• 28 delegates from 12 countries attend, with focus on women’s empowerment

Noor Nugali

RIYADH: The first session of the Women 20 (W20) took place at the headquarters of the nonprofit women’s empowerment organization Al-Nahda in Riyadh on Jan. 27-28.

The meeting included 28 delegates from 12 countries, including Saudi Arabia, which this year became the first Arab nation to take over the G20 presidency.

“Some countries couldn’t attend in person but participated online, such as Indonesia, France and Korea,” said Salma Al-Rashid, Saudi Arabia’s W20 representative.

She stressed the importance of 25-25, a goal that G20 countries have committed to in order to reduce the gender gap in labor participation by 25 percent by 2025.

Saudi Arabia’s W20 Chair Thoraya Obaid and Fahad Almubarak, the Kingdom’s G20 representative since 2018, stressed the W20’s independence from governments and explained the importance of the outcomes of these meetings.

They reviewed recommendations and policies relating to the economic empowerment of women, and stressed that women are at the heart of the G20 agenda for this year.

W20 achievements are based on the G20’s three goals: Empowering people, preserving the planet and forming new horizons, all of which are under the slogan “Realizing Opportunities of the 21st Century for All.”

The W20 delegates agreed on four themes: Technical inclusion of women, economic inclusion of women, their inclusion in work and in leadership positions. Empowering women in the field of entrepreneurship was an integral part of the four themes.

Member states are required to submit periodic reports on the implementation of the decisions adopted regarding the economic empowerment of women.

National dialogues discussing women’s issues are to be held in three Saudi cities, starting with Riyadh at Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University on Feb. 3.