Tag:

womenempowerment

First Female Executive Director Appointed at Human Rights Watch ©

by Narges Mohammadi May 25, 2023

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA/ Human Rights Watch wrote in a statement published on its website, “Tirana Hassan”, a 48-year-old woman who first joined the organization in 2010, became the first woman to hold the position of Executive Director of this non-governmental organization.

What is HRW?

Human Rights Watch (HRW) is a non-governmental organization headquartered in New York City that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policymakers, companies, and individual human rights abusers to denounce abuse and respect human rights, and often works on behalf of refugees, children, migrants, and political prisoners.

In 1997, HRW shared the Nobel Peace Prize as a founding member of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines. It played a leading role in the 2008 treaty banning cluster munitions.

HRW’s annual expenses totaled $50.6 million in 2011,$69.2 million in 2014, and $75.5 million in 2017.

HRW publishes research reports on violations of international human rights norms as set out by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and what it perceives to be other internationally accepted human-rights norms. These reports are used as the basis for drawing international attention to abuses and pressuring governments and international organizations to reform.

Tirana Hassan

In this way, in this position, Tirana Hassan succeeded “Kenneth Roth” who worked for 29 years as the head of this non-governmental organization.

Reviewing the statement published by Human Rights Watch, Tirana Hassan is a lawyer and researcher in the field of human rights and has documented human rights violations in crises and wars around the world.

Tirana Hassan was born in Singapore. Her father is Pakistani and her mother is Chinese Malaysian born in Sri Lanka.

She temporarily replaced Kenneth Roth from the position of executive director of HRW in September 2022.

According to this statement, Tirana Hassan left Human Rights Watch to work for Amnesty International and returned to Human Rights Watch as a program manager in 2020.

May 25, 2023 0 comment

Europe Women Pioneers

Women in Peacekeeping: UN Fund calls for new ideas and investment

by Narges Mohammadi May 23, 2023

UNITED NATIONS/ The UN’s Elsie Initiative Fund (EIF) launched a fresh call for funding proposals on Thursday, aimed at improving opportunities for uniformed women to serve in peacekeeping operations, and better serve vulnerable communities worldwide.

“A more gender-responsive mission builds trust with the communities they serve and improves its effectiveness,” said UN Women’s Executive Director Sima Bahous at the start of the event.

She also highlighted the vital role women play in today’s multifaceted peacekeeping missions and stressed the need to ensure the equal participation of women.

The Fund was set up by the UN, Canada, and other Member States in 2019. It is an innovative, multilateral fund that aims to accelerate progress toward the UN’s gender targets in line with Security Council resolutions and the UN Uniformed Gender Parity Strategy 2018-2028.

The head of the UN’s Peace Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, called on Member States at the event to continue widening opportunities for women to serve as ‘blue helmets’ and other uniformed personnel.

A Matter of Justice

“Let me be clear: our gender parity efforts are also a matter of justice – there should be no limitation on the grounds of gender to what women can achieve, in all roles and at all levels,” he stressed in his opening remarks.

Since its creation in 2019, the EIF has awarded more than $17 million in grants to 20 projects.

The Ghanaian Armed Forces and the Senegalese Police and Gendarmerie are among the recipients, who have deployed four gender-strong units consisting of 1,277 personnel, 18 percent of whom are women across all ranks.

Some 14 EIF-supported security institutions surveyed 3,689 staff members to find out what barriers are limiting women’s participation, and committed to implementing evidence-based solutions to overcome them.

Work in progress

Meanwhile, the Togolese Armed Forces and the Senegalese Police have raised awareness among 5,000 people, in order to challenge gender stereotypes and encourage women to join up as part of large-scale recruitment campaigns.

Five EIF-funded projects are busy now creating inclusive environments for women, including through the construction of gender-sensitive accommodations and facilities in Jordan, Senegal, and Togo.

They are also improving deployment conditions for their uniformed women peacekeepers deployed to UN peace operations in Mali (MINUSMA) and Lebanon (UNIFIL).

UK’s Minister of State, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, gave his full backing to the initiative and announced an additional contribution of £1 million ($1.24 million) to the EIF.

“It is wonderful to see how projects supported by the EIF are already tackling obstacles to participation”, he said.

Scaling up

“More investment will mean the Fund can scale up that impact and make gender parity a future reality,” he said at the event.

The Republic of Korea also announced an additional contribution of $500,000. Meanwhile, Canada’s Ambassador for Women, Peace, and Security Jacqueline O’Neill announced that the EIF’s lifespan has been extended to 31 December 2025 as “Canada is committed to continuing to support the EIF.”

Representatives of the Ghanaian and the Uruguayan Armed Forces also spoke at the event, championing some of the innovative practices developed with EIF funding, including piloting gender and family-friendly policies and providing cross-training to prepare military women to play an equal part in all the job specifications needed in peacekeeping missions.

Source: UN News Agency

May 23, 2023 0 comment

Europe Society

SUPREME; Focus on women’s financial wellbeing

by Narges Mohammadi May 15, 2023

Men were the decision-makers when Sarah Ottery was growing up in a West Otago farming family – at least from a visual perspective. Financial Services Council research showed more than 80% of New Zealand women rated their level of financial wellbeing as moderate, low or very low.

