Participation

1 April 2010 –The United Nations is boosting the efforts of women in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to overcome decades of low female participation in politics and achieve their rightful role in governing the vast African country and rebuilding it after years of civil war.

Under Saddam Hussein, women in government got a year's maternity leave; that is now cut to six months. Under the Personal Status Law in force since Jul. 14, 1958, when Iraqis overthrew the British-installed monarchy, Iraqi women had most of the rights that Western women do.

An advance team for the first ever all-female contingent of police officers to UNAMID arrived in Khartoum from Namibia yesterday to begin preparations for their deployment to Darfur.

The 17 newly-arrived police officers are expected to be joined later this month by 13 others, all of whom will be conducting patrols in and around IDP camps and training local residents in community policing.

On average women constitute 18.8 percent of representatives in parliaments across the world according to the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU). This gender imbalance has been subject to much feminist criticism and many campaigns for change have been staged to address the status quo. The situation is however different in Rwanda.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told a UN gathering in New York that the world body must appoint more women to top jobs in order to raise the profile and understanding of women's equality issues. Clinton also endorsed a UN program to field a "super-agency" that will consolidate four bodies focused on disparate issues affecting women into one.

The first "Peace and Equal Opportunities in Congo after 50 years of independence" fair opened on 18th March at the premises of the Kinshasa International Fair (FIKIN). The three-day event, which was organised in collaboration of the United Nations system in the DRC, was held as part of the celebration of International Women's Day.

While the normalization of diplomatic relations between Chad and Sudan and the signing of a cease fire and framework for peace negotiations between the Sudan government and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) are being heralded as critical steps towards peace in Darfur, there is still a long way to travel to resolving the ongoing crisis in Darfur, writes Wangari Maathai, 2004 Nobel Peace Laureate, founder of the Green Belt Movement and

Thirty-five women, including some involved in the Kenya post-election crisis peace process in 2008, will meet next week to draw lessons from their experience and to suggest ways in which the role of women in peace processes can be encouraged.

Nearly 500 Sudanese female candidates are actively participating at different levels for various seats ahead of Sudan's April elections - a sign that the country may be gradually accepting the participation of women in leadership.

30 women entrepreneurs were over the weekend awarded certificates after completing a two-month training in business and leadership conducted by the Institute for Economic Empowerment of Women (IEEW).

Speaking during the ceremony, the Minister of Gender and Family Promotion, Dr. Jeanne d'Arc Mujawamariya, hailed the government for its drive in empowering women.