Economic Empowerment
SOURCE: Tunis Afrique Presse
"Empowering today's women and girls for a sustainable future" is the theme of an international symposium organised Wednesday in Tunis by the Ministry of Family, Women, Children and the Elderly, in preparation for the eighth session of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development.
During the symposium, which was held in partnership with UN Women and the Embassy of Japan in Tunisia, Japanese Ambassador to Tunisia Shinzuki Shimizu said that the Tokyo International Conference on African Development "TICAD 8", which will be held in Tunisia on August 27 and 28, will address, in particular, the economic recovery after the Coronavirus pandemic.
The Japanese ambassador stressed that women's economic empowerment is one of the issues to be discussed by the "TICAD 8" conference, announcing that this symposium will see the participation of 54 African countries.
He pointed out that Japan has supported women's projects in a number of governorates in southern Tunisia, with the aim of promoting women's economic empowerment in 7 municipalities in the governorates of Gabes, Tataouine and Medenine.
For her part, UN Women Advisor, Donia Allani, explained that the existing partnership between UN Women and the Japanese Embassy in Tunisia is based on the accompaniment of women entrepreneurs in the work of the "TICAD 8" summit to enable them to associate with actors supporting investment and promote the export of their products to other African countries.
For her part, Minister of Women, Family, Children and the Elderly, Amal Belhaj Moussa, noted that this symposium paves the way for further cooperation and strengthening of the Japan-Africa partnership, particularly with regard to the adoption, implementation and financing of policies to support women and economic empowerment, as a fundamental step towards achieving gender equality.
The proceedings of this symposium include a presentation of the results of the research on "The roles and needs of women and girls in seven municipalities in southern Tunisia and their participation in social cohesion" and the project "Women's empowerment for peaceful societies in southern Tunisia" implemented in the framework of the Tunisian-Japanese cooperation.