Publication

Inclusion of women and girls in Arab cities: challenge or opportunity?

Inclusion of women and girls is central to the issue of urban inclusion.
Inclusion of women and girls and ensuring their rights
Barakat, Marwa
UNESCO Office Cairo and Regional Bureau for Science in the Arab States
European Training and Research Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (Austria)
2023
0000387146

According to the Gender Development Index (GDI), the Arab region has the

2nd

largest gender gap in the world

Even though women and girls represent close to or more than half of the population of most Arab cities, they are one of the groups that are historically and structurally excluded from decision-making and development planning in the cities. 

They face many barriers in accessing cities services, and inequality participating in cities activities. Developed on the basis of a virtual regional consultation workshop, as well as indepth interviews with cities officials and representatives from the Coalition of Arab Cities against Racism, Discrimination, Xenophobia and Intolerance, this Toolkit provides tools and practical advice to enable Arab cities achieve a better inclusion of women and girls, and ensure their full right to benefit from local development programs.

The toolkit mainly targets local authorities in Arab cities including Mayors, Members of Municipality Councils, Municipal executives, and Entities concerned with the design, implementation, follow-up, and evaluation of local projects and programs.