Video statement by Borut Pahor, President of the Republic of Slovenia at high-level meeting on the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women

President of the Republic of Slovenia, Borut Pahor took part with video statement in a virtual high-level session on the 25th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women, Beijing+25.



We here publish the statement delivered by Borut Pahor, President of the Republic of Slovenia:

"Mr President
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen

Women's rights as recognized 25 years ago in Beijing represent a human rights milestone.
Despite some progress, real change has been too slow for the majority of women and girls in the world. Today, not a single country can claim to have achieved gender equality.

In Slovenia, we are proud of our consistent high ranking on various gender equality indexes.
Pay gap levels between women and men are among the lowest in the world. Many women thrive as politicians, managers, engineers, soldiers and in every other profession they may choose. There were some progress in Slovenia with regard to the more equal sharing of care work between women and men.

At the same time, we also know there is plenty of room for improvement, nor are we immune against pushbacks.
I salute Council of Europe for adopting Convention on preventing and combatting violence against women and domestic violence.
During the pandemic and the lockdown, domestic, sexual and gender-based violence are again on the rise. We must do more to prevent it.

Mr President,
Women are at the front-line of the fight against Covid-19, as they are more represented in professions in health and care sectors.
This may have longer-term effects on balance between profession and unpaid work at home.

The role of men is crucial to overcome the barriers to substantive gender equality.
We need to do much more to change social and cultural patterns.
Glass ceilling is still there, with many barriers to women's advancement.

All these, together with gender stereotyping contribute to disadvantages for women at various stages of their lives and careers.
Let us not forget - Gender equality is not only a fundamental human right. It is firmly linked to an overall economic and social performance of a society.

My vision of a more prosperous, peaceful and fair world is a world of equal opportunities for men and women alike.

Thank you!"