Bangkok--31 Oct--UNISBKK
Women in developing countries are amongst those most affected by a lack of access to energy sources such as modern fuels and electricity. Their long hours spent on daily survival tasks — fuel gathering, cooking and household chores — mean they have little room for self-development or for productive activities that can contribute to family incomes lifting them out of poverty.
These links — between gender and poverty and energy in the Asian-Pacific region — will be the focus of a high-level meeting next week, organized by the International Network on Gender and Sustainable Energy (ENERGIA) and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP). ENERGIA works from the contention that projects, programmes and policies that explicitly address gender and energy issues will result in better outcomes, in terms of the sustainability of energy services as well as the human development opportunities available to women and men.
The two-day event, the High Level Regional Policy Meeting on Networking Towards Gender and Poverty Sensitive Energy Policies, will bring together policy-makers from around the region to discuss how best to bring a gender perspective to the national energy policies of developing countries.
The first day of the meeting will consist of opening addresses by ENERGIA’s International Coordinator, Ms. Shelia Oparaocha, and ESCAP’s Deputy Executive Secretary, Mr. Shigeru Mochida, followed by a series of presentations on issues such as energy needs and options for rural poor and women. The meeting’s second day will consist of several break-out sessions and presentations, before concluding with the launching of a Policy Innovation Forum, which will focus on energy policy innovations from a gender perspective with a focus on services to poor households.
Members of the press are invited to attend the meeting, and are kindly requested to register between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. on Monday., 3 November. The meeting’s inaugural session begins at 9:00 a.m.
The meeting will be held at the United Nations Conference Centre, located at: Rajadamnern Nok Avenue, Bangkok 10200, Thailand
For more information, please contact:
UN Information Services
Tel.: +66-2-288-1861-9
Fax: +66-2-288-1052
Email: [email protected]