Press Release: Ahead of International Women's Day Government of Finland pledges 4 million Euros to support women in Nepal.

Press release

Kathmandu, Nepal - The Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland and UN Women have reached an agreement to implement a programme supporting the Government of Nepal’s national priorities and commitments to advance women’s economic empowerment and sustainable development, and to contribute to its overall goal of graduating from a Least Developed Country to a Developing Country by 2022.

The agreement for supporting the implementation of UN Women’s country programme and long-term commitment to gender equality and women’s empowerment in Nepal was signed on 4 March 2015 by the Finnish Ambassador to Nepal, Mr. Asko Luukkainen, and Ms. Gülden Turkoz-Cosslett, Officer-in-Charge, Policy and Programme Bureau, UN Women.

Under the terms of the agreement, Finland will provide Euro 4 million to the programme over the period 2015-2017.

“The Embassy of Finland in Kathmandu on behalf of the Government of Finland appreciates the efforts made by the UN Women to build the collective capacities of the actors including national and local government in strengthening the local level implementation of Nepal’s National Action Plan on women peace and security. We have learned several good lessons by reaching out to the most vulnerable group of the society, particularly the conflict-affected women and girls. We emphasize this to be taken forward more effectively and efficiently. This is possible if more women become economically strong and gained confidence on their self-esteem and capacity. So for us, investing in women’s economic empowerment means to enhance women’s strength and make the best utilization of their power and spirit so that it can root out the inequality across the society.” – Asko Luukkainen, Finnish Ambassador to Nepal.

“UN Women looks forward to continuing its partnership with the Embassy of Finland to support Nepal’s priorities for women’s economic empowerment, building on the important partnership efforts since 2012 to support the Government of Nepal in implementing its National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security. Investing in women’s economic empowerment is not only a moral imperative but also smart economics. It will contribute to creating foundations for sustainable development and deliver real change in the lives of women and their families” - Gitanjali Singh, Head of Office, Ad Interim, UN Women Nepal.

The programme was developed through a consultative process with the Government, civil society, development partners and UN agencies. It adopts a holistic approach to address structural barriers to women’s economic empowerment. The programme will strengthen the evidence base on critical women’s economic empowerment issues, and enhance the capacity of government officials to design and implement gender-responsive macroeconomic policies, strategies and plans. It will also improve excluded women’s groups’ access and control over resources, and their ability to make meaningful choices about their lives. In combination with the emphasis on enhancing leadership and participation of the collective excluded groups, networks of excluded women will be provided with voice, agency and an opportunity to influence decision-making in regarding their lives.

For more information:

Marianne Kujala-Garcia, Counsellor (Development), Embassy of Finland
Seetashma Thapa, Communications and Partnership Officer, UN Women Nepal