Libyan Female Parliamentarians agree on concrete steps towards Empowerment and Reconciliation
Female members of the Libyan House of Representatives (HoR) ended a three-day conference with concrete recommendations and agreed steps to advance the role of women in the political life and decision making process in Libya.
Gathering under the theme, “Together We Can, Together We Work, Together We Advance For Peace”, the women legislators’ key ask from their male counterparts was for women to constitute 30 percent of any HoR odelegation.
“I congratulate women in proposing practical steps during this conference. Women are key agents for change, peace and progress. Elevating half of humanity lifts us all,” said Special Representative to the Secretary-General and Head of the UN Support Mission in Libya, Mr. Martin Kobler.
The conference addressed four main topics and agreed on practical measures towards their realization. The topics set out by the Libyan parliamentarians were legislation and oversight; women blocks and networking; dialogue, trust and alliance building in the HoR; and role of parliamentarians in reconciliation and peace building. Trainings, capacity development, exchange of best practices and media skills were common threads in all four topics.
About the Conference:
This conference was held with the support of the governments of Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands, under “Amel” Project to support Libyan women in the transitional period. A drafting committee was selected by female HoR members to draft the outputs and recommendations of the conference. Attending the conference were female parliamentarians from Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Niger, Sudan and Tunisia.
(Source: UNSMIL)
