CWU President Attends China-UK Symposium on Gender Equality

The All-China Women's Federation (ACWF) and the UK Government Equalities Office co-organized the first China-UK Symposium on Gender Equality on December 7 in London.

Xia Jie, vice-president and member of the Secretariat of the ACWF, and Joanna Roper, a special envoy from the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office attended the symposium and delivered speeches.

The symposium was one of the supporting events of the 5th meeting of the UK-China High-Level People to People Dialogue. Around the theme of gender equality and women's participation in economy, participants discussed two topics of "Gender equality in employment" and "Making a balance between work and family".

Liu Liqun, President of China Women's University (CWU), also participated in the event and spoke at the seminar as one of China's key speakers. President Liu expressed her opinions on the influence of education in promoting gender equality and women's empowerment, as well as the significance and ways of professional women in balancing work and family. Liu also highlighted China's values and visions, laws and policies, mechanisms and social practice in promoting women's development and gender equality.

Some 70 members from Chinese and British women's institutions, experts, scholars, and entrepreneur representatives attended the meeting, including Liu Yamei, director of Women's Studies Institute of China, and Barbara, president of British Council of Women's Business.

During the event, the Chinese delegate visited British Royal Institute of International Affairs and the UK Government Equalities Office. They also communicated and exchanged opinions with delegates from the Federation of Business and Professional Women, the British Arm of European Women's Lobby and the national think tank in UK.

During the visit, Liu Liqun talked with the representatives from the University of Cambridge and exchanged opinions on the education and scientific research, student exchanges and training course in improving women's leadership capacity.

The seminar is the first exchange activity since women's causes were integrated into the China-UK humanities mechanism. The success of the event marked that China will play a more important role in the exchanges between China and Britain in the new era. The event also provided a new opportunity and platform for CWU to exchange experience with the UK in the field of women's causes and higher education.

(Source: China Women's University/Translated and Edited by Gender Study Network)