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UAE GBC

UAE GBC meets with the Women’s Forum of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean

The UAE Gender Balance Council (UAE GBC) today held talks with the Women’s Forum of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean to explore ways to enhance cooperation. The Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean is an international organisation that brings together Euro-Mediterranean and Gulf Parliaments to discuss common issues.

The meeting was attended by H.E. Mona Ghanem Al Marri, Vice-President of the UAE GBC; H.E. Joanna Lima, President of the Women’s Forum of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean and Head of the Portuguese Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean; H.E. Fatima Zahraa Abdi, Vice-President of the Forum; Celine Servi from the Secretariat of the Mediterranean Parliament; and H.E. Maryam Majid Bin Thania, Member of the UAE Federal National Council and Vice-President of the Parliamentary Women’s Forum of the Mediterranean Parliament.

During the meeting, the delegation was briefed on the Council’s mission to bridge the gender gap in various sectors of the UAE economy. The delegation was also briefed on the Council’s initiatives inspired by the vision of Her Highness Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, President of the General Women’s Union, President of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, Supreme President of the Family Development Foundation and guided by Her Highness Sheikha Manal bint Mohammed bint Rashid Al Maktoum, President of the UAE Gender Balance Council, President of the Dubai Women’s Institution and wife of His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Presidential Affairs, who have enabled the UAE to make rapid strides in gender balance. The meeting also discussed the fact that the UAE Gender Balance Council was recently selected by the World Economic Forum as a knowledge partner to promote gender balance on a global scale.

In addition, the meeting discussed new opportunities for cooperation between the UAE GBC and the Forum to strengthen the role of women in the political and parliamentary spheres.

The meeting also discussed the achievements of UAE women in various fields, including their contribution in the political sphere. During the discussions, it was noted that the UAE has become one of the world’s leading countries in terms of percentage representation of women in parliament, as confirmed by the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report for 2021 and 2022, and the Global Competitiveness Report issued by the International Institute for Management Development (IMD) in Switzerland, which ranked the UAE as the world’s top country for female representation in parliament in 2020 and 2021. Women make up 50% of the UAE Federal National Council and 27.5% of the UAE Cabinet.

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