MANAMA — Dr. Khaled Al Ghazzawi, CEO of Ebdaa Bank for Microfinancing — Bahrain, called for the Arab's benefit from the Bahraini expertise in the field of supporting and advancing women through the efforts of the Supreme Council for Women headed by Princess Sabeeka Bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa, may God protect her.
Dr. Al Ghazzawi urged to build on the Bahraini model of women advancement by identifying and disseminating best practices, in a way that helps all Arab organizations and institutions to empower women, and draw up a clear executive plan that takes into account the civilizational, cultural and social legacy of each society on the one hand, and liberates and activates the energies of women in Arab countries on the other hand, and increases their contribution in sustainable development.
This he said this while participating in a remote meeting organized by the Local Development Unit of the Coptic Evangelical Organization for Social Services in partnership with the Arab Network for NGOs in Cairo on the project of improving the living conditions of women in the informal sector in Egypt, and in the presence of various ministries of manpower and social solidarity in Egyptian governorates, in addition to a group of project’s local leaders.
During the meeting, Dr. Al Ghazzawi presented various statistics that affirmmed the dynamic presence of women in economic affairs in general and in the financial and banking services sector in particular, pointing out that Bahraini women have been able to keep pace with recent developments in the financial and banking industry, including "FinTech."
Additionally, he stressed the efforts of Bahrain in the field of "Financial Inclusion", which means integrating the most substantial segment of citizens into the productive process and economic mobility of the state, stressing the significance of benefiting from the advanced Egyptian experience in this field.
Lawyer Layla Al Murbati also participated in the meeting and spoke about the constitutional and legislative aspects that support women in Bahrain and equality between men and women in all fields.
During the meeting, the Egyptian participants discussed the goals of the project of promoting the living conditions of women-headed households, to improve the quality of life for them in the informal sector in thirty rural and urban communities. This is performed through capacity-building and empowerment activities, in addition to strengthening the capacity of civil society to enhance the contribution in reducing poverty among poor women from cities and countryside, and providing support to improve the living conditions of women-headed households in the informal economy.
During the meeting, the Egyptian side expressed its admiration for the Bahraini experience in supporting women, and the achievements recorded by Bahrain on the international indicators that monitor the progress of women, especially in the economic field, expressing its desire to hold more similar meetings to learn more about the successful common experiences between the two brotherly countries. — SG
