Speech of the Minister for European Integration, Vlora Çitaku, in the Conference and Women`s Fair on Leadership and Entrepreneurship.

Honored Participants,

It is my pleasure, to moderate today’s session, which is aimed at discussing: the orientation of the donors for women.

Firstly, I would like to welcome all guests and especially respected panelists.

In order to achieve certain objectives we often need certain measures to promote special categories of persons. Such measures are referred to as affirmative actions. To discuss the roles’ orientation of the donors for women in a society, there should be different social levels engaged that may give an explanation on why are we in such a situation and consequently why are we still discussing on what is a deserved and natural role of a woman in a modern society.

These are necessary activities which help in sensitize the opinion to its rightful role in society. Unfortunately, we stop today and remember thousand years of development in order to make ironic all that naivety that existed in our minds all these years regarding the role of women. Only in the second part of the past century has been marked an emphasized advance of the women role in the society and its rights in terms of education, health status, labor force participation and wages. However, despite all progress still remains gender based discrimination since the inequity in rights, resources and public representation is still present in almost all countries, somewhere more and somewhere less.

Even today, the world is losing a very valuable resource for its development. Tens of thousands of talented women stand willing to use their professional preparation in the public life, but at the same time they are not represent in adequate level in the leadership positions worldwide.
Role’s orientation of the donors for women should have, impacts on the raise of living standards, focusing on the strengthening of the education, capacity building, labour force participation, wages and health sector.

And now I will have the opportunity to give the floor to my dear panelists:

Ms. Maureen Shauket, USAID Mission Director

Ms. Osnat Lubrani, United Nations Development Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Kosovo
Mr. Jan Peter Olters, Country Manager, World Bank

Ms. Astrid Green, Chairperson of the ICK Board, Managing Director, Athene Prosjektledelse AS, Norway and Manager of Wominnovation Kosovo