The European Commission has launched a €25 million initiative with UN Women to support the creation of 500,000 additional jobs for women across the Middle East and North Africa, including a €10 million EU contribution.
The programme — called the Surging Women’s Employment Initiative — is a flagship initiative under the EU’s Pact for the Mediterranean, a framework for co-operation with Mediterranean partners that includes investment in skills and economic opportunities, the Commission informed on Thursday.
It was unveiled by the Commissioner for the Mediterranean, Dubravka Šuica, during an event held alongside the 81st UN General Assembly High-Level Week in New York.
“Through the Pact for the Mediterranean, we are turning this ambition into action,” Šuica said, adding that the initiative aims to help create 500,000 jobs for women and increase women’s employment by 5% by 2030.
Women’s participation in the labour market in the Middle East and North Africa has remained at around 20% on average for more than two decades.
Working with businesses and supporting reforms
The EU will work with UN Women and other partners to expand economic opportunities for women, with a focus on skills, entrepreneurship and job creation, the Commission said.
The initiative will support reforms intended to encourage private sector-led growth, engage businesses to expand women’s employment, and develop new job opportunities in sectors including care, green industries, science and technology.
More than 900 companies have signed the Women’s Empowerment Principles — a set of guidelines for businesses on advancing gender equality in the workplace — while UN Women and partners have contributed to reforms of 20 laws in Arab States supporting women’s economic participation.
