Palestinian women – Press release on UNDP report

PALESTINIAN WOMEN LACK VOICE IN SHAPING FUTURE SAYS UNDP REPORT

Equal-Opportunity Civil Service, Training, Credit Are Needed

      AMMAN, 4 November (UNDP) — Despite dramatic changes in the role of Palestinian women, their participation in decision-making in law, health, education, labour organizations and financial institutions continues to be marginal, says a new report by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).  "Unless women have a voice in decision-making bodies, their rights and emerging needs will most likely be overlooked," the report cautions.

The 169-page document, "At the Crossroads: Challenges and Choices for Palestinian Women in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip", addresses the needs of Palestinian women and identifies concrete steps that could ensure their full participation in nation-building and sustainable social and economic development.  The report was compiled by a fact-finding mission fielded by UNDP earlier this year as the organization sharply expanded its 14- year old Programme of Assistance to the Palestinian People.  The report was funded by the Government of Norway.  It will be launched in Amman, Jordan during the Arab Regional Preparatory Conference for the Fourth World Conference on Women on 5 November 1994.

Women in a traditional Palestinian society had limited or no access to formal resources, services or political power, according to the report.  They were restricted to the private world of their homes and to household-related activities, while men earned income outside the home and made important decisions.  With the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, a significant part of the Palestinian population was dispersed as refugees, displaced persons, migrant workers or political exiles.  Today, an estimated three million Palestinians live abroad, while only two million live in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.  Women became wage earners, fighters, refugee camp workers and heads of household.  Currently, women head almost 40 per cent of the households in the West Bank.

      The report identifies three priority areas for action:

**  Governance  —  women have  had  no  representation  in the  local municipal administration  and village  councils —  the  only form  of self-government in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.  "Attempts should be   made  to   raise   the  consciousness   of  municipal authority representatives and  village councils to introduce  the mechanisms for responding  to  women's  needs," says  the  report.    "The first  and foremost policy action regarding  the establishment of the Palestinian civil  service should  be a  proclamation  that it  will  be an  equal opportunity civil service," it states.

** Human Resource Development — human resource development for women, both in vocational and  training facilities, tends to focus  on skills in traditional areas, including sewing, typing  and hairdressing.  "As economic opportunities expand, it is essential that women  have access to diversified training," says the report.

** Economic Participation —  the economic contribution of Palestinian women is often overlooked because of low  economic participation rates and  small or no remuneration in the agricultural and service sectors, where  women  are  mostly employed.    During  reconstruction,  "it is essential  that systems being put  in place take  into account women's economic  role  and ensure  that women  are  included in  the economic rejuvenation."   Credit facilities, which play a role in this process, should be accessible to women.

      The  report   calls  for   partnership  between   men  and   women  if Palestinians are to succeed in their quest for independence and  prosperity. "History  is  full of  examples demonstrating  that,   while  women actively participate in pre-independence political  struggles in various parts of the world,  they are  often excluded    from public  life  once independence  is attained," says the report.   It concludes that Palestinian people and their leaders can either   seize the opportunity to build a society based on equal and full  partnership or risk losing the  vital contributions of one half of the population.

      At the Crossroads: Challenges and Choices for Palestinian Women in the West Bank  and the  Gaza Strip  is published  in English  by  UNDP.   It is available free from UNDP, Gender-in-Development,  Room: DC1-2032, One United Nations Plaza, New York, NY 10017, USA  Tel: (212) 906-5091.

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