Manipal: The three-day International Conference on ‘Impact of Global Issues on Women and Children’, organized by Manipal College of Nursing Manipal, Manipal University in collaboration with 24 national and international institutions from 14 countries began at the Dr T.M.A. Pai Auditorium here on Monday. Following the formal inauguration by Priyanka Mary Francis, Chief Executive Officer, Udupi Zilla Panchayath the plenary sessions began with speakers from different countries sharing their experiences with about 425 participants.

Priyanka in her opening address emphasized on the initiatives taken by the district to manage malnutrition among pregnant woman and to reduce infant mortality rates. She briefed about the supplementation of nutritious food to pregnant women through the ICDS scheme. She also highlighted the development of android applications to address the concerns of empowerment of women for ASHA workers.

Dr. H S Ballal, Pro Chancellor, Manipal University presided over the function. He highlighted the vision of Dr. TMA Pai in dealing with issues of ill-health, illiteracy, and poverty. He also said that it was the responsibility of every citizen to see that the women are empowered and are supported to achieve higher status. He commended the roles played by women prominent leaders in various fields.

Dr Anice George, Dean, Manipal College of Nursing Manipal, welcomed the gathering and introduced the chief guest of the inaugural function. Dr. Basanti Majumdar, Professor Emeritus, McMaster University, Canada gave an overview of the conference and provided the statistics of the conference. Dr. Linu Sara George, Professor, Manipal College of Nursing Manipal was the MC.

The first day’s plenary session on “Lessons learned from global disasters” (Flood, Tsunami and Earthquake) was taken Dr Mariko Ohara, Ms Masako Saito, Dr Yoshiko Tsukada speakers from Japan highlighted how the country was devastated with natural calamities and the measures taken to prevent it in future and also how to mitigate the sufferings of people. They also emphasized on various training programs being undertaken to prepare people for such disasters and create awareness.

The session on the “Impact of Violence/War/Terrorism on Child and Women” was addressed by Ms. Meyenburg-Altwarg Iris Karin, Germany. She spoke on the various forms of violence among children and stressed upon teaching the children to say ‘stop’ and talk openly about abuse. The Biological Health Issues were addressed by the Dr Majeda A. AL- Ruzzieh, Dr Elissa Ladd, Dr Gugu Mchunu, Dr Asha P Shetty speakers from Jordan, USA, South Africa and India respectively. They spoke about breast cancer, cervical cancer, HIV and AIDS and impact of globalization on children.