We, the Women Leaders' Network WLN) from APEC economies came together for the eighth time in Chiang Mai, Thailand on July 30 - August 3, 2003, to reaffirm our commitment to strengthening and deepening the partrlerships within WLN and wlth all APEC fora.

we, the Women Leaders Network from the APEC Economies came together for the seventh time in Acapulco, Mexico from August 20th to 22nd, 2002, to reaffirm our commitment and our efforts to contribute to the economic development, cooperation and prosperity of the APEC region, and to strategize to meet challenges in the new century.

We, the Women Leaders’ Network, from APEC economies came together for the sixth time in Beijing, China on August 22-24, 2001, to reaffirm our commitment and our efforts to contribute to the economic development, cooperation and prosperity of the APEC region, and to strategize to meet challenges in the new century.

The 1999 WLN Meeting contributed to the drafting of policy recommendations for presentation to APEC Trade Ministers. This was the first time the WLN recommendations were made directly to APEC Ministers for Trade.

The WLN 2000 Declaration and Recommendations, recalls the "1996 Manila WLN Call to Action; WLN Declarations of 1997 Ottawa-Hull; 1998 Kuala Lumpur and 1999 Wellington; and Recommendations from the Ministerial Meeting on Women in Economic Development and Cooperation in Manila in 1998.

The 1998 WLN Meeting Declaration and Recommendations reaffirms the "commitment to work together [with APEC] in partnership to meet current challenges, as well as challenges in the new millennium to contribute towards achieving sustainability in our regional economic recovery, prosperity and development" (WLN 1 998).

With the theme “Towards a Dynamic Community – for Sustainable Development and Prosperity” in the year APEC 2006, it is estimated 100 events will be organized in Vietnam, of which The APEC 11th Women Leaders’ network Meeting will be hosted by Vietnam Women Union at the International Conference Center – Hanoi, from September 19 to 22, 2006.

The European Commission (EC)’s decision to slap primary anti-dumping duties of 4.2 percent on leather shoes imported from Vietnam has affected half a million leather shoe workers (most of whom being women) and a high number of workers involved in supporting sectors.

From: Ha Thi Khiet

With a great passion for Vietnam, Madam Kathleen Huff gave up her position as Head of the Psychology Department at Arkansas University, America in 1998. Instead she took up work at World Concern, a non-government organization in Seatle (America), who needed an expert for their job-generation project for disabled youths in Da Nang, Quang Nam and Hai Duong, Vietnam.