When stock agents visited and sat around the table, the conversation was always directed at her father, something the young Sarah could not understand, and often wondered about.

“As far as we were concerned, my mother ran the show,” she said.

Ms. Ottery, an experienced professional director, was part of a panel discussion at an Institute of Directors Otago-Southland branch event held at Forsyth Barr in Dunedin this week, discussing building better financial outcomes for women.

The panel included Pie Funds executive director and chief executive Ana-Marie Lockyer, Forsyth Barr’s head of summer and IoD branch chairwoman Trish Oakley, Mary Lewis, who has been in the finance sector for more than 40 years, Forsyth Barr senior investment adviser John Gallaher and Ms. Ottery.

More than 60% worried about money daily, weekly or monthly and 62% did not feel prepared for retirement. However money worries decreased with age.

Reflecting on the ratings of financial wellbeing, Ms. Lockyer said women often tended to mark themselves down, versus their male counterparts, and she believed not enough conversations were held on the topic.

Knowledge came from power, power came from information and information came from the ability to talk, she said.

When asked the critical steps to support women to remove that worry, Mr. Gallaher said the more that knowledge and understanding of “how this all works” could be created, then the more people would have the confidence to get involved.

Education System

Over the years, Mr. Gallaher had given presentations to the education sector.

One of the things the education system did not do well in early stage was introducing conversations in schools, he said.

Ms. Ottery said employers provided support often “as an ambulance” such as providing an employee with the contact for the employee assistance programme and suggesting they get the likes of budgeting advice.

But financial literacy almost fell under the wider responsibility of wellbeing under the Health and Safety Act and more work could be done in that space, she believed.

Ms. Lewis, who created The Success Formula for women, once worked in London in a firm of 800, where she was one of only five women.

Returning to New Zealand, there were no women partners in the firms she worked for in senior roles.

She was grateful for the support she received from a role model and said it was important to “have that legacy and turn around and help the ones who aren’t doing as well as you”.

Women should be in the same position that men were in at retirement and she implored women to understand their KiwiSaver investment.

“It’s your money when you put your money in that fund, it’s not the money of the funder.

“You need to be able to ask questions about it, feel like you own it,” she said.

While statistics showed 48% of financial products were owned by couples — that was legal ownership — actual ownership was nothing like that, and women not getting involved was a problem. KiwiSaver did not split ownership among couples, only when they split up, and that was giving the wrong signal.

KiwiSaver

She did not believe motherhood was valued in society.

“I think we’re far too silent on valuing motherhood and that would help us value our ownership of wealth,” she said.

Ms. Lockyer said KiwiSaver had been a “game changer” in New Zealand and it was great to see some employers taking steps to address lifestyle choices both men and women had been making around caring for children at home.

The industry was also starting to think and talk about decoupling employee and employer contributions, meaning those who were struggling to afford contributions were not disadvantaged in the future.

Pay Gap campaigners MindTheGap have been pre-emptively thanking Prime Minister Chris Hipkins for his support in addressing pay gaps.

Government’s Plans

In the next few weeks, the Government will consider recommendations from the committee tasked with looking at pay transparency including MindTheGap request for legislation to make pay gap reporting mandatory.

Stats NZ figures showed women were paid on average 9% less than men and the pay gap was worse for Maori and Pasifika women.

Ms. Lockyer gave “a big thumbs up” to the MindTheGap registry which hopefully brought more transparency to New Zealand businesses, she said.

When it came to employer value propositions beyond remuneration, Ms. Ottery said the last three years had changed dramatically — “a bit like energy and climate change conversations”.

“Flexible work is here and we’re writing policy around that, almost after the fact,” she said.

In the last two years, all the companies she had been involved in had been matching inflation.

Universal health care had been introduced at both Skyline Enterprises and Christchurch International Airport.

Out-of-cycle adjustments were regular and asked for, people were asking to be benchmarked and collective agreements were “upping the ante” in how people were being remunerated.

In the wellbeing space, areas such as learning and development, which had diminished during the Covid-19 pandemic, were now “back on the table”.

At both Skyline and Whitestone Cheese, staff were provided with a daily hot meal and that was an initiative that was worth it to the companies, she said.

Final Word

Mr. Gallaher said it was about creating an environment which felt conducive to people to doing well and that did provide a challenge as to where the balance was.

Asked what conversations were being held globally around menopause and menstruation, Ms Ottrey said it was something which used to be “generally hidden” but it was becoming a conversation topic.

“It’s an issue depending on who you are and how you experience it.

“It does affect us during our lives. It shouldn’t be something to be hidden. The more information out there, the better,” she said.

Source: Otago Daily Times News

May 15, 2023 0 comment

Asia Culture

NEW; Women Side-by-Side with the Saviour of Humanity ©

by Narges Mohammadi May 3, 2023

STUDY/ In all religious studies, we see that there are different sayings and narratives of the arrival of a “Saviour” for humanity. This Saviour in Islamic studies is known as “Mahdi or Imam Mahdi”. Now, according to what Islamic scholars say women also will be a huge part of Mahdi’s companions.

