Preparing the next generation of women leaders to meet the challenges of the 21st century is behind a project initiative to create a women leaders university, on the platform of women economic empowerment, under the aegis of the UNDP (United Nations Development Programme)-WINNER (Women into the New Network for Entrepreneurial Reinforcement) global program.
China has committed its full support to the initiative in order to put to action gender equality in the pursuit of development and peace.
DEVNET, an executing agency of the UNDP, recently sent a technical mission to Ordos City in Inner Mongolia (China), to confer with local authorities and project collaborators to identify a suitable location for the physical infrastructure for the project. Ordos City is ready to provide the site and needed resources to implement the project.
The project is dubbed as WINNER Women Leaders University, in the framework of the WINNER global program that has developed women leaders, particularly in the business sector, from Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe and Latin America. Todate, WINNER has benefited over 40,000 women with training courses on information and communication technology and best practices in management as well as economic cooperation in the global economy.
The planning and realization of the concept of a WINNER Women Leaders University is a timely response to the call raised by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon during his address at the Summing-Up Meeting on the Millennium Development Goals, where he stressed that education is the fulcrum of change in the 21st century.
According to Ben Milano, Regional Director for Asia of the WINNER global program, the project aims to provide integrated leadership training courses along the themes of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals.
Exploiting the capacities and talents of women and applying these to meet political, economic, environmental and developmental challenges of today and the future is the core objective of the project. The university aims to have state-of-the-art educational facilities and learning laboratories, modern amenities and life enhancing ambiance. It will form a vital part of a global network of academic communities that are dedicated to total human development.
