WELCOME REMARKS BY THE DIRECTOR OF THE WOMEN, GENDER AND YOUTH DIRECTORATE (WGYD)

MS PRUDENCE NGWENYA AT THE OPENING CEREMONY OF THE 8th

SPECIALIZED TECHNICAL COMMITTEE ON GENDER EQUALITY AND WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT

MINISTERIAL SEGMENT

NOVEMBER 13, 2023

ØYour Excellency, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, H.E. Moussa Faki Mahamat

ØYour Excellency Chairperson of the Bureau of the Specialized Technical Committee on Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment, H.E. Madame Amongi Betty Ongom, Minister of Gender, Labour and Social Development,  Republic of Uganda

ØYour Excellencies, Distinguished Ministers of the African Union in charge of Gender and Women Affairs and Bureau Members of the STC

ØMme. Bineta Diop, Special Envoy, Women, Peace and Security

• Representatives of Regional Economic Communities
• Representatives of United Nations agencies,
• Representatives of Development Partners and Civil Society,
• Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,
   

Allow me, on behalf of the African Union Commission, to thank you most sincerely for accepting our invitation to this 8^th Specialised Technical Committee (STC) on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment. The meetings of the Specialised Technical Committee are fundamental moments in the life of our institution because the decisions taken enable us to validate and accelerate the implementation of the main lines of action to be deployed at continental level and in AU Member States.

I would also like to express my gratitude to the Government of the Republic of Uganda, represented here by the Chairperson of the Bureau of the STC, H.E. Madame Amongi Betty Ongom, for co-hosting the commemoration of African Youth Day 2023 on the 2^nd of November, under the theme “1 Million Next Level is Knocking: Youth-led Movement that Transcends Borders”. Together we created a platform to celebrate Africa’s youth and showcase their invaluable contribution to the development of the continent while ensuring inclusive youth engagement.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen

This 8^th STC takes place at a time when AU Member States and the world at large are critically assessing how effective our actions and investments have been in living up to the promises made to women and girls at continental level in the Agenda 2063 Framework and other regional instruments such as the Maputo Protocol; as well as in global frameworks such as the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As you may have guessed, we are not where we wished to be at the end of 2023.

As Member States, and regional institutions, we continue to struggle with multiple challenges, including climate change whose impact on the continent’s economies, livelihoods and nature is hitting the most vulnerable hardest; conflicts in multiple parts of the continent and indeed the world, whose impact we feel daily even beyond the battlefront; and the ongoing COVID19 recovery which calls on Africa to increase her capacity to navigate future crises.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen

Although the overall picture may not be as bright as we had hoped, we are encouraged by the progress made in key areas of gender equality, notably in areas such as women’s political participation and representation where some Member States have surpassed set thresholds; in legislative reform for ending violence against women and girls where the AU has also adopted a decision to negotiate a Convention on Ending Violence Against Women and Girls; and in Financial and Economic Inclusion and Education as some countries have managed to make significant investments and to close gender gaps in those areas.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen

This STC provides us with an opportunity to discuss how we can tackle outstanding issues and challenge ourselves to understand why progress is so slow, and what needs to be done to urgently change this situation. As we gather here today, in person and virtually, we appreciate your commitment, and are strengthened to present the work of the African Union Commission for deliberations on this honourable platform.

During the course of the meeting, you will hear presentations on the work undertaken by the Women, Gender and Youth Directorate to drive gender equality and women’s empowerment forward in the areas of Ending Violence Against Women and Girls (EVAWG); how the Directorate has amplified work on the Maputo Protocol on Women’s Rights, including the recent ratification by South Sudan in June 2023 and the sustained call for universal ratification by 2028; work on Positive Masculinities through the AU High-Level Presidential Initiative on Positive Masculinity to End EVAWG; to our work on  Financial and Economic Inclusion including the implementation of the African Women’s Decade on Financial and Economic Inclusion (AWD on FEI) and implementation of the Women and Youth Financial Mechanisms. You will also here about how we plan to continue work on the engagement of young women’s voices and taking an inter-generational approach to address the broad spectrum of challenges we continue to face when advocating for equal rights, equal opportunity, and equitable freedom from gendered violence and discrimination.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

This year we commemorate the 20^th anniversary of the Maputo Protocol under the theme, “Raising the Bar on Policies and Partnerships for African People” which highlights the 20-year journey and how it has positively changed Africa’s GEWE landscape. The theme provides an opportunity to focus on a 3Ps framework recently promulgated by the AUC-WGYD, that looks at ‘Policies, Partnerships and People’ with Promising Practices as a thread that runs across the three PS.

The framework highlights three tiers of impact, which this STC meeting will focus on, in particular to:

1. Assess the implementation of Policies and legislative frameworks developed at a regional/macro level by the African Union, Regional Economic Communities (RECs) and related AU Organs and Specialised Agencies to set norms and standards on gender equality and women’s empowerment, informed by global normative frameworks and the lived realities and needs of women and girls across the continent.
2. Highlight the role of strategic Partnerships and collaboration with development partners, civil society organisations (CSOs), private sector and other stakeholders and how these partners serve as the bridge to decentralize and operationalise policies adopted at regional and national levels.
3. Demonstrate the positive impact on the lives of the African People, in particular women and girls, to ensure sustainable and tangible benefits and overall improved livelihoods and development outcomes.

Aspiration 6 of Agenda 2063 speaks of, ‘An Africa, whose development is people-driven, relying on the potential of African people, especially its women and youth, and caring for children’.

Without your leadership and Ministers in Charge on Gender and Women’s Affairs, this aspiration may never be attainable. We thank you for remaining on the front lines and creating hope in your respective countries by taking your mandate to heart and making gender equality and women’s empowerment a reality.

I wish us all fruitful deliberations. I thank you.