KATHMANDU, Feb 5: Minister for Women, Children and Senior Citizens Parbat Gurung on Wednesday said the government was effortful to end harmful social practices like witchcraft, dowry and child marriage.

"These harmful practices still exist in our society. We all should unite in rooting out them," he said speaking at an event organised here by the National Network for Beijing Review Nepal.

Saying the government has put forward social service sector as a national pride project to prosper the country, he urged all to join hands with the civil society and provide advices and suggestions in this regard.

The government was at work to bring special policies and programmes relating to women for women's development and empowerment and to realise the country's national goals of 'Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepalis', he said.

On the occasion, Minister Gurung made public a survey report on the implementation of the Beijing declaration for the advancement of women passed by the Fourth World Women Conference in Beijing.

Nepal has made remarkable achievements in gender equality and it was ready to cooperate with the civil society on implementing the treaties and conventions that the State is a party, he said. Similarly, rights activist Chandani Joshi said the report would help expose the situation of the Nepali women in the context that efforts were being made to enforce women's social, economy and educational rights.

President of the Forum for Women, Law and Development Meera Dhungana suggested strict implementation of the laws provisioning that girls are subject to inheritance and stressed the need for creating environment for issuing a citizenship card in the name of mother.

She referred to around one million children reportedly being deprived of a citizenship certificate for unspecified laws granting citizenship certificates in the name of mother.

 
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