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Fatima bint Mubarak Initiative for Women, Peace and Security launches its 3rd training programme

ABU DHABI, The Fatima bint Mubarak Initiative for Women, Peace and Security, launched its 3rd Women, Peace and Security training programme with 140 participating cadets from Arab, Asian and African countries.

The trainees came from the Middle East and Africa, the UAE, Yemen (Socotra), Jordan, Bahrain, Liberia, Gambia, Senegal, Niger, Chad, Kenya, South Sudan, Tanzania, Mauritania, and Pakistan. The training will take place at the Khawla bint Al Azwar Military School in Abu Dhabi.

The trainees were received at the Fatima bint Mubarak Centre for Women, Peace and Security, which was inaugurated by H.H. Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the General Women’s Union (GWU), President of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, and Supreme Chairwoman of the Family Development Foundation (FDF), “Mother of the Nation”, as part of the Fatima bint Mubarak Initiative for Women, Peace and Security.

The nine-week programme, organised by the General Women’s Union, in cooperation with the Ministry of Defence, and in coordination with UN Women, seeks to achieve the strategic objectives of Security Council Resolution 1325 by increasing the number of qualified women working in the military, peacekeeping and peacebuilding. It comprises seven weeks of intensive military training and two weeks of peacebuilding and peacekeeping training.

During her visit to the UAE, and ahead of her participation as a keynote speaker at the International Women, Peace and Security Conference in Abu Dhabi set to be held from 8th to 10th September, Dr. Sima Bahous, Executive Director of UN Women, praised the efforts of the UAE in empowering women in the military sector at a meeting with the General Women’s Union. The parties also discussed how the Women, Peace and Security Agenda can play a vital role in advancing women’s leadership.

Also during her visit to the General Women’s Union, Dr. Bahous met the third cohort participating in the Women, Peace and Security training programme and encouraged them to make the most of their experiences in the programme and use their skills to help achieve security, stability and development for societies around the world.

“The UAE has been a strong champion and a prominent partner in making progress on the Sustainable Development Goals, especially Goal 5, Gender Equality. In this regard, I commend the efforts of H.H. Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak to empower Women in Peace and Security, by providing training and capacity building opportunities for women from the Middle East, Africa and Asia in military and peacekeeping. UN Women is proud to be a partner in these efforts that advance the Women, Peace and Security Agenda,” Dr. Bahous stated.

On this occasion, Noura Al Suwaidi, Secretary-General of the General Women’s Union, said, “Welcoming the third cohort of trainees under the Fatima bint Mubarak Initiative for Women, Peace and Security confirms the continued success of the training programme, thanks to the support of our wise leadership and the vision of H.H. Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak and her continuous efforts to achieve a breakthrough in supporting the participation of women in all sectors, especially in peace and security. We hope that this training contributes to these women’s meaningful career development in military, security and peacebuilding and gives real opportunities for personal and professional growth.”

The launch of the third training programme coincides with Abu Dhabi’s hosting of the International Conference on Women, Peace and Security, which will see the participation of international decision-makers, senior officials, diplomats, and advocates of women in peace and security from the Arab region and the world.

A total of 497 women were trained under the Sheikha Fatima Women, Peace and Security Initiative. The first cohort of 134 Arab women was trained in Abu Dhabi in January 2019, and the second comprising 223 women from 11 African, Asian and Arab countries, was trained in January 2020.

The Fatima bint Mubarak Women, Peace and Security Initiative activates a memorandum of understanding signed in 2018 between the UAE’s Ministry of Defence, the General Women’s Union and the United Nations, at the headquarters of the UAE Mission to the United Nations in New York with the presence of H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.

Source: Emirates News Agency

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