This government of divine justice with the guidance of Imam Mahdi and the help of more than 300 special companions of his; (as the agents of the formation of the government) is made up of various groups; of which women have a great share of this, as well as men.

The presence of women in the global government of the Holy Prophet (PBUH); is an issue. This issue has been mentioned in many narrations from the starting Era of Islam. In some cases, their number and even their names have been mentioned.

Based on some narrations, the role of women at the time of advent has been compared to their role at the time of the Holy Prophet (PBUH). Duties such as delivering water and food to the warriors, cooking, maintaining the warriors’ equipment, preparing medicine, … is defined for them.

In some other narrations, it is mentioned that women were active in the treatment and health sector. From the interpretation of some other narrations, it is clear that several women were managers and agents of His Holiness’ government and will play an active role in management positions.

Imam Baqir (PBUH), the 5^th Shiite Scholar says in this regard: “By God, three hundred and fifty people will come, and there are fifty women among them.”

First Group of Women: Presence of fifty women among his companions

The first group of women who rush to his presence are those who lived in those days and, like other companions of him, they serve him when he appears in the sacred sanctuary of God.

There are two narrations about this:

First narrated by Om-Salame from the Great Prophet (PBUH): “At that time, a refugee takes refuge in God’s safe sanctuary and people flock to him like pigeons that rush from four directions until three hundred and fourteen people gather in front of him. Some of them are women who will win over every tyrant”.

Second Narration: “Jaber bin Yazid Jaafi, along with a detailed saying from Imam Baqir (PBUH) has narrated some signs of his emergence: “By God, three hundred and thirteen people will come, fifty of whom are women, who will gather together in Mecca without any prior appointment. This shows the meaning of the noble verse: ((Wherever you are, God will make you all present. Because he can do everything)).”

Second Group: Celestial Women

The second category is the 400 chosen women whom God has reserved in heaven for the world government of Mahdi. They are the ones who lived in those days and like others. His companions serve him when he appears in the safe sanctuary of God. Mahdi (AS) will come to earth with Jesus (AS).

Third Group: Awaiting Women

The third group of helpers is a group of pious women who passed away before appearing. At the time of his appearance, they are told: “Your imam has appeared, you can be present if you wish.” They will be resurrected by God’s will. The return of women is not related to a specific group.

Fourth Group: Menstruating Women

The fourth group of the helpers of Mahdi are women whom God will bring back to the world once again.

May 3, 2023 0 comment

Asia Health

NEW; For Some Chinese Women it ‘Doesn’t Make Sense to Have Babies

by Narges Mohammadi April 8, 2023

CHINA/Top-down policy initiatives fail to account for a society whose attitudes towards women have changed little over time.

After three Lunar New Year holidays in a row disrupted by China’s zero-COVID policy, Ann Pei, Mona Zhao, and Wenyi Hai were thrilled to be able to leave Shanghai and return to their families for this year’s festive season.

But amid the excitement, they were also a little apprehensive.

“I knew that my mum and my grandparents would want to have a talk with me about marriage and children, especially since I’m in my thirties, and I wasn’t looking forward to that,” 31-year-old Ann Pei said as she was preparing to head home to family near the city of Changchun in northeastern China.

Wenyi Hai, who is 24, knew that a similar conversation was waiting for her when she reached her family in Ji’an in central China.

“Normally, I can just excuse myself and hang up the phone when my parents start going on about husbands and babies, but when I am in their house, it’s not that easy to get away from the topic.”

Parents and older relatives are notorious for asking probing personal questions of young adults during Lunar New Year, especially of young women who are unmarried.

Mona Zhao told her parents that she would only visit them in Qingdao in eastern China for the holidays if they agreed not to mention marriage and children.

“We have talked about that stuff a million times and I am sick of the discussion,” the 25-year-old explained.

“They just can’t accept that it doesn’t make sense for me to start a family.”

Facing Population Decline

Chinese President Xi Jinping has a vision of “national rejuvenation” for China, but to realise that vision, he needs more women to have children.

In January, China’s National Bureau of Statistics reported the population dropped by 850,000 people in 2022 – the first decline since the last year of the Great Famine in 1961.

The fall comes in the wake of a birth rate that has been steadily declining since the implementation of the one-child policy in 1980. It has continued to fall even though the policy was abolished in 2015, suggesting that 2022’s population drop was not an exception but the start of a trend. The issue is set to be one of the key areas of discussion at the annual meeting of China’s parliament, which begins at the weekend.

Problem for Policy-Makers

The problem for policymakers is that while women like Zhao, Pei and Hai are open to having a family one day, they are wary of marriage and motherhood because of the burdens and disadvantages it places on so many Chinese women.

“I don’t want my life to only be about taking care of kids, doing housework and taking care of my husband’s parents when they get old, but I feel like many families expect that from a married woman in China,” Hai said over a video connection.

Studies do indeed show that Chinese women carry the weight of most domestic tasks — spending about twice as much time on housework as their husbands, for instance.

“Also, it’s usually not enough with your husband’s salary in a family so you need to take care of a job on top of the duties at home,” Hai added, shaking her head in disbelief.

