Ambassador Speeches

ADDRESS BY AMBASSADOR

International Women’s Day
6th March 2025

Good evening Ladies

Dobryy Vecher

    It’s an honour and privilege to welcome you all and thank you all for joining this year’s International Women’s Day celebration.  This year’s theme “For all women and Girls: Rights, Equality, Empowerment” calls for reinforced sustained action to ensure equal rights, opportunities and participation of women in an inclusive future, with particular focus on youth as being catalysts of change.  2025 also marks the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.  It’s the occasion to celebrate women’s contributions, achievements, leadership and resilience.

2.    Hon’ble Prime Minister’s vision of ‘Viksit Bharat’ by 2047 is guided by pivotal dimension of women-led development.  India since independence has ensured equality and non-discrimination as enshrined in Fundamental Rights in the Constitution. Progressive legislation has ensured equal rights in inheritance, representation at grassroots level democracy through reservation; etc.

3.    In last 10 years, Government of India under visionary leadership of Prime Minister Modi has taken numerous steps to empower women and make them equal partners in India’s growth story.

•    To elevate political representation at the federal Parliament and State Legislative assemblies, Women’s Reservation Bill enacted reserving one-third of all seats for women.

•    For financial empowerment, under PM’s Mudra Scheme 69% of loans were sanctioned to women entrepreneurs (eg. 22.4 million loans were sanctioned in 2022-23 amounting to Rs 4.56 lakh crore).  Similarly, women have benefited by ‘Stand-Up India’ scheme for women entrepreneurs belonging to disadvantaged sections of society.

•    Various GOI schemes/Acts have made life dignified, healthier, easier, secure and empowered:

•    72% of houses out of 25.6 million houses constructed under PM Awas Yojana are either solely or jointly owned by Women fulfilling aspirations of millions of women to have their own home sweet home

•    Over 100 million LPG connections have been provided to be used for clean cooking under Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana

•    Women have been biggest beneficiary of Swacch Bharat Mission under which 120 million toilets were constructed;

•    Jal Jeevan Mission is ensuring availability of potable drinking water at home;

•    Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao campaign reserved the trend of decline in child sex ratio and decreased significantly maternal mortality rate.

•    Poshan Abhiyan has been launched to address serious issue of inadequate malnutrition

•    Triple Talaq Abolition has provided security to Muslim women

4.    There are numerous other programmes / schemes such as PM Matru Vandana Yojana, Janani Suraksha Yojana, Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana, Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana; which play an important role in improving the lives of women by ensuring equality, their financial independence, their good health, improving ease of living and creating a secure future for them. International Women Day celebration every year also provides us an opportunity to introspect, contemplate and evaluate and to double our resolve to ensure women led empowerment and development.

5.    India was the first country to have deployed all Women Peace Battalion under UN Peacekeeping Mission in Liberia and recently hosted first ever conference on ‘Enhancing the role of women in Peacekeeping: A Global South Perspective”. Of course, India now has Permanent Commission for Women in all three services and women now are not only flying commercial flights but also fighter planes.  Documentary will show the ways women are being empowered in India.

6.    Following Hon’ble PM’s clarion call to fight obesity, Embassy also uses this occasion to promote awareness and advocate for engaging in daily physical activity and staying fit.  A Yoga demonstration by our yoga expert should motivate you to start practising yoga daily.

7.    In the end, I take this opportunity to once again thank you all and appreciate the efforts of Ms. Rajni, Second Secretary (Culture), Ms. Nadezhda, Senior Interpreter, and all other Embassy team members in organising this event.

    Thank you.