YouSaid · the spoken record

Zainab Hassan

lines on the record
15
first
2020-11-23
most recent
2020-11-23
sittings or episodes
1
sources
un-security-council

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  1. “Many well-educated, experienced and active women of different ages are candidates for the 2020 parliamentary elections, and we hope many of them will win. I would like to conclude my briefing on a positive note. The Women’s Charter for Somalia, which calls for the 50 per cent representation of women in all three levels of Government and in socioeconomic sectors in the country, as well as greater protection for women’s rights and zero tolerance for sexual and gender-based violence, including female genital mutilation, has been launched in Galmudug and South West state.”

    2020-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1136 (2020) · source

  2. “We expect the Security Council to urge the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia, United Nations agencies and international community partners to closely collaborate with the Government and monitor the development of necessary mechanisms in order to implement the agreed electoral model, with a view to achieving women’s rights, representation and a safe and secure election. It is encouraging that cross-sector women’s rights activists, women political aspirants and civil society in the country and the diaspora are organizing to launch advocacy campaigns despite the challenges of the coronavirus disease pandemic, which has impacted the social and economic aspects and the health and well-being of families as well as the funding streams for civil society organizations and the way in which we operate.”

    2020-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1136 (2020) · source

  3. “We as civil society call on the National Consultative Council to honour its agreement to guarantee the quota for women in Parliament. We also call on the Federal Government, political parties, opposition groups and civil society as a whole to work together on election security and corruption issues and towards a fair and free election, leading to a peaceful transfer of power. We also call on the Security Council to closely monitor and put pressure on the various groups.”

    2020-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1136 (2020) · source

  4. “The pushback against women across the board and the steep decline in the number of women seats in all of the parliaments of federal member states, with the exception of Jubbaland, is a concerning indication for the upcoming 2020 election. It is alarming that no women are among the three members appointed per federal member state to represent the Federal Government in the Federal Member State Electoral Management Committee. In addition, the Federal Electoral Implementation Committee, appointed to oversee the implementation of the electoral process, and the Independent Dispute Resolution Mechanism team both fall short of the agreed 30 per cent quota for women. Experience has taught us that committed leadership could make a difference in promoting gender equity and upholding the rights of women.”

    2020-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1136 (2020) · source

  5. “Somali women need to receive targeted support in building their political economy, and opportunities for investment need to be created in a systematic way so as to build on and sustain the previous gains and achieve the minimum 30 per cent quota for women in this year’s indirect election. Somali women politicians and aspirants, human rights defenders and activists and civil society organizations are concerned about the upcoming elections and how the quota for women will be guaranteed, given that no mechanism has been developed to ensure its implementation and no committee has been appointed similar to the Committee of Goodwill Ambassadors in 2016 to oversee it. It is not clear whether women will pay the same high registration fee of $20,000 for the Upper House and $10,000 for the House of the People, or twice what they paid in 2016.”

    2020-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1136 (2020) · source

  6. “Limited access to financial resources remains a major barrier to women’s participation in the electoral process. It is common knowledge that there is a strong correlation between access to financial resources and political participation. Many women candidates were unable to generate the financial resources needed to compete in political campaigns and lobbying, including being able to pay the registration fee. The registration fees for female candidates were therefore reduced by 50 per cent, as compared to their male counterparts, in order to promote and encourage women’s political participation. But that is not enough. Empowering women economically is pivotal so that they can be well- positioned to compete in the political arena.”

    2020-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1136 (2020) · source

  7. “After identifying the key challenges facing Somali women and the best approach to increasing women’s participation and representation in governance, a more comprehensive, effective and targeted advocacy campaign was developed revolving around the 2016 elections under the banner #UHiilliHaweenka — StandwithSomaliWomen — and the hashtag #GabdhoGuul — WomenWin — which is still widely used across social media. Somali women faced many obstacles during that electoral process. For instance, there was outright opposition to the quota for women from some religious leaders, traditional elders and male politicians. If seats for women had not been reserved, it would have been extremely difficult to obtain the 24 per cent of women in Parliament.”

    2020-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1136 (2020) · source

  8. “Although the minimum 30 per cent quota for women was never achieved, the significant increase in women’s representation can be attributed to the concerted advocacy and lobbying campaigns of women civil society organizations, movements and groups, in collaboration with the Committee of Goodwill Ambassadors and with pressure and support from the United Nations and key members of the international community. The Somali Gender Equity Movement — an organic movement founded in 2015 that has nearly 9,000 online members in Somalia and the diaspora — was at the forefront of highlighting, educating, organizing and promoting Somali women’s political participation and representation, with a specific focus on how to attain the 30 per cent quota for women in the 2016 electoral process.”