At the same time, the 24-year-old does not want a job that simply fits around the task of bringing up a child. She says she wants a career she can be proud of.

“I have a promotion coming up, and I would be risking it if I start making family plans now,” she explained.

Continued Discrimination

For many women in China, there is no way to maintain a career and start a family.

Even though it is illegal under Chinese law, some Chinese companies continue to make their female employees sign contracts that give the company the right to terminate them if they become pregnant.

In 2019, Fan Huiling from Guangdong Province was fired from her job when she notified her employer that she was pregnant. The same happened to a woman in Jilin Province the previous year.

Women able to reconcile pregnancy with their work life have discovered time off to have a baby can also come with great risks to their careers. Chinese women have reported being sidelined, demoted or replaced by their employers on returning to work from maternity leave.

Women do not even need to be pregnant to encounter discrimination. Sometimes simply being of childbearing age can be a problem, regardless of whether a woman is planning to start a family or not.

“I was looking to change my career a few years back, but, as a woman in her late twenties, I felt that it was very difficult for me to get interviews,” said Pei.

On company websites, social media platforms, and chat groups, many job listings specify that a given position is only appropriate for either a man or a woman who has already had children, even though this sort of gender discrimination is officially prohibited.

“Even when I did get called in for an interview, I was often asked very personal questions about my family plans and at one point also about my fertility,” explained Pei.

Chinese Authorities

The Chinese authorities and local governments have taken steps in recent years to combat such discrimination and come down harder on the companies that force their female employees to sign non-pregnancy contracts.

Fan and the woman from Jilin each sued the companies that fired them for getting pregnant and won.

Fan’s employer was ordered to pay her 13,939 yuan ($2,010) in compensation while the woman in Jilin won her job back — although she later learned that her position had been changed, resulting in her having to work at a construction site in the winter cold.

Reinforcing Patriarchy

Xi reiterated in his speech at the 20th National Party Congress last October that getting families to have more children was at the top of his agenda.

“We will improve the population development strategy, establish a policy system to boost birth rates, and bring down the costs of pregnancy and childbirth, childrearing and schooling,” the president said.

Cities like Beijing and Shanghai have taken steps to guarantee better parental leave arrangements and a more equitable distribution of leave between mothers and fathers.

Among the suggestions from politicians gathering in Beijing for the upcoming policymaking sessions are proposals to allow unmarried women the same rights and treatment to have children as those who are married, the adoption of an eight-hour work day and the removal of all medical fees related to childbirth, according to the state-run Global Times.

But for all the talk, some of the central government’s policies appear to be reinforcing the traditional Chinese gender roles that discourage so many women from starting families.

Since Xi came to power in 2012, China has fallen 33 places in the World Economic Forum’s gender gap from 69th to 102nd out of 146 countries.

While the proportion of women board directors did increase from 8.5 percent in 2016 to 13.8 percent in 2021, not a single woman was appointed to the 25-member Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party — the country’s top echelon of power — at October’s congress. It was the first time that has happened in 25 years.

Speech of Xi

In a speech in 2021, Xi himself said that Chinese women should be “good wives, good mothers”, and that they should shoulder the “mission of their times, closely link their future and destiny with the future and destiny of the motherland”.

A similar view on Chinese women is reflected in an updated gender law that is set to come into force this year and which includes a list of moral standards that women are supposed to observe. The law’s opening chapter says that “women should respect and obey national laws, respect social morals, professional ethics and family values”.

In late 2021, Xi called for artists and writers to “practice morality and decency” and under him Chinese men have also been pushed towards government-approved behaviour.

A month before the president spoke, the media and entertainment industry got a sense of these government values when the authorities released a plan directing them to “boycott vulgar internet celebrities” and put more emphasis on “traditional Chinese culture, revolution culture and socialist culture” in a crackdown on “sissy idols” and “effeminate men”.

“I feel like the government has been limiting the space for what it means to be a man and what it means to be a woman,” Zhao said.

Legacy of the One-Child Policy

Those that have tried to do things differently have run into obstacles.

When 31-year-old unmarried Teresa Xu wanted to have her eggs frozen at a Beijing hospital, the institution rejected her request arguing that a delayed pregnancy or single motherhood could lead to social problems.

Xu sued the hospital but lost the challenge in July when the Chaoyang District People’s Court ruled that the hospital was not obligated to accommodate Xu’s request since it was not grounded in a medical purpose.

Those women who do have children on their own are excluded from most of the tax breaks, housing credits and educational benefits that the government has doled out in recent years to try and boost the birth rate, as these are reserved for married couples.

Alison Sile Chen used to work for a Chinese magazine that addressed women’s rights in China and is now a PhD student in the political science department at the University of California in San Diego, studying authoritarian surveillance.

According to her, the gulf between the aspirations of so many young Chinese women and the gender roles still placed on them by society is an unintended consequence of the one-child policy.

“China has traditionally been a very patriarchic society, but when families could only have one child, they were forced to channel all their aspirations and resources into that one child even if it was a girl,” she explained.

