Asia

The proposals of four Turkish nongovernmental organizations focusing on women's empowerment will be funded by the United States State Department, an American envoy has declared. Melanne Verveer, ambassador at large for global women's issues, said Monday the four Turkish NGOs had been selected through a competitive process by which 67 projects from 38 countries qualified to receive grants.

The Swiss Cooperation Office in the Kyrgyz Republic is launching a new seven-month project involving the creation of women bakeries and the setup of small businesses in Osh and Jalalabat. This project will cost close to USD 210 000 in total.

As governments in the Middle East and around the world debate the best policies, regulations, and practices to spur economic growth in 2011 and beyond, they would benefit from looking less at regions and industries and more at demographic information and the vital role women play in driving economic growth, according to a new report published by Deloitte, The Gender Dividend: Making the Business Case for Investing in Women.

Despite being the main victims in regional armed conflicts, women are still excluded from playing a role in conflict resolution and peace negotiations, women's rights leaders said on Tuesday.

During the closing meeting of the Arab Women's Intellectual Organisation, discussions focused on the impact of armed conflicts on women in Iraq, Sudan, Yemen, Lebanon and Palestine.

The pre-World Women's Conference meetings of the regional women's networks' generated passionate discussions on relevant issues which wwere followed up over the three days of the Conference.

This year World Women's Day will be celebrated in Caracas, in Venezuela with a four-days conference, from 4 to March. Kurdish women have been invited to attend the International Conference.

First lady Wafaa Michel Sleiman issued an open letter Monday calling for better treatment of women in Arab societies and for continued perseverance in the face of oppression and discrimination.

Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal today directed authorities to punish anyone found perpetrating gender-based violence.

The headlines may scream "war, drone bombings, militants, kidnappings," but they fail to reveal the positive strides which the city of Karachi has experienced lately. With a population of over 15 million, Karachi is Pakistan's largest city and the world's fourth largest metropolitan city. It's a bustling hub of commercial activity as well as a city in the throes of social change.

Nations should invest more to educate and empower women, as they can contribute to economic growth and help reduce poverty, international experts said. The observations came at a discussion styled “Making Economic Progress” on the sideline of the symposium “Imagining Another Future for Asia: Ideas and Pathways for Change” at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka yesterday.