Mr. President,

I welcome you presiding over today’s meeting. I thank Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo, and Ambassador Sérgio França Danese, Chair of the Peacebuilding Commission for their briefings. I’m pleased to attend today’s meeting as the Deputy Head of the National Working Committee on Children and Women of the State Council of China.

Conflict prevention and maintenance of international peace and security will not be possible without the broad participation of women and youth. Resolution 1325 and 2250 adopted by the Security Council fully recognize the important contribution of women and youth to peace processes and offer important guidance to our efforts to advance their participation in peace and development. We are pleased to see that in pursuit of sustainable peace, the role of women is increasingly celebrated and the participation of youth is further deepened.

Against the turbulent international situation, it is necessary to further support the empowerment of women and youth, help them better respond to the changing world, and tap their wisdom and potential in furthering peace and development. Best practices and lessons learned both show that resolving development issues such as poverty, unemployment, and income inequality as a priority can help prevent and respond to conflict at their roots. It is imperative to support the economic empowerment and capacity building of women and youth, ensure their education and employment opportunities, and equip them with skills and knowledge necessary to change the fate of themselves and transform their families and communities. This in turn can undergird the efforts to maintain stability, promote development, and realize lasting peace. We support further explorations and efforts by the UN to advance the empowerment of women and youth.

Mr. President,

China has always been a firm advocate and an active practitioner for the empowerment and development of women and youth. We are committed to implementing the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action of the Fourth World Conference on Women and have adopted legislation policies and measures to ensure that women can share the benefits of economic and social development across the board. We have consecutively implemented four cycles of women's development outline, with the outline for 2021 to 2030 including 8 areas, 75 objectives and 93 measures. We have lifted more than 44,160,000 Chinese rural women from absolute poverty, and generally eliminated the gender disparity in compulsory education. Currently, women account for over 40% of all workforce in China, about 45.8% of the tech workers and about 1/3 of operators of new business models such as digital trade, e-commerce, and live streaming. We attach great importance to the advancement of youth and have enacted and implemented national plans dedicated to their all-around growth, with more than 240 pro-youth policies regarding education and employment. Over 187 cities nationwide have taken the initiative to explore youth-geared urban development. More and more young people are becoming the leading force for scientific and technological innovation, rural revitalization, and international cooperation.

Mr. President,

As a responsible country and an important member of the Global South, China has been providing concrete support to the economic empowerment and capacity building of women and youth in developing countries, including in conflict areas. In Central African Republic, Chinese agrotech teams have helped nearly 14,000 villagers in seven villages close to the nation’s capital, including village David, build mushroom sheds, chicken farms, and sheepfolds, and thus embark on the path to poverty elimination and prosperity. In the Solomon Islands, Chinese-aided fishing boats and farmers markets have provided new income opportunities for local women and youth. In Afghanistan, the Sino-Afghan pine-nuts corridor generates tens of millions of dollars of income for Afghans every year, contributing to economic recovery and social stability there. China and UNESCO have collaborated to set up a prize for girls' and women's education. China has helped developing countries implement 100 maternal and child healthcare projects and 100 Happy School projects. China has incorporated cooperation and exchanges in women’s advancement into multilateral mechanisms such as the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum. China has successfully organized international events such as the Belt and Road International Forum for Young Innovators, the World Youth Development Forum, and the World Young Scientists Summit to help bolster broad international consensus and a strong synergy in support of the advancement of women and youth.

Mr. President,

We must not forget Gaza mothers despairing in the throes of war, or Afghan girls living in livelihood difficulties, or the young people threatened by poverty, war, and terror across the world. Let's work together to push for greater international input and join hands in our tireless endeavor to safeguard the rights and interests of women and youth and to usher in a better world.

Thank you.