Vision
By 2030, Egyptian women will become active contributors to the achievement of sustainable development in a nation that guarantees their constitutional rights, ensures their full protection, and provides- without discrimination- political, social, and economic opportunities that enable them to develop their capacities and achieve their full potential.
Goals
The Strategy seeks to emphasize and fulfill Egypt’s commitment to women’s rights as set forth in the Egyptian Constitution 2014, as well as in binding international conventions, covenants and declarations to which Egypt is a party. Moreover, the Strategy aims to respond to the real needs of Egyptian women–particularly those living in rural areas in Upper Egypt, the poor, female-headed households, the elderly and disabled women. These groups are entitled to care–when the State develops development plans, in order to ensure their full protection, utilize their human and financial resources and potential in order to fulfill the principle of equal opportunities as set forth in the Constitution.
The Strategy consists of four Pillars that are determined to be achieved and they are:
- Women’s political empowerment and promoting their leadership roles through encouraging all forms of political participation, including parliamentary representation and representation in local councils; eliminating discrimination against women holding senior positions in executive and judicial institutions; and enabling them to succeed in these posts;
- Women’s economic empowerment through capacity building, entrepreneurship, and equal opportunities for the women’s employment in all sectors, including the private sector and besides holding key positions in public institutions and companies;
- Women’s social empowerment through enabling opportunities for the wider social participation of women, increasing women’s agency in order to make informed choices, and eliminating all harmful and discriminatory practices against women in both the public sphere or within the family; Social empowerment of women through supporting women to gain their rights in different fields, provision of education and health services, supporting women who live in harsh conditions, including elderly and disabled women, empowering young women and increasing their social participation;
- Women’s protection by eliminating the negative practices that threaten women’s lives, safety and dignity, and prevents their effective contribution to social development. This includes eliminating all forms of violence against women, and protecting them from environmental risks that would have adverse social or economic effects on their livelihoods.
Achieving these goals requires serious efforts to:
- Change the culture of society and challenging the stereotypes of women propagated by the media.
- Regard women’s empowerment as a collective responsibility that men and boys must also assume.
- Support women to realize their full legal rights, with special attention to the rights of marginalized, poor and disabled women, and amending existing personal status laws to guarantee the rights of women, enhancing the chances of family cohesion.
- Renew the religious discourse concerning women’s roles in the public domain and their right to hold public posts.