Participation

The Mozambican Ministry of Women's Affairs and Social Welfare signed in Maputo on Monday a partnership agreement with the Mozambique Red Cross (CVM) to formalize cooperation in implementing actions to improve the lives of vulnerable groups.

Parvina Hangar's son was just 16 years old when she says he was abducted by Indian forces. That was almost 20 years ago, and Hangar, a simple woman with an elementary school education, did not know what to do or who to turn to. The pain of losing her son left her unable to get out of bed for months.

Having battled for over twenty years against the Family Code, Algerian women now face a new challenge. Unlike their elders, whose aim was to get the Family Code amended, young Algerian women today are campaigning for greater political representation and equality of access to top jobs.

Education provided an ‘initial window of opportunity' for women, says Haifa Al Kaylani, the founder and chairman of the Arab International Women's Forum (AIWF).

A seven-person delegation from the West Point military academy in the United States visited the UN office in Kigali, Rwanda on 11 June for a briefing on the reconciliation process in Rwandan society after the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi ethnic minority, and the role of women in supporting sustainable peace.

Girls are made of sugar and spice, and everything nice. Boys are made of snips and snails, and puppy-dog tails.

The famous lines — made popular through an old nursery rhyme — might sound nothing but funny to us. But if we look beyond those amusing words, we will soon realize they are ridden with gender stereotypes.

"Instead of moaning all the time, why don't you create your own (political) party?" some men asked Brigitte Rabemanantsoa Rasamoelina, a female politician from Madagascar. She accepted the challenge and in February formed Ampela Mano Politika, a political party which started with only 22 female members and now has over 5,000 female members ... and 10 men.

Insurance companies in Iran will have to pay the same compensation for women and men in the case of death or injury, the Iranian government has said. Previously, insurance policies have paid women or their families half of what a man or his relatives receive. Iranian Justice Minister Gholamhoseyn Elham said the companies would also have to make equal payouts to Muslims and non-Muslims.

LAST week, 19 emerging young women leaders completed the YWCA's Rise Up! Leadership Program, which ran from the 29th June – 2nd July at the EU Non State Actor's Building in China Town. The workshop was the first of many to be run on a regular basis by the Solomon Islands YWCA with the aim of building the capacity of young Solomon Islands women to create positive social change in their communities.

THE Solomon Islands Democratic Party (SIDP) strongly wants to see women in parliament, according to party executive Mathew Wale.
Speaking in a media forum organised by the Media Association of Solomon Islands (MASI) on Sunday, Mr Wale said there are many ways women can be given a chance to be in parliament.

“One way was through the scrapped proposal to reserve 10 temporary seats for women,” Mr Wale said.