Women Leaders Demand Women's Support and End Discrimination Against Women

The Bibliotheca Alexandrina attended the closing ceremony of the International Women's Day: Development, Culture and Work Problems organized by the Library in collaboration with Plan International, which was attended by a large number of experts and experts. Egyptian personalities and the Arab world. Media professionals.

Rana Dajani, Jordanian academic and professor at the Hashemite University of Jordan, Nihad Abu al-Qumsan, President of the Egyptian Center for Women's Rights, Ms. Nahla Zeitoun, and And Enge Amin, Head of Empowerment the United Nations Fund for Women (UNU), in which they called for the need to support women and put an end to discrimination against them.

Journalist Amina Shafiq compared the rights of Egyptian women and placed them in the status of French women, particularly with regard to their right to political participation. Stressing that the problem in Egypt is at the bottom of the pyramid and not at the top, millions of French women work in all sectors of production and tens of thousands of them are elected in localities, trade unions, etc.

She stressed that it was impossible to talk about political growth without focusing on the presence of women in the production process, stressing that it was the basis of empowerment.

Rana Dajani, a Jordanian women's leader and researcher, said women held a special place in Arab society, even though it was a distinguished men's society that required a lot of work.

She explained that the change should not be imported from the West, thus giving the example of the program "We Love Reading", launched from a mosque located in a simple region of Jordan and then extended to 50 countries, indicating that the change was coming from within.

"The Arab region has a certain respect for women, but it is highly discriminated against," she said, noting that women's participation in the labor market was only 21.2 percent, compared with 76 percent for women. % for men. 40%.

In 2014, G-20 economic leaders pledged to step in to reduce the gender gap in the labor market, which will save nearly $ 1 trillion, the biggest gain being countries with a growing gap, such as the Arab region and Pakistan. She pointed out that experts have characterized women's work in the society of "economic intelligence", as it improves the quality of life in society and contributes to the progress of countries and development, but this image is absent from many in the Arab region, noting that many of the existing labor laws Women need to rethink.

She explained that the main reasons preventing women from entering the labor market are the cultural factors that constitute an important part of this crisis. The girl prepares herself from the beginning of her nails to play her role only in marriage and childbirth, whereas she has no guarantee in case of contact. Any crisis will be doomed to the street.

Nahla Zeitoun said the World Bank had conducted a study in cooperation with the National Women's Council to examine the possibilities of empowering Egyptian women, noting that the results reflected women's desire for women's empowerment. employment in government because of the guarantees offered in this sector.

She pointed out that the study identified a number of issues related to women's empowerment, including the decline of jobs in government. This means that if the private sector continues to refuse to appoint women, the gender gap will increase and women will not find work. The harassment of women on the street and means of transportation is one of the reasons for their reluctance to work, in addition to the lack of a proper work environment for them and respect for their differences.

Society needs to change many of its concepts, which need time to start changing gradually, said Engi Amin, citing the challenges women face in the agricultural sector, which represents 46%.