Novi Sad, 20 Spetember – President of the AP Vojvodina Assembly Juhász Bálint and Vice-President of the AP Vojvodina Assembly Aleksandra Maletić attended the ceremony on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the successful work of the Provincial Institute for Gender Equality.
By pointing out that the AP Vojvodina had been at the forefront of developing gender democracy, president Juhász reminded the present that the AP Vojvodina Assembly had founded the Provincial Institute for Gender Equality in 2004, which was five years prior to adopting the Law on Gender Equality. The AP Vojvodina Assembly also passed a Decision which contained penal provisions, for the first time in our normative and legal framework, stipulated for cases of violation of one’s right to gender equality.
“In the following two decades, in the process of adopting a number of documents, in cooperation with the Provincial Government, the AP Vojvodina Assembly held on to the crucial principle: that women’s rights are human rights, and human rights are always, and with no exception, women’s rights”, Juhász underlined, also mentioning other relevant institutions and strategies adopted for the purpose of strengthening the mechanisms for the exercise of gender equality and human rights in AP Vojvodina.
President Juhász emphasised the strategic importance of the projects implemented by the Institute for Gender Equality for the promotion of women’s entrepreneurship, which have made women more visible, as well as helped and supported their economic independence.
“The institutional support by the Institute to women entrepreneurs has been of tremendous importance, through projects investing
in the production process, as well as through education and, in particular, business networking of women in cross-border regions”, Juhász said, underling the support to an even stronger and more active participation of women in the public and political life.
The Vice-President of the Provincial Government, Ótott Róbert also attended the ceremony. The Provincial Secretary for Finance, Smiljka Jovanović emphasised the good cooperation between the Provincial Government and Institute for Gender Equality, which had resulted in a range of successfully implemented joint projects and measures. From the financial aspect, she particularly underlined the importance of introducing gender budgeting, as the prerequisite for implementation of measures contributing to gender equality.
Those present at the celebration of this important anniversary were also welcomed by the director of the Institute for Gender Equality, Ivana Krsmanović, who spoke about the scope of the Institute’s work and research, educational and promotional programmes owing to which the Institute, together with its beneficiaries, had been building the world of equal opportunities.
A documentary about the twenty years of work of this significant institution was played at the end of the ceremony.