AU inaugurates women's committee to promote gender equality

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Addis Ababa (dpa) - The African Union inaugurated a women's committee (AUWC) on Saturday to advice the organization in its development and promotion of gender equality.

Inaugurating the 25-member committee, with members drawn from five different regions of Africa, Alpha Oumar Konare, chairperson of the AU commission, said the committee would contribute substantially to increasing the voice, visibility and impact of women in the AU decision-making process.

He expressed full confidence that the "eminent feminists" serving on the committee would play an important role in promoting gender equality in line with the AU's Solemn Declaration on Gender Equality in Africa (SDGEA).

The committee later held its first session by electing as its chairperson Dr. Alcinda Antonio de Abreu, Mozambique's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation.

Also elected were: deputy chairperson Ms Binta Diop of Senegal, who is the executive director of the Dakar-based Femmes Afrique Solidarte (FAS); and rapporteur, Dr. Athalia Molokomme, the attorney general of Botswana.

In her acceptance speech Abreu said that women had an important role to play in promoting development in Africa and the goals of the AU.