Chairperson of the Gender Equality Committee Ms Nada Drobnjak to participate in the Conference “Monitoring the implementation of the Istanbul Convention: new synergies”, which is being held in Sarajevo today, within presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina over the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe.

The goal of the Conference is involvement in the process of considering new synergies at different levels: at the government level, parliamentary level, with participation of parliamentarians in monitoring the implementation of the Istanbul Convention, and at the level of civil society and national institutions for human rights. The seeking of a way to consolidate these levels of interaction could also help to ensure that a monitoring mechanism of the Istanbul Convention has at its disposal comprehensive information on the manner of implementing the Convention and future recommendations for its improvement in the field.

The Conference will provide a platform for exchange of experiences and knowledge and establishing contacts among its participants, including representatives of signatories to the Convention, but also the countries which consider its signing, ratification, or accession.

The Conference was opened by the Minister of Human Rights and Refugees of Bosnia and Herzegovina Ms Semiha Borovac, and the participants in the Conference are: representatives of the Council of Europe member states and local and regional institutions for human rights and gender equality, general rapporteur of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on violence against women,  special rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences at the Office of High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR),  and member of Group of Experts on Action against Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (GREVIO).

The Conference was jointly organised by: the Ministry of Human Rights and Refugees, Agency for Gender Equality of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the Council of Europe.