Tashkent, 21–24 April 2011 — Ms. Theodora Fierens, Regional Director of UN Population Fund (UNFPA) for Eastern Europe and Central Asia visits Uzbekistan to meet with national partners and participate in International Conference on Democratization that is being organized in Tashkent on April 22–23, 2011
Ms. Fierens has been invited to take part in International Conference «The Concept of Further Deepening of Democratic Reforms and Forming of Civil Society» organized by the government of Uzbekistan. At the conference, Ms. Fierens plans to speak about the partnership between UNFPA and Uzbekistan, and address issues of UNFPA’s mandate, such as reproductive health, women’s empowerment, population and development and youth, and their importance for
Ms. Fierens will also meet with representatives of key UNFPA partners, such as Ministry of Health. This institution has played a vital role in implementing of UNFPA’s previous and current Country Programmes. At the meeting, Regional Director discusses past cooperation and lessons learned, and also focuses on particular areas of cooperation, such as, for example, raising professional capacities of medical practitioners, working with communities on educational programmes on reproductive health and rights, and establishing a nationwide system for contraceptives logistics management.
Along with representatives of UNFPA Country Office in Uzbekistan, Ms. Fierens will go to see Women’s Helpdesk set up in Tashkent city within a joint initiative of UNFPA and NGO ‘Civil Initiatives Support Center’. UNFPA took on EC’s baton in supporting of the Helpdesk that includes a telephone hotline and counseling services by qualified psychologists and legal experts, to help women in need, with focus on victims of violence.
Regional Director’s visit continues with unofficial meeting with young people. Representatives of
Ms. Fierens also meets with representatives of UN Country Team — seven UN Agencies and the World Bank that are functioning in Uzbekistan.
This is my first visit to Uzbekistan, since I assumed the post of Regional Director several years ago, and I’m happy that it coincides with the important conference organized by the government. UNFPA has been working hand-in-hand with government of Uzbekistan at the forefront of socio-economic reforms, especially reforms related to healthcare, education and women’s empowerment, all with active engagement of civil society. We highly value our over 15-years history of partnership, and we stand ready to continue our joint work towards achieving of development goals
Ms. Fierens heads UNFPA’s Regional Office that covers a diverse region of twenty countries, including Eastern Europe, South Caucasus and Central Asia, with its office located in Istanbul, Turkey, and
and as the spokesperson of Foreign Affairs. She has extensive experience in the fields of management, political strategies, governance and in training, counseling, education and communications. Ms. Fierens studied Health and Hygiene, Social Educational Theory on management and organizational science.
