The Forum works toward the consolidation of a network of women’s organizations, activists, and leaders. Our consolidation activities focus on strengthening the capacity of our institutional members to improve women’s lives and gender equality in communities across Kyrgyzstan. Through these activities, cooperation among women’s NGOs in Kyrgyzstan has been strengthened, and groups participating in the network have become more active and competent. Over the past several years, our network has steadily grown (now, more than 80 women’s groups have joined the Forum of Women's NGOs of Kyrgyzstan).

Our efforts to develop the institutional capacities of organizations have empowered women, and especially in rural areas. Information about and for women is collected and distributed at Forum meetings. Regularly, we bring together our network members and interested organizations to discuss pertinent issues, and how women’s NGOs can address these issues. With invited guest speakers and experts, we have focused on topics such as poverty reduction, women’s leadership development, women’s participation in political processes, women’s health, networking, and lobbying skills development. In our regular newspaper, Joogazyn, we publish information about women’s achievements, challenges, and experiences in Kyrgyzstan and beyond.

Finally, the Forum is extremely active not only locally, but also internationally.   We regularly participate in international conferences and seminars, and are active members of international networks – in particular, the Asian-Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD). We are thus exposed to diverse ideas, and have been able to share experiences and information with women worldwide.  We strive to disseminate this information to women in Kyrgyzstan and across Central Asia. For many years, an important focus of our work has been monitoring and reviewing of the Beijing Platform for Action (BPfA). Few organizations in Kyrgyzstan and in Central Asia engage in activities related to the BPfA. 

Mission: The Forum works to consolidate and strengthen the women’s movement in Kyrgyzstan while contributing to the development of a democratic society. By building partnerships, we work to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment, and to increase women’s participation in public life through organizations and NGOs. We see these activities to empower women as a primary component of developing civil society and promoting democratic processes.

Main goals: In keeping with our mission, the Forum of Women's NGOs of Kyrgyzstan works toward: developing women’s organizations’ capacities; creating an active network of organizations in Kyrgyzstan and across Central Asia; and integrating women’s activism in Kyrgyzstan and Central Asia into the global trend of women’s movements and activism. We strive to participate in global processes of democratization and the promotion of the status of women and gender equality.  With the aim to integrate Kyrgyzstan into these global processes, we aim to devote our efforts to reviewing states’ commitments (particularly, Kyrgyzstan’s commitments) to women’s human rights and to monitoring the BPfA implementation.    

Main directions: Our work involves: strengthening a network of women’s organizations in Kyrgyzstan; promoting cooperation among women’s NGOs through institutional development, information dissemination, joint positions development, conferences, meetings and seminars; conducting research; developing and distributing useful resources; and offering trainings, courses, consultative services. We work to build ties among organizations not only in Kyrgyzstan, but also across Central Asia (through the Central Asian Forum of Women’s NGOs), and to develop closer relations with foreign and international women’s NGOs, such as the Asian-Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development. 

Programs

• Programs of the Forum of Women's NGOs of Kyrgyzstan are violence against women, women's participation in political processes, and women and economy.
• New programs are: women’s human rights, trafficking.
• Crosscutting work: monitoring of implementation of BPFA and other gender related commitments.

For more information about the Forum, please see the attached brochure pages below.

Dr. Nurgul Dzhanaeva, the current President and founder of the Forum of Women's NGOs of Kyrgyzstan, will be taking on the lead role as the National VAW Monitor for Kyrgyzstan. Since 1994, Nurgul has trained women from Kyrgyzstan, Central Asia, and Asia Pacific on topics including: women's leadership, gender integration into policy and programs, law, and development. Under her leadership, the Forum has gained consultative status with ECOSOC UN. She has participated as a gender and evaluation expert at various national, regional and international events, including UN ESCAP Gender Experts Group meeting for Beijing+10. She has published a book "Kyrgyzstan women in transition." 

The Soros Foundation–Kyrgyzstan focuses on creating conditions to ensure development of an open society through reform of public institutions and attitudes toward certain social issues. Priority areas included local governance and public administration, civil society, media freedom, legal aid for vulnerable groups, education, economic development, public health, and regional cooperation.

Foundation-sponsored projects have brought local governments, communities, and NGOs together to find solutions to acute social problems. Other Foundation programs have supported the circulation of diverse information; improved legal help for socially vulnerable people; worked to make business and government planning processes more transparent; developed education policies; supported harm reduction efforts such as needle exchange; and established credit unions.


 Brochure  
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