Remarks by H.E. Dr. Sima Sami Bahous, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Director of UN Women
30 November 2022 – Kingdom of Bahrain
Your Royal Highness Princess Sabeeka bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa,
Your Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is a profound honour to stand before you today in the Kingdom of Bahrain, under the leadership of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. I wish to express my sincere appreciation to His Majesty for his patronage and unwavering support for the advancement of Bahraini women. Since assuming leadership in 1999, women in Bahrain have made significant strides, and their achievements today stand as a source of inspiration for many countries across the region.
I also extend my deep appreciation to the Supreme Council for Women, under the presidency of Her Royal Highness Princess Sabeeka bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa, Wife of His Majesty the King and President of the Supreme Council for Women. Her sustained commitment to this vital portfolio, and her close oversight of its progress, have been instrumental in the advancements and successes we witness today.
My sincere thanks also go to Her Excellency Ms. Hala Al Ansari, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council for Women, and to the dedicated team of the General Secretariat, for the gracious invitation and for providing us all with the opportunity to participate in the ceremony honouring the winners of the Princess Sabeeka bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa Global Award for Women’s Empowerment, in its second edition, held as part of the 2022 Bahraini Women’s Day celebrations. I commend the warm hospitality extended to us and the excellent preparation and organization of this distinguished event.
Allow me also to congratulate you on the establishment of the Athar Monument, a landmark that embodies and commemorates the contributions of Bahraini women throughout history.
Distinguished guests,
The strong and steadily expanding partnership between the Kingdom of Bahrain and the United Nations system, including its entities and specialized agencies—most notably UN Women—continues to deepen. This partnership is anchored in the vision and directives adopted by Bahrain’s leadership in support of women’s empowerment and gender equality.
The Kingdom of Bahrain has consistently demonstrated its role as a committed advocate and key partner in advancing progress towards the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, an ambitious and comprehensive global development framework, particularly Sustainable Development Goal 5 on achieving gender equality and empowering all women and girls. Sustainable Development Goal 5 stands as a global priority and a fundamental driver for the elimination of all forms of discrimination. While progress towards this Goal remains a shared global challenge, the measures and initiatives undertaken by Bahrain in recent years to advance the status of women reflect steady and measurable progress towards its achievement.
In this regard, I commend these success stories and the sustained efforts they represent—clear evidence of the significant steps taken at the national level under the leadership of the Supreme Council for Women, and in cooperation with all government institutions and entities—to advance the principles of equal opportunity and to promote gender balance and equality.
I also express my sincere appreciation to the esteemed members of the International Jury Committee, to the team of the UN Women Regional Office for the Arab States, and the team of the Supreme Council for Women for their dedicated efforts to further strengthen and refine the objectives and criteria of the Award in its second edition.
On this occasion, I also commend the strong response to the second edition of the Global Award for Women’s Empowerment, particularly as participation increased by nearly 31.4% compared to the first edition. This significant growth underscores the Award’s success as an important platform for attracting outstanding and impactful initiatives at all levels, led by women leaders and changemakers from around the world, and for showcasing inspiring stories of achievement.
This year’s winning initiatives came from Brazil, Egypt, Nigeria, and Uganda. They reflect pioneering efforts to combat violence against women and girls in all its forms; to advance women’s rights and promote partnership between women and men in achieving gender equality and balance; to combat poverty and mitigate its impact on women, children and families; and to promote clean energy initiatives, as well as women’s role in addressing climate change and advancing green and blue economies.
Distinguished guests,
Among the achievements that merit recognition are the sustained accomplishments of Bahraini women over decades of continuous progress. Most recently, women’s representation in the new Cabinet has increased to five women ministers, and eight women have been elected to Parliament through free elections that reflect the strength of the democratic experience and the growing societal recognition of the importance of women’s political participation.
Women’s participation has also risen this year to 56% in the public sector and 35% in the private sector. With such tangible examples of women’s leadership in both the political and economic spheres, the Kingdom of Bahrain is well positioned to share its experience regionally and globally on accelerating progress towards Sustainable Development Goal 5, and on a returning to the path required to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.
I also take this opportunity to congratulate the Kingdom of Bahrain for ranking first globally in achieving full parity—100%—in literacy rates, according to the 2022 Global Gender Gap Report issued by the World Economic Forum. The Kingdom also ranked second in the Arab region and 35th globally in the 2022 Human Development Report of the United Nations Development Programme, reflecting its strong educational performance.
Bahrain has reached an advanced stage in institutionalizing equal opportunities for women and men, and in integrating women’s needs and aspirations into national development processes. This is reflected in initiatives such as the National Plan for the Advancement of Bahraini Women, the National Model for Integrating Women’s Needs, and the National Gender Balance Indicators Observatory.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
A recent report issued by UN Women on global progress towards Sustainable Development Goal 5 reminds us that the road ahead remains long. At the current pace, it could take nearly 300 years to remove discriminatory laws worldwide, and more than 100 years to achieve parity in leadership. We simply do not have that time. We look forward to seeing Bahrain continue to close the remaining gaps in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals—particularly Sustainable Development Goal 5— and to serve as a model to be emulated.
At UN Women, we reaffirm our continued commitment to supporting the efforts of the Kingdom of Bahrain and the Supreme Council for Women to advance the status and empowerment of women. We commend the Kingdom’s efforts to align its national initiatives, policies and strategies with United Nations principles, the UN Women Strategic Plan, and the Sustainable Development Goals—positioning Bahrain among the countries demonstrating strong international commitment to women’s empowerment and to monitoring progress through participation and equal opportunities, in pursuit of sustainable and inclusive development.
In closing, we look forward to expanding avenues of cooperation and to further strengthening cooperation with the UN Women office in Bahrain, while continuing to provide all necessary support to achieve our shared objectives. I wish you continued success in advancing women’s empowerment and participation at all levels.
Thank you for your attention.