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Zsófia Koncz, Secretary of State for Families at the Ministry of Culture and Innovation, informed the members of the UN “Commission on the Status of Women” about the new elements of the Hungarian family policy in New York on Tuesday.
The 69th session of the Board focused on the need for further international action for gender equality. The event is of particular interest this year, as the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, “the most progressive blueprint ever for advancing women’s rights,” is 30 years old.
The Hungarian delegation included the heads of the Parents’ House foundation, the Union of Hungarian Women Association and the Association for Women’s Carreer Developement in Hungary.
Zsófia Koncz said that Hungarian NGOs working on families and women’s issues are very active in the UN, as shown by the fact that all three participating Hungarian institutions are officially registered within the organization. The State Secretary said that she had met with government officials responsible for family policy in several countries around the world, including representatives of Serbia, Morocco, Türkiye, Qatar, the Philippines and Chad.
The State Secretary briefed the negotiators in detail on the various elements of Hungarian family policy, in particular
the steps taken to extend the personal income tax exemption for mothers, the family tax relief system and measures to increase women’s employment.
On the subject of women’s mental health, she mentioned the 110 years old network of women’s health care workers, and presented the Hungarian Medical Alert Watch (Gondosóra) program. Women above the age of 65 receive a device for free that they can signal for help with, thus for example having a higher chance of survival in case of a stroke.
Zsófia Koncz highlighted three key priorities of Hungarian family policy in her talks: improving the financial situation of families, the home creation scheme and the work-family balance. According to the State Secretary,
Hungarian family policy is widely recognized and the outcome of the meetings is reflected in continued and broadening cooperation with partners.
A forum on supporting women’s mental health was held as a Hungarian side event to the UN Commission’s meeting, at which Zsófia Koncz also spoke, as she did at the family policy side event organized by Qatar.
The Hungarian State Secretary also attended an event organized by the Polish Presidency of the European Union.
The Minister of State for Family Affairs of the Ministry of Culture and Innovation will continue her official visit on Wednesday in Washington, where the family policy efforts of the new Donald Trump administration will be on the agenda.
Via MTI; Featured picture: MTI/KIM/Orosz Péter