The Result

This has created a new generation of well-educated, career-minded and resourceful young women who have carved out new spaces for themselves in areas that were previously inaccessible to Chinese women. For the economy, the advance of women meant that they were contributing 41 percent to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) by 2015 — more than women in North America.

But while women might have moved into new territory in recent decades, the country’s norms and social values have not progressed at the same pace.

“Women’s advancement was prompted by state-imposed changes and not because the social culture changed, so as these women reach childbearing age, they find themselves still subjected to the traditional gender ideology and the established family roles,” Chen said.

According to Ann Pei, it is high time that society catches up.

“If they want more babies, they need to let us start families on our own terms instead of pushing us into an old-fashioned one-size-fits-all model that requires women to abandon careers and dreams,” she said.

“I will not give up my life to start a family.”

Source: Al-Jazeera

April 8, 2023 0 comment

Asia Society

NEW; 1st Muslim Woman Appointed CEO of International Charity Penny Appeal

by Narges Mohammadi April 1, 2023

DUBAI/ Penny Appeal, the Muslim international humanitarian charity, has appointed Ridwana Wallace-Laher as its CEO, the first Muslim woman to hold such a post at a major global charity.

Wallace-Laher is a former teacher at the Yorkshire (Bradford) Co-op Academy Grange in the UK and is experienced in mentoring people from a variety of backgrounds.
Her appointment comes after being part of the Penny Appeal team for three years, with experience in various roles, including most recently as senior director of growth.

Working with Penny Appeal, which is based in Wakefield, Yorkshire, she has a strong track record of leading diverse teams, building relationships with stakeholders, and encouraging collaboration.
Wallace-Laher said: “It has been an honor to have been part of the core unit that has led the positive change Penny Appeal has made in the faith-led charity sector globally. My commitment to greater governance, collaboration, innovation, and continuous improvement, combined with my background as a senior teaching professional, make me confident that I can drive Penny Appeal’s success even further in the future.”

Chairman Trustee Words

Mohammed Jahangir, chairman of trustees, said: “Ridwana stood out against all other candidates through a tough selection process, and I am proud to have her as our new CEO.”
He said that she is the first Muslim woman to hold the CEO position at a major international charity. “May she be the first of many Muslim women to do so,” he added.

“At a time when the world is facing a global economic crisis when many in the UK and abroad are struggling to feed themselves and pay electricity bills, and when people in Turkey and Syria are suffering due to the recent earthquake, we at Penny Appeal are trying our best to help those who need it by supporting them and providing aid during these times or events.

“The trustees are confident that Ridwana is a woman who will take Penny Appeal to new heights to help those in need. We believe she will transform and grow the charity for the digital age while staying true to our core values of helping those in need. I look forward to seeing the positive impact that Ridwana will have on the charity and her leadership to make the world a better place,” Jahangir said.

Source: Arab News Agency

April 1, 2023 0 comment

Asia Society

NEW; The Role of Iranian Women in the Field of Knowledge-REPORT©

by Narges Mohammadi March 29, 2023

IRAN/ According to the latest statistics, Iranian women have a 25% share in the management of the knowledge-based ecosystem; and their activities range from medicine and launching medical equipment to software and information technology.

4,106 official shareholders of Iranian knowledge-based companies are women. These companies operate in various fields of information technology, machinery and equipment, electricity, medicine; and biotechnology, and provide services and initiate products in these fields.

Tehran city has the most female CEOs in knowledge-based companies with 321 people. The reason for the significant difference in the number of female board members and CEOs in Tehran; and other provinces is due to the establishment of more knowledge-based companies in Tehran.

Since the Islamic Revolution, women are working as CEOs in 706 companies. Furthermore; 2,592 women are active as members of the board of directors of knowledge-based companies.

Statistics

According to the latest statistics provided by the Vice-Chancellor of Science, Technology and Knowledge-Based Economy; women own 17% of the shares of knowledge-based companies; and the field of medicine and diagnostic and treatment products has the largest number of women.

In line with the importance of the issue of women’s management in the knowledge ecosystem; an exhibition of the achievements of Iranian women entrepreneurs in various fields such as electricity and electronics, medical equipment; accelerator centers and home businesses, automobiles, software, etc; was established at the Iran Innovation; and Technology House.

For the establishment of this exhibition, among 900 capable women of knowledge-based companies; more than 60 people were chosen as representatives; of the field of science and technology.

During this exhibition, guests from 80 countries including; Japan, Sweden, Russia, China, Singapore, Australia, Ireland, Cameroon, Nigeria, Armenia, Serbia, Azerbaijan; Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Pakistan, Algeria; and… visited the achievements of the technology was the result of Iranian women’s efforts.

Based on the products presented in this exhibition; the following report has tried to present a picture of the role played by Iranian women in the knowledge-based field; and the effectiveness of their products in the country’s industry and economy.

Quick Detection Kits with 3 Anti-Biotics

One of the products produced by an Iranian woman; is diagnostic kits that are used in dairy factories. Beta-lactams, tetracyclines; and sulfonamides are the most widely used antibiotics for the treatment; of bacterial infections in dairy cows. But the use of antibiotics for non-therapeutic purposes leads to the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria; which will enter the human food chain through dairy products.

