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October 9, 1998

HEDY FRY TO HEAD THE CANADIAN DELEGATION TO THE FIRST ASIA-PACIFIC ECONOMIC COOPERATION MINISTERIAL MEETING ON WOMEN AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

OTTAWA  -- The Honourable Hedy Fry, Secretary of State (Multiculturalism) (Status of Women), will lead the Canadian delegation to the first-ever Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Ministerial Meeting on Women, to be held October 15 to 16 in Manila, Philippines.

The theme of the meeting is "Women in Economic Development and Cooperation in APEC."

"Last year when Canada chaired APEC we were proud to collaborate with the Philippines to "champion" the consideration of gender in APEC fora, and to propose this meeting," said Dr. Fry. "Women make up over 51 percent of the human resource pool of the APEC-member economies. It is time we paid attention to developing the full participation and contribution of women to the economic and, as a result, the social development of their economies."

"We commend APEC for its past initiatives to involve women in its processes and activities, and I encourage it to continue both at the government and broader society levels," said Dr. Fry. "We welcome this historic meeting and see it as a critical step in formulating a systematic approach to mainstream gender in APEC."

The meeting responds to the commitment made by APEC Leaders in 1996 to place emphasis on encouraging the full participation of women in APEC's economic and technical cooperation activities, and their indication in 1997 to take specific steps to reinforce the important role of women in economic development.

Subthemes of the meeting include: Women in Small and Medium Enterprises; Women in Industrial Science and Technology; and Women in Human Resource Development. Discussions will focus on understanding, improving and supporting women's economic autonomy, particularly in view of the growth of the knowledge-based economy and the global financial crisis. The different impacts of women on trade and trade on women, and measures to facilitate the full participation of women in economic growth will also be examined.

Ministers will agree upon a Joint Ministerial Statement with recommendations to APEC Leaders for their annual meeting, November 17 to 18, 1998 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Accompanying Dr. Fry on the Canadian delegation will be representatives from the business sector and academia, as well as government officials.