Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Somali government drafts bill to protect women's rights - Sabahionline.com

Somali government drafts bill to protect women's rights - Sabahionline.com

The Somali Ministry of Development and Social Affairs is drafting a bill that outlines a new gender policy for the country and safeguards women's rights, particularly in politics and education.
The proposed legislation is part of a wide-ranging government programme that aims to promote women's rights and support their access to education, health services and participation in governance.
While 30% of parliament is supposed to be reserved for women, women make up less than 16% of the current parliament. Under the proposed law, those seats would remain exclusive to women and would be kept vacant even if there are not enough women candidates to fill them, said Mohamed Omar, director-general of the women's department in the Ministry of Development and Social Affairs.
In addition, the bill calls for quotas in other government branches and guarantees that 60% of free education recipients would be women.

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