SCW participates in webinar on gender balance during pandemic

Manama, Mar. 16 (BNA): The Supreme Council for Women (SCW) has participated in a webinar themed “Gender Balance during COVID-19 Pandemic”, organised by the University of Bahrain (UoB), in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Director of Gender Balance Centre at the SCW, Rania Al-Jarf, Gender Team Leader at UNDP’s Regional Bureau for Arab States, Frances Guy, and Regional Programme Specialist at UN Women Regional Office for the Arab States, Manal Benkirane, participated in the virtual seminar. Addressing the webinar, Al-Jarf stressed that the positive outcomes of the SCW’s efforts to achieve gender balance appeared in various aspect of public life in Bahrain and contributed to accelerating the pace of development, citing the effective contributions of Bahraini women to the national efforts to combat the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, and mitigate its negative impacts on the local community and individuals, particularly in the social, health and economic fields. The SCW’s Gender Balance Centre Director indicated that the “National Gender Balance Model” is considered a national blueprint for policy and general strategies makers, legislators and programmes’ executes, as it sets the general framework for these parties to ensure a true sustainable integration of Bahraini women in the development process. The Model also seeks to achieve a balance that bridges the gaps and guarantees equity of national opportunities for men and women. It also specifies roles and responsibilities of various sectors in line with the national responsibility to achieve a sustainable effect to integrate women's needs and equal opportunities, she added. Al-Jarf affirmed that the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are already included in the National Plan for the Advancement of Bahraini Women which focuses on several principles, namely family stability, equal opportunities and quality of life. She pointed out that the SCW had, since a long time ago, began working with its public and private sector partners to implement the equal opportunities principle with the ultimate goal of reaching gender balance, within the framework of their keenness to honour their constitutional and legal commitments, which was later stipulated by the SDG 5 aiming to achieve “Gender Equality”.