Yue-Sai Kan (L), poses for photos with former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in New York, the United States, on Oct. 13, 2017. Yue-Sai Kan, famous Chinese-American entrepreneur and Emmy-winning television producer, received a special woman's award presented by Ban Ki-moon in New York on Friday. (Xinhua/Li Muzi)
NEW YORK, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- Yue-Sai Kan, a famous Chinese-American entrepreneur and Emmy-winning television producer, received a special woman's award presented by former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in New York on Friday.
Yue-Sai Kan won the Ban Ki-moon Social Enterpreneurship Award along with two other women. Gloria Steinem won the Ban Ki-moon Women's Empowerment Award, while Eva Haller won the Ban Ki-moon Mentorship Award.
"It is such an honor for me to be able to properly recognize these amazing women. During my tenure as secretary general, I always worked to make women's empowerment a top priority and I can see that Asia Initiatives (AI) is carrying on that legacy," Ban said.
Yue-Sai was hailed by People Magazine as the "most famous woman in China," for her involvement in efforts to build libraries and schools for communities in China and being a UN "Say Yes to Children" ambassador.
The awards, instituted in Ban's name, were intended to honor the secretary general's important contributions to women's issues, including his role in the creation of the UN Women department, the establishment of the first High-Level Panel on Women's Economic Empowerment.
Ban's work reduced the gender wage gap within the UN itself and increased the number of women in senior management.
Steinem has been an icon of the American feminist movement since the 1970s. She founded Ms. Magazine in 1972, co-founded New York Magazine, traveled extensively to give lectures and served as a frequent media spokesperson for feminist issues.
Steinem's recently published memoir, My Life On the Road, is a New York Times Bestseller.
Haller is a Hungarian-American philanthropist. She participated in the Hungarian resistance movement in World War II as a young girl and now serves as a mentor on the boards of many nonprofits, including AI, Women For Women International, Free the Children and the Jane Goodall Institute.
"This evening will celebrate the breakthrough accomplishments of these three women as well as the hard work of women and families lifting themselves out of poverty," saod Geeta Mehta, AI President and co-founder.
