Gender equality is one of my long-term priorities as a strong foundation for building a sustainable future for all. Despite the widely acknowledged importance of the role of women in political, social and economic spheres, gender inequalities are pervasive and persist in reality. We urgently need to take bold actions and reach out to women everywhere, expand their opportunities to join labour markets with equal pay for decent job, become successful entrepreneurs, participate together with men in decision making and lead in transport, energy, trade, or any other sectors and activities. As Executive Secretary of UNECE and committed International Gender Champion, my focus is to advance the implementation of the UNECE Policy for Gender Equality with effective, coordinated and coherent measures both in the Organisation as well as in providing support to our member States in accelerating the achievement of gender equality through gender transformative policies.