KIGALI, June 28 (Xinhua) -- Ministers in charge of gender from members of Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) on Friday validated a new harmonized gender policy.
The policy will guide 11 ECCAS member states to put particular attention on the principle of equality between men and women in order to improve economic, social and cultural inclusion, Rwanda's Minister of Gender and Family Promotion Soline Nyirahabimana said at an ECCAS gender policy meeting in Kigali, capital city of Rwanda.
The policy will allow member states to rationalize and integrate the gender principle in all their interventions, said Nyirahabimana.
Rwanda will continue to sensitize and advocate for the principles of gender equality, to strengthen the overall capacities of women and youth and to engage men in the promotion of gender equality and the fight against gender-based violence, she said.
There is need for gender-sensitive policies which enable women to fully exercise their role in political and economic development, said Isabelle Boukinda Nzaou, head of the gender unit at the ECCAS secretariat.
The policy is in line with the Beijing Declaration adopted at the Fourth World Conference on Women in September 1995. It has been one of the most progressive blueprints produced for advancing women's rights.
Participants at the meeting included 11 ministers in charge of gender from ECCAS member states, officials from the African Development Bank, the African Union, among others.
