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عربي

Women in Iraq working group takes forward improving Iraqi women's rights
 17/04/2009

In a follow up from the Partnership with Iraq, Human Rights Forum held in December, a DFID/FCO Women in Iraq working group is meeting today to look at how to continue improving women’s rights in Iraq.
Chaired by the Rt Hon Ann Clwyd MP, Special Envoy to the Prime Minister on human rights in Iraq, today’s meeting aims to engage with people from Iraq, individuals the Middle East and Gulf region, along with non-governmental organisations working Iraq to:
  • increase their understand the issues facing women in Iraq
  • jointly develop an approach to tackling those issues
  • look at how NGOs and the UK government can work together to improve women's rights in Iraq.
Representatives from Amnesty International, Oxfam and the Iraqi Association are among attendees.
The UK government has channelled assistance, through their humanitarian portfolio to international organisations working to support the most vulnerable people displaced inside Iraq and in the region. These organisations – including the International Committee of the Red Cross, UNICEF and UNHCR – have the access, coverage, expertise and track record to support vulnerable women and children.
Specific components to these programmes to assist these groups include maternal health care; protection for women/children; nutrition and immunization and outreach work.
The UK has committed £180 million in humanitarian assistance to Iraq since 2003 and disbursed £14 million so far in 2009. In addition to work by other organisations, these grants have enabled ICRC to provide food, income, security, healthcare and protection to women across the country; and UNICEF to set up 36 Community Protection Teams to assist 24,000 people to find the social services they need – including for women experiencing domestic abuse or violence to find protection.  
The UK will continue to support the Government of Iraq, through international organisations such as UNAMI, to increase its capacity to address not only international commitments but to improve national opportunities for women. The UK will also to continue to support its close working relationship with the Ministry of Human Rights and the Ministry for Women’s Affairs, as well as ensuring that women’s issues are raised at all government levels.