Athens
, 2 June 2008
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is with great pleasure that I welcome you here today as we gather to launch an event I believe can be quite important for the cause of gender equality and women’s empowerment.
I am confident that this event, its workshops and fora, will provide all participants with ample food for thought. It is up to us to prove that the Women Leaders Grand Initiative is not a one-off event but a comprehensive, long-lasting strategy aimed at making women’s empowerment and peace in the MENA region a reality.
Women make up 52% of the world’s population – undeniably an enormous human resource and a major force that shapes the world’s future. We recognize the importance of striking a balance between cultural traditions and the improvement of all women’s social standing. But we must also acknowledge that societies can only benefit from the full engagement of this dynamic force.
Greece has made great strides in making certain that both men and women are equal in the eyes of the law by providing equal opportunities for women.
Dear friends,
Born into a culture of strong family values, I recognize the pivotal role women play in shaping our societies – mothers raise tomorrow’s responsible and productive citizens.
Realizing this, I was proud to join Secretary Rice and 18 female world leaders for the launch of the Women Leaders' Working Group initiative in September 2006 in New York. We committed ourselves to drawing up a strategy that supports capacity development and accelerates progress towards true empowerment.
In the Middle East, gender equality is lagging. This is, according to the Arab Human Developments Reports, one of the major barriers to social, economic and political development in the region. Moreover, 30% of Arab women contribute to the economy, as opposed to the world average of 55%.
Unfortunately, women are today still depicted as passive victims unable to alleviate their plight in times of conflict. In this view, conflict and violence are seen as mainly male-dominated activities. It is thus on male terms that violence begins and ends.
If, however, one brings into this picture another very interesting finding, a number of stereotypes are questioned. Research has shown that in a number of conflict societies, females have actively participated as members of the armed forces. Add to this that women also perform a wider range of tasks – something rarely acknowledged in society overall and particularly in times of conflict.
Another interesting piece of information tells us that enterprises owned by women in the Middle East and North Africa tend to be much larger than those owned by women in parts of Africa and Asia, and more integrated in the global economy.
Female entrepreneurs also employ more highly-skilled employees and increase their staff numbers faster than businesses owned by males, and this despite the fact that women are more than often faced with numerous obstacles.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In the 21st century it goes without saying that the empowerment of women in all areas, primarily the economic, will work towards minimizing corruption, mismanagement, armed conflict and violence in their homelands.
Their contribution will not only increase household income but will remedy social dislocation and instability. By promoting entrepreneurship among women, we are in essence paving the way for peace negotiations on fresh ground, where we can address economic problems behind violent conflict, build bridges between divided communities and groups, and ease security concerns.
Moreover, businesses owned by women locally and regionally play an increasingly important role in relieving hardship in violence-stricken societies.
In conflict areas, and due to the fact that the majority of males are in the frontlines, it is the females who are left behind tending to the home, holding the family and local community together.
In this light, women become the main providers, seeking economic opportunities outside the home to sustain their families. We often find that in conflict societies, women are the first to launch small enterprises, and they tend to be successful because they are simply not perceived as enemies or combatants. They are not viewed as potential threats and can thus work across conflicting divides, serving as active reconciliation agents.
Furthermore, women play an important role as economic actors in post-conflict settings. Encouraging them to grow sustainable businesses is crucial to broad-based post-conflict, socio-economic rehabilitation. As economic players they help rebuild post-conflict societies by combining peace-building and economic initiatives, especially at the grassroots level in innovative ways.
This reality, ladies and gentlemen, best illustrates the need to promote women’s empowerment, to work collectively and proactively towards their advancement.
At this point allow me to stress that gender equality cannot come as an imported recipe from other parts of the world. Only through careful examination of the social forces at play and the cultural traditions in a given area can we draw up and implement tangible and lasting policies.
We are here today to demonstrate that entrepreneurship on the local, national or regional levels, can serve as fertile ground where women can both contribute to their families and to national prosperity. But it also strengthens their role in society, paving the way for a far-reaching, permanent result.
By securing more incentives, offering equal opportunities in education, we are opening females to a future that acknowledges their active role in society and arms them with the knowledge, experience and resources to become tomorrow’s decision-makers.
To achieve this it is imperative that governments, the private sector, donors and non-governmental organizations promote women's economic empowerment in the Middle East.
Entrepreneurship is key to achieving this goal. It provides access to finance and credit and strengthens women's business associations. Public and private sector partnerships must be nurtured; networking and mentoring efforts should be encouraged and supported.
By focusing on the economic empowerment of women, we are in no way ignoring the political circumstances that initially led to violence. On the contrary, it is an additional effort to work towards securing peace, stability and security in the Middle East.
Dear Ladies gathered here,
We need your help. We rely on the world’s women: the mothers, the sisters and daughters, the women who guide their communities through blood and hatred to peace and prosperity.
With these thoughts and reflections, I warmly wish success in your deliberations and look forward to productive results which will serve as the premises for our future planning in the region.