UfM Ministerial Conference on Strengthening the Role of Women in Society

27 November 2017, Cairo.– The 4^th UfM Ministerial Conference on Strengthening the Role of Women in Society will take place on 27 November 2017 in Cairo, Egypt. The Conference will gather Ministers of the 43 Member States of the Union for the Mediterranean responsible for women affairs and gender equality, under the Co-Presidency of the European Union and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.

Following the previous UfM Ministerial Conferences on Strengthening the Role of Women in Society, held in 2006 Istanbul, in 2009 in Marrakech and in 2013 in Paris, the Ministers will meet to further support women and girls of the Euro-Mediterranean region in their quest for empowerment and equality.

A Regional Dialogue process on women empowerment, involving the UfM countries and the concerned stakeholders in the Euro-Mediterranean region, preceded this Ministerial Meeting. This regional dialogue process was launched on December 4^th 2014, and identified 4 areas to be assessed, which are:

1. To raise women´s participation in economic life.
2. To improve women’s access to leadership and decision making positions.
3. To change stereotypes through education and culture.
4. To combat violence against women and gender-based-violence.

Progress in each area was appraised through working group meetings, and a Progress Report was produced to feed into the conclusions of this UfM Ministerial Meeting.

More information about the Regional Dialogue on Women Empowerment could be found here: https://ufmsecretariat.org/ufm-regional-policy-dialogue-and-preparation-of-the-next-ufm-ministerial-conference-on-womens-empowerment-advancing-the-gender-equality-agenda-in-the-mediterranean-region/