Hong Kong Federation of Women Limited– HKFW
(General Consultative Status granted in 2000)

Quadrennial Report 2004-2007

PartI. Introduction

The Hong Kong Federation of Women Limited (HKFW) was established in June, 1993.HKFW is a non-profit making and non-political organization. The main objectives of HFKW are to unite women from all walks of life, to study and make representation on community affairs, to improve and protect the lawful rights and status of women and to liaise with similar organizations around the world. Currently HKFW has over 1,000 individual members and 57 corporate members from various local districts with a total membership reaching 100,000.

HKFW was granted a lease of land by the Hong Kong Government and subsequently built the "HKFW Nina Kung Service Centre"in the late 1999 to serve women and the general public in Hong Kong. Due to the rapid development and expansion of the diversified services, HKFW is planning to build the "HKFW T.S. Kwok Service Centre" on the adjacent land with the funds donated by the "T.S. Kwok's Foundation", a charity foundation in Hong Kong.

HKFW maintains an excellent relationship with the All-China Women's Federation (ACWF) in China since it was established in 1993 and obtained consultative status with ECOSOC in 2000.

Part II. Contribution of the organization to the work of the United Nations

HKFW focuses its efforts on women empowerment by providing training classes, health development programs and personal growth program, and striving to protect women's legal rights through legal counseling and submitting views to the Government. Besides, HKFW encourages women to participate in national and international conferences to network and exchange experiences.

From 2004-2007, numerous meaningful events and prominent projects that have direct contribution to the work of the United Nations were organized and co-organized with various parties, as described below.

a. 2004 Women's Conference, 13-14 February 2004, Hong Kong, China

The 2004 Women's Conference was organized by the HKFW as the first conference to enable women from Mainland China, Macao and Hong Kong to gather together and exchange views on women issues. Its aim was to enhance women's capacity building and empowerment.It had successfully drawn wide participation of speakers and guests from various sectors representing various women's organizations, the academia, the professionals and the media.The theme of the Conference is 10 years follow-up on the Beijing Declaration.

The conference facilitated the exchange of valuable opinions on various subjects of concern to women, including combating and eradication of violence, health, education, environment, social participation, the portrayal of women by the media, and economic participation of women.

Through the discussion, several long-term goals were set. Individually, women should build their capacity to cope with the development of a knowledge-based society. On the organizational level, women should examine deeply their role in providing solutions for women-related problems and social development. As a result, the unification of women of different social classes could be achieved and the strengthening of woman organizations could be achieved.

b. "Beijing +10" Memorial Activities in Hong Kong, April- July 2005, Hong Kong, China

In 2005, ten years after the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, the HKFW have united 77 women organizations and formed a joint organizing panel which coordinated a series of activities(listed below) to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the Fourth World Conference:-

The "Report on the Implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action in Hong Kong" had been submitted to the All-China Women Federation(18 July 2005, Beijing, China), which summarized the views ofwomen NGOs and women from all walks of life on the ten critical areas of concerns of the Beijing Platform for Action, including "Women and Poverty"; "Education and Training of Women"; "Women and Health"; "Violence Against Women"; "Women and the Economy"; "Women in Power and Decision Making"; "Institutional Mechanisms for the Advancement of Women"; "Human Rights of Women"; "Women and the Media"; and "Women and the Environment".

The Report, with an outline of the gaps and obstacles in the implementation of "Beijing Platform for Action" in Hong Kong and recommendations, formed a basis for the formulation of strategies to advance the status of women and eliminate prejudices against women.

c. HK-Saudi Professional Women Meeting, 6-10 March 2006, Hong Kong, China

Upon the invitation by the Royal Consulate General of Saudi Arabia in Hong Kong, the HKFW hosted the first "HK-Saudi Professional Women Meeting" and received the Saudi Arabia Women delegation, comprising a total of 25 professional women, led by the H.R.H. Princess Loulwah, daughter of King Faisal Al-Saud. The 3-day meeting was a golden opportunity to enhance the mutual understanding between women in Hong Kong and Saudi Arabia.

Subsequent to the Meeting, a delegation of HKFW consisted of entrepreneurs, professionals, scholars and bankers was invited to visit the Royal Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (16-20 March 2007, Jeddah&Riyadh, Saudi Arabia) for cultural exchange. The visit had strengthened the link between women in Saudi Arabia and Hong Kong and extensively contributed to the exploration of new co-operation opportunities.

d. 6th East Asian Women Forum (EAWF), 17 – 20 July 2006, Beijing, China

The HKFW's representative attended the 6th East Asian Women Forum and announced a Mission Statement in response to the main theme of the Forum:-

e. 36th Session of Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women on the Implementation of CEDAW, 7-26 August 2006, UN

The HKFW's representatives presented both oral and written statements, which expressed HKFW's views on further advancing women's status and prompted the equal development of women and men.Subjects addressed in the written statement included "Elimination of discrimination against women's participation in power and decision making"; "Education rights and gender prejudices and stereotyping"; "Institutional mechanism"; "Equality in Family Law"; "Elimination of violence against women"; and "Equality in employment and labour rights".

f. Fifty-first Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), 26 February - 9 March 2007, UN

The HKFW's representatives shared experiences and practices in relation to the elimination of all forms of discrimination and violence against women (CEDAW) and girl child at the plenary meeting of the session. Besides, they attended a number of parallel events held with women groups and community leaders in New York, such as:

g. Global Summit of Women

With the aim of encouraging women to network and exchange experiences with other countries, the HKFW participated in the Global Summit as International Partner and helped to disseminate information to the women organizations in Hong Kong for the following conferences: