(MENAFN- Jordan News Agency)
Amman, Jan.19 (Petra) -- Deputizing for Prime Minister Omar Razzaz, Planning and International Cooperation Minister Mary Kawar on Saturday took part in Mashreq Conference Women's Economic Empowerment in Beirut.
The conference, organized by the World Bank Group, came on the sidelines of the Arab Social and Economic Summit to be held today in Beirut, a statement from the Planning and International Cooperation Ministry said on Saturday.
Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri, Labour Minister Samir Murad, Secretary General of the National Committee for Woman Affairs Salma Nims, and representatives of the parliament, the private sector and the civil society from Jordan, Iraq and Lebanon attended the conference.
In a speech on behalf of Razzaz, Kawar said that stressed the importance of collective efforts to improve women situation and empower them at economic, social and political sectors, highlighting the role of the Arab League in this regard.
"We always look forward to supporting woman's role in the process of decision-making and the full partnership with the relevant institutions in the three countries to realize the goals of sustainable development from a national and international perspective", Kawar said.
The conference coincides with the 40th anniversary of Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and as the Arab states has initiated preparations for the 25-year-review of progress in the implementation of the Beijing Declaration, said the statement.
Kawar noted the importance of the progress achieved in increasing the political and economic participation of women and the achievements in improving the quality of services provided to woman in the fields of education, health, social affairs and others.
"We cannot say that gender equality has been achieved; not only in our countries but on a global scale, therefore we must continue to do more to revitalize international commitments and strengthen political will at the national, regional and international levels", the minister said.
Kawar pointed out that Jordan still faces challenges that are known for all and have direct impact on all citizens, women and men, the challenges include the modest economic growth due to the continuing instability in the region, which has had the effect of delaying the desired economic growth and the consequent deficit in the general budget, the rise in the rate of public debt to GDP, the limited volume of exports, and the continued rise in energy prices, which led to an increase in the unemployment rate, especially among young males and females, and low per capita income levels.
Recognizing the overall circumstances, the Government has launched the Jordan Vision 2025 as a national strategy that sets a path for the future with a framework that will govern economic and social policies based on opportunities for all, according to the statement.
The Government has also set its working priorities for (2019-2020) as a first step for the National Renaissance Project, which aims at harnessing the energies of Jordanians and meeting their aspirations for a better future.
The program targets all Jordanian and aims to preserve their dignity and improve the quality of life for them, within three tracks, namely, the path of law enforcement to all, promoting transparency and integrity, protecting public funds and deepening citizenship and participation.
The second track is about enhancing production and employing all energies to raise the standard of living of citizens, enhance self-promotion and economic growth and the role of the private sector,
The third track is the state of Takaful (social solidarity) in maintaining the dignity of citizens and protection from poverty through the provision of high quality public services, according to the statement.
Minister Kawar stressed that the success of this process depends on the principle of equality of rights and duties between all Jordanians and genders. Success cannot be achieved without deep awareness and a serious and logical response to the urgent needs of women, which would prevent their participation in public and economic life, given that studies have shown that there are direct and indirect effects of the weak participation of women reflected in lessening the growth in GDP and the existence of an lost economic opportunity for not exploiting the potential of women.
In terms of the legislative and legal environment, Kawar highlighted some important aspects that would enhance the economic participation of Jordanian women.
A few days ago, the Jordanian Parliament passed amendments to the Labour Law seeks to remove the obstacles that stand in front of women's economic participation through amendments to introduce the concept of flexible work.
It also endorsed a paternity leave and guaranteeing the right to work for Jordanians married to non-Jordanians, and providing a family-friendly work environment through the establishment of nurseries in the workplace in the private sector, as well as amendments to certain articles to ensure equal pay for work of equal value in recognition of the efforts of the National Commission for Equal Pay, said the Planning Minister.
She said that these achievements were the outcome of continuous efforts through several years of active dialogue between the various stakeholders of civil society institutions, employers, workers, the government and the Parliament.
Jordan has recently introduced several reforms to facilitate women's entry into the labour market for the sake of a decent working environment that led to an international recognition of Jordan's efforts.
The only Arab country, the Kingdom was invited in 2018 to join the International Equal Pay Coalition (EPIC) which was launched in late, which underscored Jordan's commitment to work to bridge the gender pay gap through bank transfers in sectors dominated by women such as education and health as a first step.
"Although the road ahead is still long, there is a political commitment and awareness of the importance of translating legislation into programs, projects and indicators of success", the minister concluded.
19/01/2019 21:15:24
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