Therefore, it is very important to detect such antibiotics before dairy products enter the human food cycle.

Mohadeseh Haji Abdul-Wahab, Ph.D. in biotechnology and manager of the start-up team producing this kit; said: “We produce antibiotic detection kits in milk that can be used; at the milk production site for daily control; or in laboratories to analyze a set of milk samples.”

Referring to the features of this kit, she said: “Detection of antibiotics, high sensitivity, reproducibility, ease to use; fast and affordable are the features of this product. Of course; there is no Iranian version of this product in the country, which saves currency.”

According to Mrs. Haji Abdul-Wahab, dairy; and milk factories are required to use these kits; so we can provide these factories with 500,000 kits per month. There is also the possibility of exporting in this company; but the priority is to meet the needs of the country; and then we plan to export this product to the Middle East and then European countries.

Monitoring Power Transmission Lines Product

Another achievement of Iranian expert women who were also present at the “Influential Iranian Women” exhibition; was software for detecting defects in power transmission lines through image processing. This Iranian software works based on artificial intelligence and will provide a complete report to the electrical technician.

Zahra Al-Sadat Atari, a representative of a level one knowledge-based company; stated that the software we developed can detect more than 80 types of defects; in power transmission lines with artificial intelligence algorithms; and provides a complete report to the electricity manager.

She stated that in the past, defects were identified with industrial drones and with GPS information; and said: “Industrial drones would fall due to the presence of a magnetic field around the masts; or the GPS would have problems. But with the software we prepared; we can report faults in power transmission lines based on image processing without any other disturbances.”

She added: “This software monitors the power towers in a short time and accurately identifies the fault point. Currently, regional electricity companies and Tavanir company are using this software.”

Pipe Production for Oil & Gas Industry

The field of production of oil, gas, and petrochemical industry pipes; is one of the other areas where women play a role based on basic knowledge.

Atiya Andakhshideh, CEO of a knowledge-based company that produces pipes needed by the oil, gas, and petrochemical industries; stated that the company produces pipes for the oil, gas; and petrochemical industries said: “These glasses are produced from glass fibers and different types of resin.”

She stated that these composite pipes are more resistant to corrosion; than metal pipes used in the oil and gas industry; and added: “The strength of composite pipes is similar to metal products; but they have very high chemical resistance.”

In response to the question of whether Iranian raw materials; were used in the production of these pipes; Andakhshideh said: “We use the raw materials available in the country to produce the company’s products. We also use nanotechnology in production; and we have obtained the Nano-scale approval for this product from the special headquarters for the development of nanotechnology.”

Referring to the features of this product; this director said: “Great resistance to corrosion and electrical properties are the features of these pipes.”

Online Medical Consultation Platform

Getting health services is very expensive for most patients who are constantly at risk; and health monitoring through software and smartphones is considered a continuous; and long-term method to monitor these patients. A women-only start-up team has started its activity to provide online medical health consultation services; throughout the country and allow patients to be quickly connected; to the doctor of their choice.

One of the advantages of this software is that you can even communicate with the veterinarian. Doctor and veterinarian visits at the patient’s place, nutritional advice, providing physiotherapy and speech therapy; responding at any moment of the day and night, protecting the patient’s privacy, providing test services at the patient’s place; are among the advantages of this product.

This start-up provides services as the largest start-up in the field of health. The number of successful consultations through this software is 255 thousand sessions; and more than one million and 900 thousand users are active in it. Also, more than 4,500 doctors and consultants provide services to patients with this software.

Orthopedics & Rehabilitation Services

Another knowledge-based company that operates under the guidance; and leadership of women has managed to produce a product called remote rehabilitation.

Elahe Faraji, CEO of one of the technology companies located in Ghiathuddin-Jamshid-Kashani Science and Technology Park, said: “Remote rehabilitation is the field of activity of this company, through which we can provide services to some people in this field.”

According to her, we communicate with patients remotely and after initial evaluations, we will provide the product needed by the person in the field of rehabilitation. These rehabilitation products range from crutches and walkers to wheelchairs, beds, mattresses, and headsets for spinal rehabilitation.

Emphasizing that in this service delivery, assistive technologies in the field of rehabilitation are provided to the applicants, Faraji noted: “We used ICT for assistive rehabilitation technologies in the form of these services.”

Ceramic Filters For Casting

Sediqeh Mohebi, CEO of a knowledge-based company in the field of ceramic filters; said: “This product has a gray appearance due to its high-temperature resistance (up to about 1500 degrees Celsius); also is mainly used for the filtration of gray grass; and ductile as well as some non-ferrous metals.”

According to this CEO; the percentage of voids and the size of the holes in this product is set in such a way; that it prevents the entry of slag; products reacted with cast metal, and sand particles into the mold and leading to the smooth flow of the melt while filling the mold will be in addition; to reducing the costs caused by defective parts. This will lead to a reduction in the size of duct systems and, as a result, it will simplify their design.

Referring to the second product produced by this company, which is another type of ceramic filter; she said: “This product with a white appearance and excellent strength is suitable for all industrial and laboratory applications exposed to corrosive substances at high temperatures (up to 1100 degrees Celsius). The high abrasion resistance of this product is such that it can purify and contain all aluminum base melts and can act as a barrier to prevent turbulent and molten flow from entering the casting mold.”

