MOROCCO, March 24 - The executive director of the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) and UN Under-Secretary-General, Sima Bahous, hailed HM King Mohammed VI's leadership in promoting gender equality and women's empowerment, on the occasion of the meeting to launch the first National Action Plan of the Kingdom of Morocco on Women, Peace and Security, chaired by video conference by Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans Abroad, Nasser Bourita.

Bahous congratulated the Kingdom for having taken a crucial step in the implementation of the Women, Peace and Security agenda, within the framework of Security Council Resolution 1325, and praised the inclusive approach that presided over the elaboration of this important policy framework, noting the participation of civil society in this process.

The eminent UN official recalled that the Kingdom is among the first countries in North Africa to have developed a National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security, noting that Africa now accounts for 32% of National Action Plans adopted in the world. At the global level, she recalled, 51% of UN member states have adopted National Action Plans.

Faced with the emergence of new security threats, such as climate change and the Covid-19 pandemic, Bahous stressed the importance of National Action Plans on Women, Peace, and Security as a means of implementing the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.

The UN official also praised Morocco's role in building the capacity of women mediators in the Mediterranean, as well as its extensive legal arsenal to combat violence against women. She also welcomed the centrality of women's economic empowerment and access to the labor market in the National Action Plan adopted by the Kingdom.

In addition, Bahous expressed the willingness of UN Women, in collaboration with other UN agencies, to work together with Morocco in the implementation of its National Action Plan.

MAP 23 March 2022