Arbil, 24 May 2007 (Voices of Iraq)

By Abdul Hameed Ziba

A program for women leaders in northern Iraq, which aims to increase Iraqi women’s participation in the decision-making process, was launched on Thursday.

“The program was implemented in coordination with a local development team and the U.S. Development Agency for Local Government Programs, and with the participation of members from municipal councils and Iraq’s Kurdistan’s National Council,” Mirwan Ali, a member of the organizing committee for the program, told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).

Outlining the objectives of the program, Ali said that it aims to enhance the abilities of Iraqi women within the public sector and to provide a mechanism for increasing awareness of their rights.

“The program is directed at women working in the national council, municipal councils, ministries, general departments, syndicates and government institutions,” Ali explained.

“The program will organize conferences and workshops on the policies and laws that affect leading women, and the construction of a women’s research institute,” said Ali, noting, “coordination with women’s organizations at the national and international levels and the use of the media to highlight women’s role in the public sector are also aims of the program.”

The program includes the five northern Iraqi provinces of Kirkuk, Arbil, Duhuk, Sulaimaniya and Mosul.

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