders’ Meeting on Women … not only provides a vital platform for the progress of women’s causes, but also fosters a positive global environment for women’s growth and development,” White said. “It highlights … advancing women’s empowerment and protecting women’s rights.”

Wang Xiaoyu and Li Hongyang contributed to this story.

Contact the writers at jihaisheng@chinadaily.com.cn