On the 11th of March, the Ministry of Public Health together with UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, commemorated the International Women's Day. The celebration gathered more 200 participants, the majority of them women, under the theme "Empowering women, empowering humanity."
Representatives of the Government, Parliament, Ministry of Public Health and other ministries, national and international organizations, and members of civil society were present at the ceremony.
The minister of Public Health, Dr. Ferozudin Feroz, expressed his concerns about the women rights in Afghanistan. "Defending women rights is defending humanity. Women play an essential role in the society and therefore their rights must be respected."
UNFPA officer in charge, Mercedita Tia, delivered a speech on behalf of the UN system, highlighting the collaboration between UNFPA and the Ministry of Public Health and addressing the various faces of inequality women face in Afghanistan.
"Empowered women contribute to the health and well-being of families and communities improving the prospects for the next generations to come. However, when women don't enjoy equality and can't exercise their rights, they face many forms of discrimination and the whole society suffers", said Tia.
Gender-based violence, access to sexual and reproductive health care and early marriage were some of the issues addressed by Tia during her remarks at the ceremony.
It is estimated that around 87 percent of Afghan women suffer at least one for of physical, sexual or psychological violence, while around 60 percent of them experience multiple forms of violence.
"These figures reflect the immense challenges that women face and the dire need for change at every level: from the need to change policies to overcoming obstacles in service provision, to providing support and protection within the families and communities", said Tia.
In terms of access to reproductive health, Afghanistan has experienced an almost four fold decrease in the maternal mortality in the past 12 years. However, every two hours a women still dies in childbirth or from a pregnancy related complication.
"Access and improvement of healthcare has been a priority of the strategic plans of the Ministry of Public Health and we can proudly announce that we have achieved a lot in this area", said Dr. Feroz.
The Diplomatic Representative of Aga Khan Foundation, Nurjehan Mawani and the supervisor of the health projects of Ministry of Women Affairs, Marghalar Khara, also addressed the audience highlighting Afghanistan's progress promoting women's rights and the challenges ahead.
At the end of the event Dr. Feroz inaugurated the reconstructed conference hall of the Ministry which is named after the first female Minister of Public Health after the Taliban era, Sohaila Siddiq.
UNFPA bags and scarfs to several staff from the Ministry of Public Health were hand in to participants, closing the event.
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For more information:
Mohammad Ismail Kawusi,
MoPH Communications Consultant
email: mi_kawusi@yahoo.com
mobile: +93 (0) 792888855
office: +93 (0) 202301374
Sahar Jahish,
UNFPA Communications Consultant
jahish@unfpa.org
telephone: +93 (0) 729261392
