Bahraini women’s strides outlined

New York, Mar.14 (BNA): Bahraini women play a crucial curial in promoting their country’s development and progress. “Women in Bahrain have gone beyond conventional empowerment to become a major partners to reckon with”, said Supreme Council for Women (SCW) Secretary-General Hala Al-Ansari. She paid tribute to Bahraini women as she addressed the 62nd Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. High-level officials representing member states and international organisations dealing with women are attending the four-day CWS session, which will conclude tomorrow (March15). Al-Ansari stressed Bahrain’s keenness on promoting social justice and equal opportunities, in line with the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. She outlined Bahrain’s success in narrowing the gender gap by 99% in education, 96% in the health sector and by 54% on the economic participation indicator. Bahrain has also achieved major strides on the level of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region on other key indicators - gender gap in pay for similar jobs, the estimated income index and the Index of legislators and senior officials and managers She stressed the importance of such high-profile meetings which provide an opportunity for member states to showcase their progress, exchange expertise and bolster cooperation. She underlined Bahrain’s tangible strides achieved so far in incorporating women needs in the development policies through a national agenda, pro-women legislations and laws that support the stability of women and families. She highlighted SCW cooperation with the Ministry of Interior to set up family-protection offices at police stations, apply good governance to assess equal opportunity practices and achieved national gender balance. Participation in the Princess Sabeeka bint Ibrahim Al-Khalifa Global Award for Women Empowerment was officially announced on the sidelines of the 62nd Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW).