18 April 2023, SEOUL - Ambassador Theresa Dizon-De Vega welcomed UN Women Centre of Excellence for Gender Equality Director Jeongshim Lee at the Philippine Embassy in Seoul. Established only last November 2022, the UN Women Centre in Korea is the first of its kind in the Asia Pacific as a Centre established to improve the implementation of normative and policy frameworks and address discriminatory social norms and practices that perpetuate gender inequality in the region. The Embassy's Gender and Development Focal Officer, Third Secretary and Vice Consul Reisha Olavario, and Dr. Vu Phuong Ly, a Gender Training Specialist of the UN Women Centre in Korea also joined the meeting.

Director Lee briefed Ambassador De Vega on the UN Women Centre's plans and activities for the calendar year, including trainings on several themes such as ending violence against women, climate change and disaster risk reduction, women, peace and security, and a train-the-trainor program on gathering family gender data and statistics.

For her part, Ambassador De Vega assured Director Lee of the Philippines' support for the Centre's plans and activities and shared the Embassy's own projects, including the recently concluded special lecture series of Ambassador Elizabeth P. Buensuceso on Women, Peace, and Security and its GAD seminar series. Ambassador De Vega likewise highlighted that the Philippines is considered an advance country in gender-responsive governance, constantly ranking as one of the best-performing countries in the World Economic Forum Gender Gap report. She likewise shared the importance the Philippine government accords Gender Mainstreaming, from planning to programming, budgeting, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation. The Ambassador also drew attention to the unique and participative role of Filipina women who live and work in South Korea in their respective communities, often balancing family life, work, and leadership roles in community organizations that foster a sense of belonging for multicultural families.

The Philippine Embassy in the Republic of Korea continues to support and advance the gender and development agenda through gender-responsive plans and programs that benefit the Filipino community in Korea. END