As Co-Chair of the Forum: The Minister of Planning and Economic Development participates in the symposium of the Forum on Economic Empowerment of Women in MENA of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

Promoting gender equality and women’s economic empowerment is a key driver of peace, stability, and social cohesion in the MENA region: Says Hala El-Said


Dr. Hala El-Said, Minister of Planning and Economic Development, participated recently in the opening of the virtual symposium of the Forum on Economic Empowerment of Women in the Middle East and North Africa, of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), in her capacity as the co-chair of the forum. The symposium was attended by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), which focused on good practices and successful policies to promote women's entrepreneurship in the digital sector. The symposium also reviewed UNIDO's projects on promoting women's empowerment for inclusive and sustainable industrial development in the Middle East and North Africa region.During the seminar, El-Said emphasized that the promotion of gender equality and the economic empowerment of women is a major driver of peace, stability, and social cohesion in the MENA region. El-Said noted that women across the MENA region are increasingly acquiring quality education and digital skills, and their strong participation in employment, entrepreneurship, and public life can significantly contribute to providing opportunities for governments to put their economies back on track during the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.El-Said added that the digital gender gap is one of the main obstacles facing not only the region but also around the world, as females have less access to technology and the Internet compared to males, especially in developing countries, as females struggle to obtain technology and Internet access.


El-Said emphasized that according to the Global System for Mobile Communications in 2020, women in low- and middle-income countries are 8% less likely to own a mobile phone, and 20% less likely to use mobile internet than men.She noted that the digital divide negatively affects countries' potential for economic growth and development, while if another 600 million women are connected to the Internet within three years, that could translate into a rise in global GDP of between $13-18 billion.The Minister of Planning and Economic Development explained that digital entrepreneurship has witnessed a rise in the Middle East and North Africa region. In 2017, the percentage of the population of the Middle East who used the internet daily reached 88%, and 94% of the population owns smartphone devices.These numbers represent the proportion of the youth population in the region, with 60% of the MENA population under the age of 30, and 30% between 15-29 years old.El-Said said the region has benefited from the rise of digital entrepreneurship; however, as a result of the rapid growth, some challenges have arisen. 
“Female entrepreneurs are less able to take advantage of these opportunities for economic gain. Given the proportion of startups founded by women over the past 20 years, we find that less than 10% of startups are founded by women,” El-Said explained.El-Said pointed out that the increase in digital opportunities has led to the creation of a competitive ecosystem in which services or products are constantly changing and developing; This creates problems related to stability, and the ability of women entrepreneurs to plan and sustain business strategies. El-Said emphasized that success in digital startups requires specific skills and talents, such as digital literacy, and providing innovative services or products.Dr. Hala El-Said emphasized that there is a need to change the mentality and teamwork in the region to create an entrepreneurial ecosystem ready for the digital revolution, allowing the formation of small and medium-sized enterprises and thus increasing the participation of women in them.El-Said explained that with Egypt aligning its “Vision 2030” with the 17 UN SDGs and the Egyptian National Strategy for Women Empowerment, there is a clear focus on equal opportunities and gender equality.


 El-Said pointed out that the set of procedures, policies, programs, and legislation carried out by the state to promote the social, economic, cultural, and political empowerment of women, and to ensure equality within society.El-Said said that the digital transformation strategy in Egypt, "Digital Egypt", lays the foundations for Egypt's transition to a digital society, explaining that to start this transition and build a strong digital economy, the strategy was built on three main pillars, starting with digital literacy.In the same context; Dr. Hala El-Said referred to the efforts of the National Council for Women, and the government's continued commitment to implementing the necessary policies and reforms to advance the gender agenda. She also referred to the launch of the "She is for a Digital Future" initiative, which aims to bridge the digital gender gap.The minister continued that Egypt's commitment to empowering women is also reflected in the provision of training programs for women leaders, women's entrepreneurship, and outreach to women in all governorates of Egypt, in addition to increasing women's representation on boards of directors in Egyptian institutions.El-Said pointed out that the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) issued two days ago a decision obligating all banks to grant women at least two seats on their boards of directors, to empower them economically and strengthen principles of governance.After her speech, Dr. Hala El-Said emphasized that to promote women's entrepreneurship in the digital sector in the Middle East and North Africa region; it is important to create an enabling environment for gender equality and to contribute to capacity building for institutions involved in the development of women's entrepreneurship as well as for gender-sensitive services. El-Said pointed out that despite the emergence of women entrepreneurs worldwide, women lag behind men in this field, especially in the Middle East and North Africa.El-Said explained that women constitute about half of the world's total population, and in the Middle East and North Africa region, women constitute 49.7 percent.It is what calls for union around a common belief that everyone has the right to achieve equal degrees of participation and opportunity, regardless of gender, for a sustainable future in the region.