Fashion & Clothing Innovation House

Another different achievement that has recently been presented; by expert women entrepreneurs; is the establishment of a fashion and clothing innovation house. This center is a base for all people and businesses in the world of fashion and clothing who are concerned about the growth of ideas or businesses with any need.

This innovation center will support them from validation and idea development to business launch, design, production, marketing and sales, mentoring, coaching, acceleration, and even export. The fashion; and clothing innovation house was established to develop; the flow of intellectual capital in the direction of innovation; and entrepreneurship in the field of fashion and clothing and shape an efficient ecosystem in the field of fashion and clothing in Iran.

People who want to create a business in the field of fashion and clothing can learn from ideation to sales in the real market by attending this innovation house.

Iranian Science Vice-President’s Promise “Free Facilities & Creating a Fund for Woman Entrepreneurs”

Ruhollah Dehghani Firouzabadi, the Iranian vice president for the science, technology, and economics of knowledge base, has recently made promises to facilitate the activities of women in the field of a knowledge base.

He announced the launch of a special fund for women entrepreneurs and said: “We will support knowledge-based companies whose key elements or a high percentage of employees are women.”

Vice President for Science and Technology, also referring to the exhibition of knowledge-based women’s achievements; said: “Women are influential in the field of innovation, they have produced products, some of which are in sync with the world’s knowledge.” We are proud and feel good to be able to help in this area.”

He continued: “Scientific Vice-Chancellor has facilities that he provides to companies for the development of basic knowledge. In this regard, 67 loans of 5000 million Rials with two-year repayment; will be allocated to the women who are present; in this exhibition.”

Source: Mehr News Agency

March 29, 2023 0 comment

North America Society

NEW STUDY; “Men Have 3 Times More Saved For Retirement Than Women”

by Narges Mohammadi March 25, 2023

RALEIGH, N.C/ During Women’s History Month, Spectrum News 1 looked into the gender disparities regarding retirement savings; and found men to have a healthy jump over women.

According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, men have 3 times more saved for retirement than women. In fact, in a majority of cases, the study found women to have no retirement savings compared to men.

Financial expert Alex Sutherland out of Raleigh explained how women can take control of their financial future. Sutherland says the gender income gap isn’t where it needs to be.

“Women right now make 82 cents on the dollar compared to men. On the wealth side, we also know there’s a recent survey that says 2/3rds of the wealth in the U.S. is going to be controlled by women by 2030,” Sutherland said.

Sutherland recommends women start by knowing their numbers. An easy starting point is a budget.

“You can use apps and websites to help you track those funds, but it’s really important that you know to help you have control of your finances,” Sutherland said.

A gender pay gap study reveals women earn $1 million less that men over a lifetime and retire with $136,000 less.

“We know that there’s a lot of systematic issues with equal pay and so what’s important is for us to focus on what’s in our control. Put pen to paper, write out a budget, write out your financial goals,” Sutherland said.

Sutherland says if that feels overwhelming, it’s a good time to talk with a financial professional or someone who can listen and help you achieve your financial goals.

Western governments shout out equality for men and women and claim to treat men and women equal in their countries; while this report says the opposite,.

Source: Spectrum Local News

March 25, 2023 0 comment

Europe Society

AMAZING; Women Have Raced into the Boardroom-But Here is the Hard Part

by Narges Mohammadi March 14, 2023

BRITAIN/ Women are racing into the boardroom. What might an insurer, a housebuilder and two water companies have in common in early 21st-century Britain? Here’s one answer: if you checked the UK’s biggest listed companies at the end of January; these four businesses would have been among the only ones with a female chief executive and chair.

This finding comes from the authors of a report published last week by the FTSE Women Leaders Review; a government-backed campaign group with an otherwise striking record of success in getting women into the boardroom; and the executive suite.

When their work kicked off in 2011; 152 of the 350 largest companies did not have a single woman on their board. That figure halved within two years and fell to zero by 2020. Women now hold 40 percent of board seats in those top 350 companies; a milestone the campaigners did not expect to reach until 2025.

Statistics

The number of all-male executive committees has also fallen so much that only 10 are left. “It’s just quite incredible really,” Denise Wilson, the review’s chief executive, told me last week. “It is a complete revolution in what’s going on in British boardrooms.” This also means it is becoming harder than ever to argue there are not enough experienced women; to be chief executives or chairs. So the battle for corporate gender equality is about to take an interesting turn.

Wilson’s group is now pushing for every FTSE 350 company to have at least one woman in the big four jobs of chief executive, chair, finance director, or senior independent director by the end of 2025. That should be doable: most companies already fit the bill.

But true equality will mean going further and that’s where things will get tricky. Progress has come via voluntary action rather than the quotas that countries such as France and Norway have introduced. Wilson’s report ranks the UK second only to France in female boardroom representation, and just ahead of Norway.

