GLP-GEfIL

On May 30, a GEfIL student participated as a student discussant in “Conversation with the UN Assistant Secretary General, UNDP Assistant Administrator and Director of the UNDP Regional Bureau for Arab States: Empowerment of Women in the Arab region – advancing Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Agenda” hosted by the Institute for Future Initiatives（IFI）, with Dr. Abdallah Al Dardari, as the invited speaker.

The event began with opening remarks by the host of the event, Prof. Kensuke Fukushi, Director of
the Institute for Future Initiatives, followed by the presentation by Dr.Darddari.

In his lecture, the following points were pointed out as particularly important.

•  Arab region is inferior to the rest of the world in terms of women's labor participation,
      although it is among the lowest, women's educational attainment is high, with the
      Occupied Palestinian Territories being the most educated region in the Arab world.

•  Women's empowerment is crucial, but instead of following widely held conceptualizations
      of women empowerment, cultural diversity of peoples and regions needs to be protected
      and cherished.

•  Women's economic empowerment is an important pathway to peace and security, and to
      foster a competitive economy, women need to be brought into the fold of formal economy. 
      Improved education for women will lead to economic independence and contribute to overall
      wellbeing.

•  In conflicts, when men are killed, women are often collateral damage and disproportionately
      affected by the crisis.

•  In vulnerable settings, women spend much of their time in unpaid care work and need support.
      Their presence contributes to the wellbeing of their communities as well as their families,
      and past development experience shows the need to train and empower women.

•  Women need to be included in peace processes in a meaningful way; The UN Security Council
      Resolution 1325, adopted in year 2000, affirms the importance of women's equal
      participation in conflict prevention and resolution.

The discussion was led by student discussants, including a GEfIL student, and Dr. Abdallah Al Dardari, responded to questions from each student.

Finally, the concluding remarks were concluded by Ms. Hideko Haziarich, Director of the UNDP Representation Office in Japan.

It was a valuable opportunity for the students to ask questions and hear directly from Dr. Dardari
about UNDP's initiatives and ongoing international issues, which they are usually only able to learn
about through news reports and literature.

Title:       :Conversation with the UN Assistant Secretary General, UNDP Assistant Administrator
                and Director of the UNDP Regional Bureau for Arab States: “Empowerment of Women
                in the Arab region – advancing Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Agenda”

               https://ifi.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/event/12693/

Host       : Institute for Future Initiatives, The University of Tokyo

               https://ifi.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/

Cooperation: UNDP Tokyo

（2024/06/13）