On 2 March 2023, as part of her visit to India, the Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Gunda Reire, took part in several events highlighting women’s empowerment in the digital age.
In an event organised by the Embassy of Latvia in India, “Women’s Empowerment in the Digital Age”, Gunda Reire underlined that Latvia paid great attention to the issues of gender equality, including women’s economic independence and empowerment. She noted the importance of a targeted support to women enabling them to learn new technologies and study in science and technology-related fields, thereby raising women’s possibilities for better integration into the labour market and advancing their careers. The Parliamentary Secretary drew attention to Latvia prioritising those issues in its work in the women’s rights related bodies in the United Nations system and on its path to membership of the UN Security Council.
The topics of women’s empowerment in the digital age, international cooperation and development of joint projects by Latvia and India were discussed among the Deputy Head of UN Women India, Kanta Singh, the Director of Centre for Social Research of India, Ranjana Kumari, a representative of the EU Delegation on questions of gender equality, Delphine Brissonneau, as well as representatives from civil society organisations, technology companies, and the diplomatic corps accredited to India.
In an academic discussion organised by the Jawaharlal Nehru University, the Parliamentary Secretary engaged in a discussion with students and faculty on women’s empowerment in the age of modern technologies.
Gunda Reire spoke of women’s empowerment from a humanist perspective, and the perspective of a person who has served both on the academic and political side of the spectrum. She said that empowering women had to do with justice, dignity and security. It is not true that men are from Mars and women from Venus: they both come from the same planet Earth; they are both human beings. The Parliamentary Secretary then quoted Ruth Bader Ginsburg: “Women belong in all places where decisions are being made. It shouldn’t be that women are the exception.”
These ideas were picked up and expanded on by other speakers such as Professor Ummu Salma Bava and Professor Bhaswati Sarkar, as well as students from Jawaharlal Nehru University. In her concluding remarks, Professor Ummu Salma Bava underlined the importance of making an investment in oneself in order to get ahead and that while a vibrant democracy will be one with women in decision-making roles, protecting democracy also comes down to the individual level. We all have to be watchdogs.
In the events in India, representatives from the Riga TechGirls association – CEO Anna Andersone and the Communications and Partnerships Director, Laima Bauere – shared their experience of involving Latvian women in the technologies sector. Riga TechGirls aims at encouraging women to acquire new knowledge, so that they would become not only users but also creators of technologies.
From 1 to 4 March 2023, the Parliamentary Secretary of the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Gunda Reire, is on a visit to India to attend India’s annual high-level foreign policy conference, Raisina Dialogue 2023.