Dear ALN president, Secretary General’s of our member parties, distinguished guests, and the reason we are all here today, the graduates of the Africa Liberal Network Women Empowerment Programme 2021.
Allow me to start by first congratulating and thanking the trainers and our partners, without whom, the Women Empowerment Programme would not have been possible: FNF Sub Saharan Africa, VVD International, D66 International, Liberal Democrats UK and the Westminster Foundation for Democracy. Together we are providing much needed capacity building and advancing female participation in politics.
I’d like to congratulate and thank all the female participants who have taken the first step to become leaders and politicians and because you accepted and dedicated your time to learn, develop and grow within this capacity building programme. Merci beaucoup!
As the Second female president of liberal international, women working on female empowerment and especially in the Southern Countries was one of my top priorities and it is an extreme honour for me to give the keynote speech here today.
In Africa between 60 – 80% of the tax force are women and the first continent in the world with the most female entrepreneurs is in Africa! African women are leading and supporting their familes, 75% of what women earn is dedicated to their family. The Paradox is that women represent a large portion of Africa’s tax force but aren’t adequately represented in politics or even when we look at land ownership.
Today, our world is facing many serious challenges. A rise in nationalism, increased phobia’s and extremism, the increase of migration and the fact that our youth and women’s hope for the African continent is not as bright as it can be as they are choosing to leave this rich, fertile and beautiful continent. They are leaving by sea, which is becoming a symmetry, leaving to Europe through the Mediterranean.
In this specific Africa only youth and women are game changers and can transform the future of Africa of today and the one of tomorrow.
As COP26 has concluded this month, and COP26 has shown that little to no effort has been done by developed countries, and no promises have been fulfilled by the developed countries and if we, as African’s don’t save ourselves, we will not succeed in tackling the challenges Africa is facing. We will not reach sustainable development, and the only way we will do that is to be together, moving Africa forward. And we must put Africa on the emerging countries because we have what it takes to build a developed and prosperous continent. We have the natural resources, money and most importantly we have talented women like yourselves – and this is the biggest treasure of wealth we can use in Africa.
I want to share a personal experience with you and tell you that in 2011 when the Moroccan elections ended and the cabinet was formed, no women were involved in the cabinet. Not a single woman!
When the cabinet list went to His Majesty the King of Morocco, he refused the list because there was no women and asked the political parties to put women within the cabinet.
The unanimous answer from all the political parties was that there was no ‘competency within women’ so they didn’t find women for any Minister positions.
At that time, I was very upset, and I was very angry because I couldn’t imagine how all these political parties in Morocco couldsay such humiliating things about women. I took it extremely personally and I decided, together with ambassador Frank, who was the ambassador of the United Nations for Women and together with the support of FNF we had created a Female Connecting Group.
I want to give you a brief conclusion of what I have learned during the eight years working together with women within the connecting group and within the training – each participant had a full year of training and every month, for 3 days they were trained. The takeaway is that in each woman there is a story, there is a history, there is experience, there is knowledge but there is also fear and uncertainty.
In each woman there is a hero which is inside her, but what women need, is to realise their inner hero. Women need to make their fear and uncertainty their motivation to go further because even if you are involved in politics, even if tomorrow youbecame the Prime Minister/ Ministers or MPs — it will not be easy!
You will be harassed on your sex, on the way your dress, you will be harassed on your haircut, your make up – everything; and even when you are very professional, you will still be attacked.
So, what you need to know is that this path is not easy, but what WE have, WE as women have inside ourselves, is the capacity we have to deal with the house, with the children, the education of the children, with our jobs. All this capacity is huge reservoir of energy women can use to tackle all those political challenges and to lead, especially to lead in Africa.
That is why today, I am very proud that together with all the partners: FNF Sub Saharan Africa, VVD International, D66 International, Liberal Democrats UK and the Westminster Foundation for Democracy, we have provided this capacity building and worked together with you. African women are and have what it takes to make Africa move and move faster and it’s why for me this programme is exceptional because all the ladies who were trained are exceptional, and I have no doubt that in the months and years ahead, all of you will be leaders in your respective countries.
I celebrate your achievement in this graduation and look forward to seeing what you will accomplish In the future.
Merci, Thank you
