Today, April 5th, in the city of Tashkent, the 39th session of the Parliamentary Women’s Forum took place within the framework of the Inter-Parliamentary Union’s 150th anniversary assembly.
More than 200 parliament members, female leaders, and experts from different corners of the world are participating in the event. They are discussing the most important issues related to gender equality, women's political leadership, and human rights.
As emphasized, the forum is a significant global event for female parliament members, aimed at promoting gender equality, expanding women's participation in the decision-making process, and contributing to sustainable development.
Within the framework of the forum, the 40th anniversary was celebrated, and Tanzila Narbaeva, the Chairperson of the Senate of the Oliy Majlis of Uzbekistan, was elected as the president of the 39th session.
Participants approved the agenda and reviewed the latest initiatives on advancing gender equality, including discussions at the Geneva and Tashkent sessions of the Parliamentary Women’s Bureau, activities and initiatives of the Gender Partnership Group.
At the forum, the Chairperson of the Oliy Majlis Senate also spoke, highlighting Uzbekistan’s prioritization of gender issues as one of the world's rapidly developing countries. Specifically, under the leadership of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, a new system and national model focusing on family stability, the legal protection of women, and ensuring gender equality were created in a historically short period. Uzbekistan ranked 36th among 193 countries in the Inter-Parliamentary Union’s "Women in Parliament" ranking.
Additionally, the forum noted that its current format has become an effective mechanism for jointly addressing urgent issues related to women and girls in the region.
The forum also included analysis from a gender perspective on the resolutions being discussed at the 150th assembly. Participants discussed the role of parliaments in promoting a two-state solution in Palestine and parliamentary strategies to mitigate the long-term impact of armed conflicts.
The share of female deputies in the Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis of Uzbekistan is 38%. This not only indicates Uzbekistan's leading position in Asia in terms of women's representation in parliament but also reflects the achievements of the last thirty years (+32 percentage points).
In 2004, the country adopted a gender quota requiring that at least 30% of political party candidates are women. Since then, women's representation in parliament has progressively improved. For the 2024 elections, this requirement was raised to 40%, further expanding women's participation.
During the forum, specialized working groups were formed to develop recommendations from a gender equality perspective. Moreover, a panel discussion titled "Shaping Women in Politics: Global Networks of Women" took place. At the end of the event, the leaders of the working groups presented their reports, and recommendations on gender equality were directed to the relevant permanent committees of the IPU.
Over its 40 years of activity, the Parliamentary Women’s Forum has been serving to expand women's participation in the political process and to promote gender equality. The 39th session of the Parliamentary Women’s Forum served as an important platform for global discussions focused on advancing gender equality, strengthening women’s political leadership, and expanding inclusive cooperation. Forum participants developed new strategies to ensure women's active participation in the decision-making process.
