FINAL WORD
Donors target North African women in technologies
The International Centre for Biosaline Agriculture launched the design phase of a new major regional programme to empower young Arab women scientists and leaders in research and development . Funded by the Islamic Development Bank and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation , the design phase will lay the groundwork for the Young Arab Women Scientists Leadership Tamkeen Programme , the first of its kind in North Africa and Middle East region .
The programme will help to build and improve skills and capacities of a new generation of young Arab women scientists and leaders , contributing to the UN Sustainable Development Goal on gender equality and women ’ s empowerment .
Dr Ismahane Elouafi , Director General of International Centre for Biosaline Agriculture , said : “ Women are keepers and developers . They do deserve and require more opportunities . That is why in this programme we wanted to give priority to equipping women , namely women scientists , with necessary knowledge , skills and tools so that they can realise their full potential and contribute more to their countries ’ economies .”
The past few decades have seen a considerable increase in the number of women scientists and leaders working in agricultural research in both industrialised and developing countries . However , empirical evidence shows that there is a disproportionately low number of women working in senior scientific and managerial positions , especially in the MENA region .
Women scientists face a wide range of barriers ranging from family and social expectations to limited networking opportunities to lack of targeted leadership programs . These challenges limit women ’ s opportunities for advancement into senior positions .
“ Islamic Development Bank pays significant attention to the role of women in development . Therefore , improving the skills of Arab women scientists in agricultural research is a step in the right direction . We believe that empowering women with the right skills in agricultural research will contribute to alleviating poverty and making food available to the poor . We will work with our partners to ensure that skill acquisition in our member countries is barrier free ,” stated Dr Osman El-Feil , Director , Agriculture and Rural Development Department , Islamic Development Bank .
Agricultural research , development and extension agencies will benefit from the increased presence of women in senior research and leadership positions as increasing diversity of leadership voices is shown to improve outcomes . Women leaders in science are better placed to identify challenges and solutions for women in agriculture , resulting in improved food security and nutrition for all rural people . Therefore , it is important to promote more balanced representation of women in decision-making processes related to agricultural knowledge , science , and technology at all levels .
The design phase will serve to identify the barriers and challenges facing young Arab women scientists working in agricultural research and development , as well as knowledge and skills they need to advance their careers .
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