Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnamese Prime Minster Nguyen Xuan Phuc on June 26 chaired an ASEAN Leaders' Special Session on Women’s Empowerment in the Digital Age as part of the 36th ASEAN Summit.

The video conference was organised for the first time as aninitiative of Vietnam to affirm ASEAN leaders’ commitment to promoting genderequality and women’s empowerment and to enhance the role of women in buildingthe ASEAN Community.

In his remarks, PM Phuc highlighted the role played by womenand their contributions to humankind’s efforts to respond to challenges and topromote development in each ASEAN member country.

There remains inequality and discrimination against women,however, which inhibits their development and contributions to the community, hesaid. 

The PM underlined the need for ASEAN to take action toutilise women’s potential and create conditions for them to use theirstrengths and contribute to development in regional countries in particular andthe ASEAN Community in general, especially in the digital age.

According to the UN, women make up only 2 percent of thetotal number of negotiators and mediators in the world but are indispensable in cooperative processes that help create sustainable peace and security, he said.

The ASEAN Community has affirmed its goal of developing intoa community in which everyone is treated equally and the rights of women arepromoted and protected, PM Phuc stressed.

ASEAN members have effectively implemented plans andprogrammes as well as mechanisms on women, towards building a people-centredASEAN Community, he said.

Addressing the gathering, Chairwoman of the Vietnamese National Assembly  NguyenThi Kim Ngan, who is also Chair of the 41st General Assembly of the ASEANInter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA 41), highly valued the initiatives andstrong commitment of ASEAN in promoting the role and rights of women andwomen’s empowerment in the digital age.

She proposed measures to make progress more effective in thefuture.

Ngan expressed her belief that ASEAN will continue to take advantage of theregion with the world's fast internet growth to enhance the position of women,especially those in charge of leader positions, thus contributing to ensuringgender equality.

For his part, ASEAN Secretary General Lim Jock Hoi underlinedthe significance and timing of the session as it takes place amid challengesposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The special session not only reaffirms ASEAN’s commitments torealising equality for all but also shines a light on the indispensable role ofwomen as drivers of urgent change in the digital age, he said.

Participants discussed measures to promote and uphold therole and contributions of women as well as women’s empowerment in the digitalage, and how to facilitate their participation in building an ASEAN Communitybased on the three pillars of politics-security, economy, and socio-culture.

Ways were also sought to promote ASEAN women’s effectivecontributions to efforts to maintain peace, security, stability, sustainabledevelopment, and multilateral cooperation in countries and the region./.