Page 11 - Issue 26

Vol.1 Issue 26, December 2020 ELITE

translated by Alyiaa Assem

Yasmine Aladdin, Assistant Researcher, Women Studies Unit

This workshop is considered the first of its kind within the number of professors and professors who influenced the papers and
framework of the activities of the Women's Studies Unit in the discussions, headed by Professor Dina Al-Khawaja, Professor Dr.
Faculty of Economics and Political Science, Cairo University, Mazen Hassan, Professor Dr. Rawia Tawfiq, Professor Dr. Yasmine
during the 16-18 days of November of this year through the Fouad, and Dr. Amal Hamada.
application of Zoom, to include a constellation of decision-makers, In the workshop, 11 papers presented in various axes were
professors and researchers in this context. The workshop topics discussed, and among the most important issues raised in the
included five sessions on feminist knowledge and social sessions were the following:
empowerment of women in Egypt, women's political participation,
and their role in combating terrorism, in addition to the economic The elements that distinguish feminist knowledge, its sources, and
dimension. The last session focused on the social axis. what it can offer to develop the human sciences in particular.
The importance of understanding cultural factors in the context of
Against the background of that; The opening session came to understanding the phenomenon of women's political participation
include Dr. Amal Hamada's speech on the activities and projects and its limits in Egyptian society in particular and eastern societies in
of the unit, the agenda for this workshop, and a greeting and general.
appreciation to those who supported and pushed the unit forward The importance of using empirical methods and employing them in
from its inception until now. Gilan Al-Messiri, Deputy the study of political phenomena, and their significance in
Representative of the United Nations Women in the Cairo Office - understanding these phenomena.
in which she focused on the challenges that coincided with the The need to understand the different roles of women in the
year 2020 with regard to women, internally and externally, phenomenon of terrorism and the importance of strengthening
praising Egypt's progress in this field, especially in light of the studies that focus on these different roles, especially the roles of
global Corona epidemic, and noting in a hurry the most important women in terms of peacebuilding and countering terrorism at the
indicators, its indications and its future in supporting various societal level.
women's issues.
Then came the speech of the Dean of the College, Dr. Mahmoud Discussions in the economic axis focused on the issue of unpaid
Al-Saeed, to confirm in his words the support provided by the domestic work and its impact on gender equality opportunities, in
state to women in the public sphere, as well as referring to some addition to studying the effect of in-kind and in-kind support on
important files related to women, such as the impact of the entrepreneurship projects. The discussions raised the need to
Corona epidemic on women, the dangers of terrorism, the complete studies on these two issues and develop new mechanisms
challenges facing the sovereignty and security of the nation-state, to understand and evaluate the roles of women in this context.
the importance of resisting this phenomenon, and political roles The discussions in the last session focused on the development of
Economic and social for Egyptian women. legislation in Egypt on personal status issues and courts, moving to
The opening session was honored by Prof. Dr. Hala Al-Saeed, the link between the personal status file and the feminist movement
Minister of Planning and Economic Development, who and the intersectionality of discrimination and dialogue between
feminists on this topic, leading to the relationship of women with the
emphasized in her speech the importance of sustainability and Fatwa House and the evolution of the history and inclusion of women
continuity in the unit's various activities and effectiveness. In her in this institution and the fatwa and its content in particular.
speech, she focused on the position of women within the A group of graduates of the professional master's program in gender
framework of Egypt's Vision 2030 and the Sustainable and development in both the economic and social axis participated in
Development Goals, especially the fifth goal. It indicated the the workshop, in addition to a distinguished group of faculty
indicators achieved in this area and their indications on the professors and graduates working in government and private
ground. The Egyptian state also made efforts to prepare programs research centers.
to empower women, especially at the leadership level, and This workshop comes within a policy developed by the Women's
recommended at the end of her speech the need to work on Studies Unit in the College on the importance of holding annual
developing working papers and policy papers that benefit the workshops to exchange experiences on issues, curricula, and tools
decision-maker. that help in developing the research agenda of the Faculty of
The papers presented in the workshop were discussed by a Economics and Political Science in general.

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