Angola Debates The Women’s Role In Building Peace And Democracy

By AMA 

May 25, 2023

LUANDA, Angola, 25 May 2023 -/African Media Agency(AMA)/- The Angolan vice-president, Esperança da Costa, will open this Thursday, 25th, the 1st International Women’s Forum for Peace and Democracy, in an event that will also involve, as speakers, like Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (former President of the Republic of Liberia), Epsy Campbell Barr – former Vice President of Costa Rica (Member of the UNHCR Permanent Forum for People of African Descent) and Zahira Virani (Resident Coordinator of the United Nations System Nations in Angola).

The 1st International Women’s Forum for Peace and Democracy, which takes place over two days (May 25th and 26th, at the Hotel Intercontinental Miramar), is an event that focuses on women’s struggle for equality, emancipation, continental development for Peace and Democracy, part of the Luanda Biennial – Pan-African Forum for the Culture of Peace and Non-Violence, which is a joint initiative between the Government of Angola, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization ( UNESCO) and the African Union (AU).

Operatively coordinated by the Minister of State for Social Action, Dalva Ringote Allen, the 1st International Women’s Forum for Peace and Democracy, which takes place under the theme “Technological Innovation and Education for the Achievement of Gender Equality” and with the motto “Innovation Technology as a Tool for Achieving Food Security Combating Drought on the African Continent”, aims to:

Reaffirm and strengthen political commitment to action on gender equality, the empowerment of women and girls and their human rights, ensuring high-level engagement;

Foment discussion events through round tables, high-level interactive dialogues, to exchange experiences, lessons learned and good practices. Debate on the status of gender equality on the African continent, identifying goals and achievements achieved, and challenges to fill existing gaps.

The 1st International Women’s Forum for Peace and Democracy also has the following specific objectives:

Identify areas of convergence within the national chapters of the Bienal de Luanda and expand the position of groups of young women leaders at national level, Establish regional, continental and international cooperation protocols;

Propose concrete actions for the qualification of young women, promoting opportunities for access to the labor market.

In order to materialize these objectives, five thematic panels were programmed, globally, for the two days of work, namely “The challenges of globalization in the process of gender empowerment”, “Technological innovation and education to achieve gender equality” , “Formalization as a mechanism for social and financial inclusion”, “Challenges of food security and climate change on the African continent” and “The role of women in consolidating peace and preventing conflicts”.

The program of the 1st International Women’s Forum for Peace and Democracy includes two master classes in the conference auditorium of the Ministry of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, with the themes “Challenges of Food Security and Climate Change on the African Continent”, by Papa Abdoulaye Seck (former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Equipment and Ambassador of Senegal to Italy) and “Financing for Development in Africa Calls for a Paradigm Change: The Driving Role of Domestic Resources”, by Cristina Isabel Lopes Duarte – Adviser to the Secretary General of UN for Africa.

The 1st International Women’s Forum for Peace and Democracy is aimed at Women Leaders of African Regional Organizations, Women Leaders, Heads of Government and members of the PALOPS, CPLP and OEACP. International and National Organizations, Representatives of Diplomatic Missions, Representatives of public sector entities, Public and private companies and Private sector entities.