UN Women Regional Director visits Uzbekistan to advance regional cooperation on gender equality

Tashkent, Uzbekistan - From 9-11 December 2025, Belén Sanz Luque, Regional Director of UN Women for Europe and Central Asia, undertook an official mission to Uzbekistan, highlighting the country’s growing role in advancing gender equality and strengthening regional cooperation across Central Asia. During the visit, she participated in two subregional events and held bilateral meetings with government officials, justice sector leaders, civil society representatives, and private sector partners.

The mission came at a critical moment, as countries across the region prepare for the 70th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70), which will focus on ensuring access to justice for all women and girls.

Advancing regional priorities ahead of CSW70

As part of her visit, the Regional Director joined the Preparatory High-Level Meeting for CSW70, co-hosted by the Government of Uzbekistan and UN Women Europe and Central Asia. The event convened officials from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan to align regional priorities on women’s access to justice and to adopt a Joint Statement outlining shared commitments and concrete actions ahead of CSW70.

Belén Sanz Luque also took part in the Annual Forum of the Central Asian Alliance to End Gender-Based Violence, a key regional platform uniting governments, civil society organizations, activists and international partners. Discussions emphasized the importance of survivor-centered, coordinated responses, and sustained partnerships to address both emerging and persistent forms of violence against women. 

High-level bilateral engagements

Alongside the subregional events, Belén Sanz Luque held bilateral meetings with senior leaders and partners advancing women’s rights and gender equality across Central Asia.

She met with Zulayho Mahkamova, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Uzbekistan and Chair of the Committee on Family and Women, and expressed appreciation for Uzbekistan’s leadership in hosting the CSW70 preparatory meeting. Discussions focused on the newly developed Country Gender Equality Profile, described as an ambitious and forward-looking framework to accelerate gender equality and women’s rights. UN Women reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the implementation of the Profile and translating policy commitments into tangible results for women and girls.

In a meeting with Tanzila Narbayeva, Speaker of the Parliament of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the Regional Director reaffirmed the strong partnership between UN Women and the Parliament. Discussions focused on expanding UN Women programmes and scale joint efforts to strengthen women’s rights and protection. Uzbekistan’s leadership in advancing intergovernmental processes, including hosting the CSW70 preparatory meeting was highlighted as both timely and impactful. 

Belén Sanz Luque also met Sadagat Gahramanova, Deputy Chair of the State Committee for Women and Children Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan, to discuss progress on women’s economic empowerment. UN Women Azerbaijan’s close collaboration with government partners was highlighted, with a shared commitment to deepen cooperation to expand women’s access to decent work, finance and opportunities across value chains.

In discussions with Ainura Oruzbaeva, Deputy Minister of Labour, Social Welfare and Migration of the Kyrgyz Republic, the Regional Director highlighted Kyrgyzstan’s strong representation of women in decision-making, with women holding 42 per cent of seats in local councils and 33 per cent in parliament. UN Women reaffirmed its continued support to consolidating these gains and advancing women’s leadership and economic inclusion.

Belén Sanz Luque also met Elvira Azimova, Chairwoman of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and commended the Court’s leadership in promoting gender equality within the justice system. UN Women expressed readiness to support the proposed establishment of a Central Asian Women in Justice Association to strengthen regional cooperation, peer learning and professional networks among women in the justice sector.

In a bilateral exchange with Nigina Alizoda, First Deputy Minister of Justice of the Republic of Tajikistan, discussions focused on water diplomacy and gender-responsive governance. Tajikistan’s leadership in linking transboundary water cooperation with the Women, Peace and Security agenda was recognized as a powerful example of how environmental sustainability, peacebuilding and gender equality reinforce one another.

The Regional Director also met Zafar Khashimov, Founder of Korzinka and a signatory of the Women’s Empowerment Principles, to acknowledge private sector support for the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence. The exchange underscored the essential role of businesses in shifting social norms, raising awareness and scaling solutions to end violence against women.

Strengthening coordination with the UN system

During the mission, Belén Sanz Luque also met with Sabine Machl, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Uzbekistan, to discuss opportunities to further strengthen collaboration in support of national gender equality priorities. Discussions focused on aligning UN Women programmes with broader UN system efforts and identifying perspectives for expanded joint programming to advance women’s rights, access to justice and gender-responsive governance.

Standing with civil society and partners

As part of the visit, Belén Sanz Luque held exchanges with civil society leaders from across Central Asia, recognizing their vital role in driving change at the community, institutional and public discourse levels.

At a time when civic space faces growing challenges globally, she reaffirmed UN Women’s commitment to strengthening dialogue, partnerships and support for civil society organizations working to advance women’s rights and gender equality. 

Strengthening partnerships for all women and girls

The mission concluded with appreciation for the strong collaboration with national partners and UN Women country teams in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The visit reaffirmed UN Women’s commitment to working alongside governments, civil society, youth and the private sector to deliver concrete results for all women and girls in Central Asia.