Parliamentary Secretary at the Ministry of Welfare to take part in the round-table discussion in New York on women's economic independence

At the ministerial round-table discussion, Uzulnieks will talk about the prerequisites for de facto gender equality for both women and girls by emphasising the responsibility of the state in implementing relevant policies in this area. He will also stress the important role of the social partners, civil society and the private sector. High-level representatives from Norway, Morocco, the Netherlands, Ukraine, Madagascar and Zambia will also join the discussion.

At the panel discussion organised by the European Commission, Mr Reinis Uzulnieks, together with Ms Lydia Mutsch, the Luxembourg Minister for Equal Opportunities, Ms Malgorzata Fuszara, the Polish Government Plenipotentiary for Equal Treatment, Ms Joanna Maycock, the General-Secretary of the European Women’s Lobby, and Mr Stavros Lambrinidis, the EU Special Representative for Human Rights, will discuss the opportunities and prerequisites for ensuring women’s economic independence. 

The Parliamentary Secretary will focus on the gender gap in pensions, which stands at 39% in the EU, and discuss aspects that need to be considered to solve this issue both at national and EU level. 

In the field of gender equality, the Latvian Presidency emphasises this issue of the gender gap in pensions and the reasons behind it, such as education and career choices, the gender pay gap, insufficient opportunities for balancing work and family life, etc.