Urgent legislative action needed to boost women’s role in politics - minister

AMMAN — Minister of Social Development Wafa Bani Mustafa on Sunday said that ensuring stronger women’s participation in the political and economic spheres contributes to solving many social problems.

“Women’s presence in decision-making positions will surely push their causes in society to the top of the agenda,” Bani Mustafa said.

The minister was talking during the launching of the Arab Parliamentary Document for Women’s Empowerment at the Royal Cultural Centre in Amman.

The document was endorsed by the Arab Parliament in January 2024.

Bani Mustafa acted as patron to the event that was organised by the Arab Parliament and the Inter-Ministerial Committee for Women’s Empowerment (IMCWE).

The one-day event was attended by members of the Arab Parliament and newly female-elected members of the Lower House.

Bani Mustafa, who is also the chair of the IMCWE, pointed out that the Middle East and North Africa region ranks lowest in the World Economic Forum's Gender Equality Index for 2024 with an 11.7 per cent rate in the field of political empowerment.

“This entails adopting urgent legislative and political steps to reduce this gap,” she told the gathering.

The minister also highlighted the impact of the difficult circumstances on women and children in the Gaza Strip, stressing the great efforts made by His Majesty King Abdullah to stop the aggression, in addition to the humanitarian aid provided by the Kingdom to the people in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and Lebanon.

Meanwhile, UN Women Country Representative Nicolas Burniat told the gathering that “as a man, I have no doubt that the world would be a better and more peaceful place if we had more women in leadership positions”.

 “The wars in Gaza, in Lebanon, in Sudan, in Myanmar, in Ukraine and elsewhere are all fought and decided by men,” the UN official stressed. 

“This is why this new Declaration of the Arab Parliament, which highlights the importance of women’s political participation and the role of female parliamentarians in upholding the women’s empowerment agenda, constitutes such an important contribution to the policy agenda of the region,” Burniat added.

The UN representative also touched on the plight of the “women and girls of Gaza, the West Bank and now Lebanon, who are deeply affected by the crisis in the region”.

“Since the beginning of the crisis over a year ago, as UN Women we have consistently called for a ceasefire and peace,” Burniat told the gathering.

He added: “We have worked hard to ensure that the voices of Palestinian women in Gaza and the West Bank – and now in Lebanon – are heard and highlighted how the conflict disproportionally affects women and children”.

Also addressing the gathering was President of the Arab Parliament Adel Al Asoumi who praised Jordan’s role in empowering women.

He also stressed that the Arab Parliament considers Arab women's issues as an "extremely important matter".

“The Arab Parliament is keen to formulate an integrated action plan to support and empower Arab women and protect their rights. This plan is based on several main pillars,” Al Asoumi said.