The EU and the UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) gathered over 50 practitioners from the Arab States region for a two-day workshop in Tunis recently. Participants discussed ways to promote women’s participation in non-traditional sectors of the economy and economic empowerment in conflict and post-conflict contexts.
The workshop took place as part of the joint EU-UN Women programme – Spring Forward for Women – funded by the EU.
“There are plenty of impressive examples of women in the Arab States region reaching senior leadership positions in non-traditional sectors,” said Maryse Guimond, Programme Manager of Spring Forward for Women. “Besides our work to support marginalized and poor women, we believe celebrating the success of women’s leadership in non-traditional sectors is also important.”
The EU’s support for this action is within the framework of its support to gender equality in the region, with EU financial support to gender equality initiatives in the region over €93 million.
Spring Forward for Women is a joint initiative of UN Women and the European Commission. The programme supports the economic empowerment of women in the Southern Mediterranean region and enhances their participation in the political and decision-making spheres. The programme is financed through a contribution of €7 million from the European Neighbourhood Partnership Instrument (ENPI) and of €1.2 million from the UN Women core budget. (EU Neighbourhood Info)