ROME, NOVEMBER 25 – The Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs joined the UN awareness campaign for the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. On Saturday 25th November the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Antonio Tajani, took part in the lighting ceremony of the Ministry Headquarters, which took place in the square in front of the building.
“The Farnesina is coloured in orange to give a strong signal of interest and to reiterate the firm condemnation of all types of violence against women, a heinous crime that constitutes one of the most serious and widespread forms of violation of personal rights in the world. Every hour 5 women are killed in the domestic sphere, while one in three is a victim of physical or psychological violence or abuse and exploitation,” said Tajani.
Italy is not immune. As Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Tajani decided to dedicate to the memory of Giulia Cecchettin, whose murder has shocked the country, the main scholarship programme of excellence promoted by the Ministry, “Invest Your Talent in Italy”, aimed at the best foreign talents from 17 focus countries interested in studying engineering, economics or architecture disciplines in Italy. Giulia died on 11 November – days before she was due to get her biomedical engineering degree – and her former boyfriend, according to the investigating judge, is seen on CCTV cameras beating her in a car park close to her house in Vigonovo, near Venice.
On the Deputy Prime Minister’s instructions, the Farnesina and its foreign network joined the “Orange the World” campaign, which kicks off 16 days of initiatives alongside civil society. The“UNITED! Invest to prevent violence against women and girls” campaign focuses on the promotion of investments and financial resources dedicated to the fight against gender-based violence, setting an even more ambitious goal: proclaiming the 25th of each month an “Orange Day”, as a means to strengthen and fuel public attention on the issue.
The vulnerability of women and girls is aggravated in armed conflicts, as well as in any emergency situation, where they are the most exposed. In the face of this alarming data, Italy once again condemns in the strongest terms all forms of discrimination and violence against women.
The elimination of violence against women and support for women’s emancipation are among the pillars of Italian foreign policy and development cooperation. Evidence of this are the numerous international campaigns, such as those for the eradication of female genital mutilation and early and forced marriages, which have always seen Italy in the front line, and Italy’s involvement in the UN Commission on the Status of Women. Also within the framework of the UN Agenda on “Women, Peace and Security”, Italy is at the forefront of the international community both in promoting initiatives aimed at enhancing the role of women in conflict prevention and resolution and in post-conflict reconstruction, and through the Fourth National Action Plan 2020-2024.
Italy participates in UNIDO programmes aimed at supporting women entrepreneurship opportunities in the MENA region and is a proud supporter of the Mediterranean Women Mediators Network, as well as of the African Development Bank’s “Gender Equality Trust Fund – Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA)”. The recent Italian Cooperation Guidelines on gender equality and the empowerment of women, girls and children aim at further intensifying this commitment through specific initiatives ranging from women’s, maternal, sexual, and reproductive health, to supporting programmes in favour of girls’ and women’s education, and projects for the development of female entrepreneurship.
The planning and implementation of effective policies at the international level are also of paramount importance for the full realisation of Sustainable Development Goal 5 of the 2030 Agenda, the EU Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy 2020-2024 and the EU Strategy on Gender Equality 2020-2025. (@OnuItalia)