    2020-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1136 (2020) · source

  9. “We welcome the fact that the agreement guarantees the 30 per cent quota for women, but much needs to be done in order to achieve that milestone. The experience of the 2012 federal elections taught us what happens when there is no enforcement mechanism attached to the 30 per cent women quota agreement, as compared to the 2016 indirect election when there were provisions in place. In 2012, women obtained 14 per cent of parliamentary seats, while in 2016 women received 24 per cent in Parliament.”

    2020-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1136 (2020) · source

  10. “It is important to note that women have been increasingly making inroads into male-dominated sectors, such as the livestock, fisheries, farming and petroleum importing sectors. But there needs to be more systematic support for women’s businesses. There are knowledge gaps regarding the institutional and cultural barriers to women’s productive work. More research needs to be done in order to better understand the role and position of women in the Somali economy, disaggregated by socioeconomic status, region and sector. Somalia is at a critical juncture, as the mandate of Federal Parliament ends on 28 December and that of the executive branch in February 2021. Somali women and civil society welcomed the efforts of the National Leaders Council to end the long- standing political impasse and agree on an enhanced 2016 indirect electoral model.”

    2020-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1136 (2020) · source

  11. “The United Nations and the international community can invest in education programmes and initiatives like Bar Ama Baro, a partnership project between the United States Agency for International Development in Somalia and the Ministry of Education aimed at increasing student enrolment, which is investing in girls’ education, safety and health. The economic contribution of women is very clear, as women make up a substantial number in micro and small-sized enterprises. However, the absence of women in medium- and large-sized enterprises is noteworthy. That is mostly due to the lack of investment in women-owned businesses by their families and institutions having difficulty accessing loans. Sociocultural, financial and structural barriers therefore limit women’s economic empowerment.”

    2020-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1136 (2020) · source

  12. “Education is an important key to developing skilled and productive human resources and enhancing the formation of human capital in Somalia’s quest for economic development and a better future. Girls have made significant gains in being educated, and their literacy rate has been steadily increasing. While girls have an 83 per cent enrolment in elementary education, their number decreases significantly as they get older and are pulled out of school to help their families, or even become child brides. That situation is even worse for rural, nomadic and internally displaced girls and women, who may not have access to schools or the means to pay for it. The Somali Government should allocate a greater budget to public education in order to increase access and develop policies to reduce drop-out rates and improve the quality of education.”

    2020-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1136 (2020) · source

  13. “Despite resolution 1325 (2000), which calls for women’s inclusion in peacebuilding, peacekeeping, reconciliation, humanitarian response and post-conflict reconstruction, Somali women have been largely absent from those processes. Without women’s full presence at the table where decisions are being made, Somalia will not be able to attain sustainable peace and create a just society based on the rule of law. Owing to time constraints, I am unable to cover women’s participation in all parts of society, but given that the focus of my briefing is women’s participation in the political arena, I will touch briefly on the educational empowerment and participation of women in Somalia’s economic sphere, which has direct correlation with political participation.”

    2020-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1136 (2020) · source

  14. “My name is Zainab Hassan. I am the Founder and Chairwoman of the Somali Gender Equity Movement and a long-time human rights, social justice and gender equity activist. I am also one of the experts who developed the National Reconciliation Framework for the Ministry of the Interior, Federal Affairs and Reconciliation, which was mentioned in the Special Representative’s briefing. Somali women are striving to be active in social, economic and political aspects of Somali society, despite institutional and cultural barriers. Women’s role in peacebuilding is no secret, often crossing the boundaries of warring clans, demonstrating for peace and reciting poetry to promote reconciliation.”

    2020-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1136 (2020) · source

  15. “Let me begin by thanking the Permanent Mission of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines for inviting me to brief the Security Council. I also wish to take this opportunity to warmly congratulate you, Madam President, on assuming the presidency of the Council for this month. I also acknowledge the presence of my Prime Minister, His Excellency Mr. Mohamed Hussein Roble; the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Somalia, Mr. James Swan; and the Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission for Somalia, Ambassador Francisco Madeira. It is a great honour for me to address the Security Council as a civil society representative on women’s participation in all aspects of society in Somalia, in particular women’s political participation and the work of the Somali Gender Equity Movement.”

    2020-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1136 (2020) · source