“Building common Agendas for Empowerment and Strengthening Women’s Participation”

Between April and August 2012, the Heinrich Böll Stiftung is implementing in cooperation with the Arab Women Organization (AWO) a national conference and a training workshop to integrate women rights into democratic reform in Jordan.
The AWO is a woman NGO founded in 1970. Since then, the AWO has been implementing developmental programs and projects to end discrimination and violence against women and for increasing women political participation.
13-15 May a three days training workshop “Building common Agendas for Empowerment and Strengthening Women’s Participation” took place in Aqaba , Jordan. 20 women from different Jordanian women NGOs discussed and learnt more about the International standards for women’s rights as stated out in the UN and EU instruments. They also talked about strategies and agenda to implement gender equality and democracy.
Abla Abu Elbe, the female member of the Jordanian Parliament was present in the workshop in addition to three female members of different local Councils. They discussed with the representatives of the NGOs the challenges they face as females in the parliament and local councils. They also discussed methods of cooperation in order to increase the participation of women in decision making and to reflect women’s demands.