Chairperson of the Gender Equality Committee Ms Nada Drobnjak spoke at a two-day workshop Women Political Leaders (WPL) Summit 2018 - It’s about time!  100 reasons to act! in Lithuania.

Speaking about the implementation of the Activity Plan for Gender-Responsive Parliament of Montenegro, Ms Drobnjak stressed that its implementation has influenced on awareness raising of gender equality issues, as well as the integration of gender equality policies and the empowerment of mechanisms for its implementation in the Parliament of Montenegro.

“Since gender equality is a basic pre-condition of democracy, it is necessary to achieve gender equality in politics, and promote commitment to the concept of gender equality in all parliaments” Ms Drobnjak said.

The Parliament of Montenegro, as she pointed out, is committed to the adoption of gender-responsive laws and policies, as well as to raising awareness of gender equality in parliamentary work.   

Gender-balanced parliaments achieve the necessary diversity of approach to challenges which leads to comprehensive and better solutions. The increased number of women in politics leads, among other things, to the change of political rhetoric and to putting on the agenda of issues for which women are traditionally interested”, Ms Drobnjak said.

The WPL Summit brings together over three hundred women (female heads of state and government and parliamentarians) from all over the world. During two days, the challenges of society and institutions in digital era were discussed, with a special emphasis on how the digital environment can be the driver of economic and social development, and inclusive society as well. The focus was on the topics of women's leadership, the importance of gender-responsive parliaments, the economic empowerment of women, and the use of social networks in the political work of women.

The event was organised by the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) in Vilnius, while Lithuanian President Ms Dalia Grybauskaitė was a patron of the event.