MANILA-- The Philippines on Monday hosted a lively welcome dinner for the delegates of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations' (ASEAN) Economic Community (AEC) visiting Manila for a regional confab on gender mainstreaming.
At least 150 delegates from various sectoral bodies in the AEC were present for the Senior Officials Conference on Gender Mainstreaming, led by the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW), the national focal point for the ASEAN Committee on Women.
As a side event, the fellowship night treated the AEC representatives with a whimsical performance by the Banda Kawayan Pilipinas-- one way of showing the Filipino hospitality to its visitors, PCW Executive Director Emmeline Verzosa said.
Though still 15 days away from Christmas, Koro Francescano serenaded the crowd with their soul-stirring version of "Silent Night" and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas."
"ASEAN meeting is not complete without some showcase of our culture," Verzosa told the delegates donning their traditional clothing.
Apart from the fellowship night, the first day of the three-day conference was loaded with discussion centered on basic gender and development concepts, and importance of using gender statistics and sex-disaggregated data within the AEC.
On the second day, the agenda is focus on the application of gender mainstreaming in the economic cluster of the bloc, as the PCW introduces its Gender Mainstreaming Evaluation Framework (GMEF), which features best practices of gender mainstreaming in specific sectors such as transportation and agriculture. (PNA)
