Opening remarks of First Deputy Minister Emine Dzheppar at UN CSW Virtual NGO FORUM Parallel Event Sustaining Rural Communities through Civic Tech in time of Covid

Dear organizers and participants,

The National Council of Women of Ukraine never stands aside from the difficult issues, and this time it draws public attention to the support of rural communities. I thank you for that.

And rightly so. Amidst COVID-19 pandemic, the consequences of which disproportionately affect women, the issue under consideration is more relevant than ever.

In accordance with the Istanbul Declaration on Human Settlements, Ukraine has prioritized integrated development of both urban and rural areas. We recognized “the particular needs of women, children and youth for safe, healthy and secure living conditions”.

Unfortunately, studies show that women and girls in rural areas continue to be discriminated in employment, education, health care, and access to decision-making processes.

25 years ago in the Beijing Declaration of the Fourth World Conference on Women we expressed our determination to promote women's economic independence, eradicate increasing burden of poverty on women, ensuring equal access for all women to productive resources, opportunities and public services.

In addition to various forms of discrimination against women, women and girls in rural areas often suffer from multiple discrimination due to factors such as residence, age, disability, displacement, ethnicity and others.

Unfortunately, they are largely excluded from political and public life. Their needs and rights are often neglected in the restoration of peace and peacebuilding.

This issue has been especially acute for those Ukrainians who reside on Ukrainian territories of Crimea and Donbas, temporarily occupied by Russia for the last 7 years. Seven years of suffering due to the armed aggression of the Russian Federation. Women and girls are the most vulnerable and need special attention.

In this regard, let me stress that Russia’s armed aggression turned Ukraine into the ninth largest country in the world in terms of the number of Internally Displaced Persons - 1.5 million. Sixty percent of which are women.

Finally, I would like to commend an important and tangible role of non-governmental organizations, whose actions are aimed at supporting and comprehensively assisting women; providing them with informational, legal, administrative and psychological assistance.

I wish you a fruitful discussion.

Thank you!