On Thursday, October 29, Ivory Coast was elected second vice-president of the Bureau of the African Union Specialized Technical Committee on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment in Addis Ababa. The vote took place at the headquarters of the continental organization during the eleventh ordinary session of this body, according to the Ivorian Ministry of Women, Family and Children.
This entry into the Bureau places Côte d’Ivoire among the states responsible for supporting continental work on women’s rights. The election took place following consultations among West African countries gathered within ECOWAS. The Ivorian delegation was led by Minister Nassenéba Touré.
The work focused on the economic and financial empowerment of women, the prevention of violence, gender-related statistics, as well as the recognition of unpaid care work. The delegations also examined the deployment of the African Gender Observatory, designed to monitor the progress made by the States.
The Ivorian ministry indicated that Côte d’Ivoire’s mandate within the Bureau would be guided by action, contribution, and listening. Abidjan presented its experience with the Côte d’Ivoire Women’s Support Fund, which finances income-generating activities, as well as the opportunities offered to women entrepreneurs by the African Continental Free Trade Area.
The session also prepared a common African position for the seventy-first session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. The discussions notably focused on women’s access to financing, their inclusion in the digital economy, and the improvement of their participation in economic decision-making.
Member States have finally considered the possibility of putting forward an African candidacy to host the seventy-fourth session of this United Nations commission in 2030. This prospect still needs to be subject to consultations among the countries of the continent.
