****************************************************** The material posted here was provided to the Division for the Advancement of Women by the Government in response to a note verbale. It is being made available in electronic format in the form received. In cases where it was not possible at this time to reproduce charts and tables supplied, these can be obtained by contacting the Division for the Advancement of Women directly. ******************************************************* Received 18 November 1996 In response to note verbale Follow Up Activities of China to the Fourth World Conference on Women The Chinese government has always attached importance to the development and progress of Chinese women and regards equaIity between men and women as a basic national policy to promote its social progress. Shortly after the Fourth World Conference on Women the Chinese government has taken up to carry out its commitments. the following are the main activities undertaken: 1. Complete and strengthen national machinery for the advancement of women. - The National Working Committee on Women and children (NWCWC) of the State Council has urged local governments of all provinces, prefectures and countries to graduaIly complete and strengthen their correspondig committees and to appoint a key leading member of the same level to take care of this work. By the end of 1995, working committees on women and children at various levels have been set up in all 30 provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities and all prefectures and cities under their jurisdiction. - The Committee for Internal and Judicial Affairs under the National People's Congress has established a special working group on women and children and has also urged people's congresses at provincial, autonomous regional and municipal levels to set up corresponding groups. Up to now, such groups have been set up in 16 people's provincial congresses. 2. Publicize and implement the Program for the Development of Chinese women, Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. The Program for the Development of Chinese Women (1995-2000) was formally promulgated by the State Council in July 1995. Soon after the FWCW, a campaign was launched to study and publicize the Program, in combination with the critical areas of concern and strategic plan for the development of Chinese women, serves as a programmatic document giving guidance and provisions for the protection, all-round development and well-being Chinese women. - On October 26, 1995, a meeting of persons-in-charge of relevant departments under the State Council and all provinces was held by the Working Committee on Women and Children of the State council, specially for the planning of the follow-up action to the FWCW and the implementation of the Program. It called on governments at all levels to work out detailed plans for local women's development in the light of their actual conditions, to integrate them into their respective overall plan for economic and social development and to ensure the implementation of the Program, Beijing Declaration and PFA by providing manpower, material and financial assistance. The meeting also called upon NWCWC member departments to initiate their annual working plan and carry out their own tasks in accordance with their functions and the targets set in the Program. Up to now, 20 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities have developed their own development plan for women. - From October 1995 to January 1996, three training courses were conducted for 549 county heads, who were requested to integrate the publicity of the Program into their local government annual working plan. - A nationwide month-long campaign was launched on the publicity of the Program, Beijing Declaration and the Platform for Action through the mass media, and other seminars, lectures and cultural performances. - On May 13 1995; a meeting of promoting the implementation of the Program and follow up action to the FWCW, co-sponsored by NWCWC and the Beijing Municipal Government was held in Beijing. Nearly 4,000 people attended the meeting and large-scale consulting services were organized then. - From October 1995 to October l996, two training courses for the press people on the above-mentioned documents were conducted. 3. In the light of the targets set in the Program and the critical areas of concern defined in the PFA, many government departments formulated their priorities for development, such as: The Ministry of Labor has taken various measures to provide employment opportunities for women by giving guidance to enterprises to create new employment fields suitable for women, further development township enterprises to have more jobs for rural women, make efforts to keep the percentage of training waiting-for-job women at above 50 %, and at the same time, carry out general education and practical skill among 10 million women in poor areas. The State Education Commission has planned to give priority to the education for women in its future annual plans for the development of educational undertaking, to make preferential policies to develop women's education, as well as to form and perfect regulations, policies and appropriate measures in this area . The Ministry of Public Health has suggested to rationally use resources, provide necessary support of manpower material and funds, make preferential policies for poor, mountainous, remote and ethnic minority areas, enhance and perfect the capacity and quality of services of the maternity and child health institutions, make careful studies on different groups of people's needs for health care, provide multi-level health services and expand the health service areas. In carrying out the Program and follow up action to FWCW, Chinese women of all circles and ethnic groups as well as a good many non- governmental organizations have taken positive actions. For example, the All- China Women's Federation spread series of "women actions (1996-2000)" throughout the whole country in November 1995 in accordance with the mayor targets set in the Programs and the 12 critical areas of concerns of PFA. The main aspects are: action to help poor women out of poverty, action to assist laid- off women workers to be re employed, action to eliminate illiteracy among women, action to help women to became competent and talent persons and action to promote cultural and ethical progress. The Capital women JournaIists' Association has made proposals to all the press people to fully open up women's elegance before people's eyes in a positive way, and to eliminate conscious or unconscious discrimination and depreciation against women.