YAN YUQING

In 1995, the Fourth World Conference on Women of the United Nations was successfully held in Beijing.

The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action adopted at the conference has since become a milestone for global gender equality. Standing at the historical juncture of its 30th anniversary, China will hold another global leaders’ meeting on women in Beijing this October.
At this pivotal moment of continuity and renewal, China’s release of the white paper “China’s Achievements in Women’s Well-Rounded Development in the New Era” not only showcases the remarkable progress made in advancing women’s causes in China, but also profoundly articulates China’s vision, practices, and accomplishments in promoting gender equality and women’s comprehensive development in the new era. This contribution offers the world a vivid example of “China’s governance.”
In the new era, the Communist Party of China and the Chinese government it leads have elevated their commitment to women’s advancement to unprecedented heights, consistently integrating national development with the progress of gender equality.

China’s practice of advancing women’s comprehensive development is rooted in a solid foundation of policies and the rule of law. The fundamental state policy of upholding gender equality has been enshrined in the CPC’s governing program.

The 18th, 19th, and 20th CPC National Congresses all emphasized “adhering to the fundamental state policy of gender equality and safeguarding the lawful rights and interests of women and children.” President Xi Jinping personally planned, deployed, and promoted this work.

Party committees and governments at all levels conduct annual thematic studies on women’s work, providing strong political guarantees for the advancement of women’s causes. China enacted its first Civil Code incorporating a section on marriage and family, as well as the Law Against Domestic Violence.

It revised the Law on the Protection of Women’s Rights and Interests and amended the Criminal Law and the Rural Land Contract Law, among others. Gender equality assessment mechanisms for laws and policies have been established at the national level and in all 31 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities.

Women’s federations at all levels have carried out legal awareness campaigns, with legal services reaching over 400 million women.
In the new era, women’s pivotal role as one-half of society has achieved breakthroughs across all sectors. In political participation, women reached historic highs as members of the 14th National People’s Congress (26.5%), the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (22.4%), and delegates to the 20th CPC National Congress (27%).

Regarding high-quality development, women account for approximately 43% of the workforce and 45.8% of scientific and technological professionals.

Women constitute about one-third of workers in new sectors like digital trade, e-commerce, and live-streaming, with the digital economy continuously unlocking gender dividends. Women have also made outstanding contributions in cutting-edge fields such as manned spaceflight, domestically produced large aircraft, biomedicine, deep-sea exploration, and artificial intelligence.

In cultural prosperity, female cultural workers have produced an abundance of high-quality works, with women accounting for 25% of the 3,997 national-level inheritors of intangible cultural heritage.
In the new era, China has integrated into the global governance of women’s affairs with unprecedented depth. Guided by the vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind, China has transformed the Global Development Initiative, Global Security Initiative, Global Civilization Initiative, and Global Governance Initiative proposed by President Xi Jinping into concrete actions that promote the comprehensive development of women.

Together with the United Nations, we have co-hosted the Global Summit on Women and established the Education Award for Girls and Women. Within cooperation frameworks such as APEC and the G20, we have created platforms to empower women, leading efforts to advance multilateral and regional women’s development agendas.

We have expanded our “circle of friends” in women’s cooperation, maintaining friendly exchanges with women’s organizations and institutions in over 140 countries. We have implemented projects worth more than $40 million in the women’s sector in over 20 countries, and our mushroom grass technology has helped women in 106 countries find employment.

In the face of global challenges, we have dispatched more than 1,200 female officers and soldiers to participate in UN peacekeeping operations, providing humanitarian assistance to women and children affected by conflict and disasters, demonstrating the responsibility of a major country.
As the first female Consul General of China in Lagos, I have witnessed firsthand the comprehensive development of women’s causes in China and experienced the exchange and mutual learning between Chinese and Nigerian women, fostering a deep connection between our peoples.

Since the beginning of this year, the charity initiative “Together Fight Hunger” launched by our Consulate General, has delivered batches of essential supplies to low-income women and children, embodying the principle of “teaching a man to fish” rather than merely giving him a fish. In the “Small World” charity event supported and participated in by the Consulate General, the Association of Chinese Women in Nigeria and women’s groups from multiple countries took turns on stage, showcasing the brilliance of cultural exchange and mutual learning.

The vast majority of Chinese women in Nigeria are committed to public welfare initiatives and actively giving back to the local community. Female Chinese language teachers at Confucius Institutes, who make up more than half of the teaching staff, sow the seeds of Chinese culture and promote the continuous deepening of cultural exchanges between the two sides.

Several Nigerian women have traveled to China to participate in women’s capacity-building training courses, where education empowers them to shine in their lives. This is a vivid practice of the vision of the Beijing Declaration.
As the Global South rises, the unleashed potential of women will be an indispensable force for building a more equal, inclusive, and prosperous world for all. The Forum on China-Africa Cooperation Beijing Action Plan (2025–2027), released during the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) last September, explicitly incorporates multiple initiatives. These include supporting women’s dialogue, enhancing capacity building for African women, and promoting women’s comprehensive development.

This plan charts the course for deepening cooperation between China and Nigeria, as well as China and Africa in women’s affairs, vividly illustrating China’s commitment to translating its pledge to advance global women’s causes into concrete actions.
From initiative to practice, the path of women’s development that bridges Chinese wisdom with global action grows ever broader. The upcoming Global Leaders’ Meeting on Women offers a new opportunity to advance this journey.

Let us pool our wisdom and unite our strength, jointly tackle new challenges in the digital age, explore fresh pathways for women’s empowerment, and write a new chapter in the advancement of women’s causes.

Yan is Chinese Consul General, and the first female Consul General in Nigeria