Monday, May 9 2005 12:21 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Putrajaya, Malaysia: With a view to enhance women's empowerment through a lifelong learning approach, Malaysia, the current chairman of the Non Aligned Movement (NAM), today (May 9, 2005) proposed the establishment of a NAM Centre on Gender and Development.

Malaysian Prime Minister and NAM chairman Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said the centre would provide a wide range of capacity-building programmes, including training and research.

The Malaysian Government would initiate the funding for developing the centre and an existing institution - the Social Institute of Malaysia - would be utilised and upgraded for this purpose, he said inaugurating a two-day NAM Ministerial Meeting on advancement of women in Putrajaya.

He said the proposed centre would serve two purposes - as an international institution to stimulate intellectual discussion, promote exchange of ideas and become a centre for capacity building and training towards empowerment of women.

The centre would also serve as a focal point to enhance cooperation among NAM member states as well as NAM and other countries, he added.

Badawi noted the quest for gender equality and justice would be one of the hallmarks of the current century. "The cost of women's exclusion is too high for us to bear. Promoting gender justice and women's empowerment are not only essential but also highly strategic steps for nation building efforts," he added.