Women's Leadership

Najla Bouden Ramadhane, a university engineer with World Bank experience, has been lifted from political obscurity to become Tunisia's — and the Arab world's — first female prime minister.

Ramadhane was named to the post Wednesday after Kais Saied, who became president two years ago, dismissed her predecessor in July and suspended parliament, Reuters reported.

Saied justified his actions as temporary measures to help in tackling the country's economic crisis and COVID-19 emergency. However, since then, coronavirus cases in the country have tailed off, while Saied — a former professor of constitutional law — has continued pushing for more unilateral power that his opponents view as a coup.

The new prime minister is a 60-something professor of geosciences at the National Engineering School in Tunis, according to The National, based in the United Arab Emirates. She will leave her current post as director general in charge of quality at the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, where she is overseeing World Bank programs, the news agency said.

Click here to read the full article published by NPR on 29 September 2021.

BERLIN (AP) — Angela Merkel, Germany’s first female chancellor, has been praised by many for her pragmatic leadership in a turbulent world and celebrated by some as a feminist icon. But a look at her track record over her 16 years at Germany’s helm reveals missed opportunities for fighting gender inequality at home.

Named “The World’s Most Powerful Woman” by Forbes magazine for the last 10 years in a row, Merkel has been cast as a powerful defender of liberal values in the West. She has easily stood her ground at male-dominated summits with leaders such as former U.S. President Donald Trump or Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Millions of women admire the 67-year-old for breaking through the glass ceiling of male dominance in politics, and she’s been lauded as an impressive role model for girls.

On trips to Africa, the Middle East and Asia, Merkel has often made a point of visiting women’s rights projects. She has always stressed that giving women in poor countries better access to education and work is key to those nations’ development.

But when it comes to the situation of women in Germany, Merkel — who said in 2018 that she wouldn’t seek reelection in this Sunday’s general election — has been criticized for not using her position enough to push for more gender equality.

“One thing is clear: a woman has demonstrated that women can do it,” said Alice Schwarzer, Germany’s most famous feminist. “However, one female chancellor alone doesn’t make for emancipation.”

Click here to read the full article published by the Associated Press on 21 September 2021.

PRISTINA, Sept 17 (Reuters) - Albania's parliament on Friday voted in the first cabinet to be dominated by women since the multi-party system was introduced 30 years ago.

After a parliamentary session which lasted more than 20 hours, Edi Rama was voted as prime minister for third time after a landslide election victory in April.

Of the 17-member cabinet, 12 will be women.

"The battle against gender discrimination and domestic violence remains very open and far from being won," Rama said before the lawmakers voted for his cabinet with 77 votes out of 140.

"There are still discriminatory forces and negative energy that act today in our society in harm of women and girls."

Olta Xhaka will continue to serve as foreign minister and newly arrived Delina Ibrahimaj, former head of the state tax authority, will run the finance and economy ministry.

Click here to read the full article published by Reuters on 17 September 2021.

Kabul, Sep 19 (EFE).- Female politicians in Afghanistan on Sunday held their first press conference under the new Taliban regime, where they called for the restoration of women’s rights to education and work.

The conference, attended by 150 women, was organized by the Movement for Change of Afghanistan. Founded in 2013, it is the first women-oriented political party in the country and is led by outspoken rights campaigner and lawmaker Fawzia Koofi.

“Today’s press conference was regarding women rights; we want equal rights for women and men. The Taliban should not snatch the rights to education and work from women. Women’s participation in politics and economic activities should be ensured,” Ghazlla, an organizer of the press conference, told Efe.

A member of the leadership committee of the political party, she said the Taliban are retreating from the promises they made during the Doha peace talks regarding women’s rights.

“It has been more than a month since the Taliban closed the doors of government offices for the female employees, yesterday they allowed only boys to go to secondary schools and girls should remain home,” she said.

“A few days back they dispersed women’s protests and recently dissolved the Women Affairs Ministry. These are the things that women can no longer tolerate.”

Click here to read the full article published by La Prensa Latina on 19 September 2021.

By William Pesek

Over the past decade, Japan has tried a variety of strategies to restore its economic relevance. It spent trillions of dollars jolting growth. It devalued the yen. The Bank of Japan seemed to morph itself into a giant hedge fund to revive the nation’s animal spirits.

Japan did everything except what many economists argue might actually work: empowering women.

The question of how Japan can raise its game has just taken on renewed relevance. Less than a year into a remarkably unpopular stint as leader, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga bowed to reality and announced on Sept. 3 that he will not seek reelection.

That is what happens when the ruling Liberal Democratic Party botches its covid-19 response — and when the government thinks it’s wise to hold an Olympic and Paralympic Games as the delta and now “mu” variants rock the globe.

Suga’s sudden departure is casting a spotlight on the women who might angle to replace him. There are a number of highly qualified candidates mulling runs to become Japan’s first female leader.

Case in point: political trailblazer Seiko Noda. In 1998, when she was in her 30s, she became Japan’s youngest postwar Cabinet member. Noda, now 61, has since handled a variety of portfolios, such as the postal system and telecommunications, science and technology and gender equality.

Click here to read the full article published by The Washington Post on 8 September 2021.