UN agencies can help in empowerment of women in Odisha: CM Naveen Patnaik

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen patnaik (Express photo by Prem Nath Pandey/Files)

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Saturday said better collaboration with various UN agencies could help in improving socio-economic indicators and empowerment of women in the state. A delegation of various UN agencies like UN Staff College, UN Women, and United Nations Population Fund called on the chief minister at the state secretariat in Bhubaneswar. “A better collaboration with UN Women can bring further empowerment of women in the state,” Patnaik said. He informed the UN agencies that the state government has taken various measures to empower about 50 lakh women through five lakh self help groups (SHGs).

Odisha has emerged as a leader in bringing 80 lakh people above poverty line with a reduction of 24 percentage point in poverty levels in a decade, he told the delegation. Odisha is also a leading state in the country in providing housing to the poor, he said.

Patnaik also told them about the success of the state government in reducing infant mortality rate and maternal mortality rate and bringing it down to a better level than the national average. The conditional cash transfer mechanism over “Mamata” scheme for pregnant women has benefited more than 3.1 million women, he said.

The chief minister said the state government has created institutional frame work for achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).