The Women's Commission was set up on January 15, 2001, as a central mechanism to promote the well-being and interests of women in Hong Kong. It is tasked to identify women's needs and address matters of concern to women in a holistic and systematic manner. It has developed a long-term vision and strategy for the development and advancement of women in Hong Kong. The Women's Commission takes a strategic overview of women's issues, advises the Government on policies and initiatives that are of concern to women and seeks to ensure that women's perspectives are factored in (or mainstreamed) during policy formulation.

Chaired by a non-official member and comprising another 21 members, the commission's mission is 'To enable women in Hong Kong to fully realise their due status, rights and opportunities in all aspects of life.' To this end, the commission has adopted a three-pronged strategy: the creation of an enabling environment, empowerment of women and pubic education. Special working groups have been set up to take forward work in these areas. It also performs three strategic functions in championing women's causes, inspiring and catalysing changes and mobilising community resources.

The commission has secured the Administration's agreement to introduce gender mainstreaming in different policy areas incrementally thus furthering its aim to create an enabling environment. The goal is to integrate women's needs and perspectives in the formulation and implementation of public policies, programmes and legislation. An analytical tool in the form of a checklist (i.e. the Gender Mainstreaming Checklist) has been developed. Since 2002, the checklist has been applied to 19 policy areas or programmes. Plans are being prepared to roll out the checklist to more policy areas on an incremental basis, and to review the implementation of gender mainstreaming. In addition, since 2001, gender-related training has been provided to over 1 000 civil servants of different grades. All bureaux and departments have designated Gender Focal Points to serve as the contact/resource person for his/her organisation.

As for the empowerment of women, the Women's Commission aims to better equip women for life's challenges and to create an enabling environment for women to develop themselves. The commission has reviewed and suggested improvements to a number of services for women to ensure their appropriateness, adequacy and quality. It promotes development of new service models and good empowerment practices. To enhance women's participation in advisory and statutory bodies (ASBs), the commission has obtained the Administration's agreement to take gender composition into account in making appointments to these bodies. A benchmark of 25 per cent women has been set as an initial working target for appointments to ASBs. A proactive approach is being taken to reach out, identify and cultivate potential female candidates, and women's participation in ASBs (excluding official and ex-officio members) has improved: from 23.7 per cent in December 2004 to 25 per cent in December 2005. The Administration will continue to work in this area.

The introduction of an innovative and flexible learning mode, the Capacity Building Mileage Programme, in March 2004 was major step towards helping women develop to their full potential. The programme seeks to enhance women's all-round abilities and promote life skills. The programme is being implemented on a three-year pilot basis in partnership with the Open University of Hong Kong and a radio station, with funding support from the Lotteries Fund and supplementary learning activities organised by NGOs. Since the launch of the programme, the response from women has been enthusiastic. Altogether, 21 radio courses and six face-to-face courses have been developed. More than 7 800 women had enrolled in the programme by the end of 2005, a figure that does not include the large audience reached through the radio programmes. Students say they have benefited from the courses in terms of increased interest in learning and enhanced confidence and knowledge in resolving problems in daily life.

The commission seeks to establish partnerships with NGOs through its various activities to enhance communication and create synergy. It has developed a collaborative framework with NGOs and other interested parties to encourage cooperation. The commission will continue to collaborate with the non-governmental sector to promote the realisation of women's full potential and the elimination of gender prejudices, and to strive for a more prosperous and better future for all.