Ashgabat, 13 April 2009 – On 13-14 April 2009, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan, the National Institute for Democracy and Human Rights under the President of Turkmenistan on behalf of the Government of Turkmenistan, and the United Nations Population Fund, will conduct an international conference entitled “International Standards for Gender Policies” (Reaffirming CEDAW and the ICPD Programme of Action). 

This event, specifically designed to provide space for interactive and participatory learning and knowledge sharing, will bring together over one hundred Government representatives, parliamentarians, gender experts and UNFPA specialists from the CIS countries and Turkey to discuss successes and challenges in developing and implementing gender-responsive and gender-specific legislation, strategies for women’s empowerment, gender and reproductive health and rights, as well as a wide range of other critical gender-related issues. 

The major objective of the conference is to provide all participating states with a platform for a mutually engaging and beneficial exchange of knowledge, good practices and experiences in the area of gender equality and women’s empowerment towards implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD PoA) that took place in Cairo, Egypt in 1994, leading 179 countries to consensus about population and development linkages. 

It is planned that as an outcome of this international event, the participating countries will be able to identify challenges in the area of gender common for the region, create a regional network and establish forum of experts on gender, and, finally, draft a new Plan of Action for implementing newly designed gender programmes in the region. “Gender equality and empowering women are indispensable tools for advancing development and reducing poverty. Empowered women contribute to the health and productivity of whole families and communities and to improved prospects for the next generation. The importance of gender equality is underscored by its inclusion as one of the eight Millennium Development Goals and is a cornerstone of the UNFPA mandate” commented Ms. Jennet Appova, UNFPA Assistant Representative a.i. in Turkmenistan. “We are happy to have a chance to host this important international event in our country, especially given that 2009 marks the 30th anniversary of CEDAW and the 15th anniversary of ICPD – two documents of immense importance for further promoting peace and development in the world.” 

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UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, is an international development agency that promotes the right of every woman, man and child to enjoy a life of health and equal opportunity. UNFPA supports countries in using population data for policies and programmes to reduce poverty and to ensure that every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, every young person is free of HIV/AIDS, and every girl and woman is treated with dignity and respect.  

For additional information please contact: 

Ms. Jennet Appova, Assistant Representative a.i. at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , and/or Ms. Jennet Shihmuradova, Project Associate on Advocacy, Youth and Gender at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it