The meeting of senior officials of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) countries started at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur today to finalise the agenda for the Ministerial Meeting on the Advancement of Women on May 9 and 10.

The meeting, opened by Women, Family and Community Development Minister Shahrizat Abdul Jalil this morning, is chaired by the ministry's secretary-general, Faizah Mohamed Tahir.

Bernama reported that immediately after the ceremony, the officials from over 75 of the 114 NAM member countries will meet behind closed doors in brain-storming sessions to fine-tune the draft of the Putrajaya Declaration.

Outline action plans

The Putrajaya Declaration is expected to outline action plans which will reaffirm NAM's commitment to the empowerment of women and their full participation in all sectors and at all levels, touching on the seven sub-themes of the meeting.

The sub-themes are women in economic, decision-making, ICT, health, armed conflict and violence against women in line with the theme of the meeting, "Empowering Women in Facing the Challenges of Globalisation."