This is not at all what I expected in 2005 when I went to Oslo to report on Norway’s groundbreaking launch of female board quotas. The measure was widely deemed an annoying yet necessary step. As one female executive memorably told me, there’s a saying in Norwegian that sometimes you have to eat camels. “They may be hairy and they may be dirty, but if you want to get anything done you have to do it.”

UK

The UK has shown voluntary action can work — for directorships. But the numbers are daunting when it comes to CEO and chair roles. Women account for just 16 percent of FTSE 350 chairs and about 8 percent of chief executives. These figures explain what happened last week when I asked the BoardEx data firm to check how many big UK companies have more than one woman in a top job.

It found that just four of the 250 biggest listed businesses had a female chief executive and chair: the Admiral insurance group, home builder Taylor Wimpey and the Pennon and Severn Trent water companies. Another four had a female CEO and chief financial officer.

Example

Severn Trent is set to make boardroom history in July when a new chief financial officer will make it the first FTSE 100 company with a female chair, chief executive, and finance director. Breaking that record won’t happen easily because the blocks to female advancement are not always straightforward. Companies still prefer a chief executive with experience running a business unit, so it’s no good having a pipeline of female executives concentrated in marketing or HR roles.

But that problem is easy to solve compared with our tendency to judge female leaders differently. Women who become company chairs disproportionately get there after being a senior independent director, according to the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership at King’s College London. “But men disproportionately go straight into the chair role,” says Julia Gillard, the institute’s chair.

We have to ask if that is because men are judged on their potential and women on their experience, says Gillard. The answer is almost certainly yes. This is a tedious problem, but not an insurmountable one. Like so many other barriers to female progress, understanding that it exists at all is half the battle.

Source: Financial Times

March 14, 2023 0 comment

Asia Women Pioneers

NEW; Women’s Day: New Paths For More Parity

by Narges Mohammadi March 11, 2023

UNITED-ARAB-EMIRATES/ Women in the UAE are notably tranquil; when discussions on gender parity getting worse; are heating up around the world.

Women hold a multiplicity of roles in the UAE’s private sector; best exemplified by Strata, the advanced aerospace manufacturing firm in Al Ain; where 88 percent of the Emirati workforce is female. Women-owned businesses account for 10 percent of the private sector and prominence is stronger in the public sector. With nine federal ministers, the participation of women in the UAE Cabinet is amongst the highest in the world; and women make up half the consultative parliamentary body, Federal National Council (FNC).

Women here are free, safe, educated, and equal to men – and this is noticed, cited, and lauded widely. The UAE was ranked the Middle East’s leader in the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap 2022 report. In 2021, a Georgetown University study placed the UAE’s safety for women at 98.5 per cent; the highest in the world. In

In this milieu of social, judicial, and political contentment, local discussions turn towards better gender balance in other spheres.

Champions of Climate Action

Earlier this month, the Emariti Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation of the UN Women Liaison Office plus the General Women’s Union (GWU); jointly launched the Climate Change and Gender Equality initiative as part of the UAE’s preparations for the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28).

HH Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the GWU; emphasized the importance of women as active and influential partners in climate change. “The UAE is keen to involve women to contribute effectively to national efforts to enhance environmental preservation and reach sustainable solutions. This is a confirmation and continuation of the UAE’s pioneering model in women’s rights and our belief in their creative abilities; and inspiring energies in all sectors and fields.”

The initiative aims to build on the connection between gender balance and climate change.

Positions of Executive Leadership

Gender equality in the workplace is now an important factor in the assessment of companies. Increased attention on the ‘S’ component of ESG (Environmental, Social; Governance) is joined by an emerging focus on higher levels of DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion). Both routes advocate workplaces that are free of bias, stereotypes; and discrimination, and higher women’s representation in executive leadership, and board-level positions.

Eugene Mayne, CEO of Tristar Group; and Board Member of the UAE network of United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) explain this. “The variety and volume of changes impacting the work environment is staggering; technological advances, demographic shifts, the gig economy, and the digital era, to name a few,” he says.

“These trends are disrupting traditional work models, the nature of jobs, and the composition of workforces. As organizations prepare for a digital future; scaling up both ESG plus DEI solutions is not just essential, it is vital.”

Winners of the Digital Era

Mayne is scheduled to participate in an upcoming roundtable at the UN Headquarters in New York; themed ‘A Gender Equal Future of Work in the Digital Age’; and his focus is what companies can do and what they will gain. “It should be less about the token representation of women, and more about their fuller participation and career fulfillment.”

The World Economic Forum estimates that only 22 percent of AI (artificial intelligence) professionals are female today.

Tech-based businesses offer women more flexibility and autonomy, allowing them to manage caregiving responsibilities alongside paid work.

Wearers of “Many Hats”

Dr. Imneet Madan, Specialist Pediatric Dentist at Dr. Michael’s Dental Clinic earned three master’s degrees in her quest ‘to establish a success; focused practice with the least number of flaws’. After completing the first in dental science and endodontics, and the second in laser dentistry; she topped it up with the third in business management.

As a successful medical professional and businesswoman, Dr. Madan says achievement comes to those who stick to the course. “Keep your goals crystal clear; and no matter how many hurdles pull you down you will make progress; as long as you are on track and stay loyal to your dream.”

Her opinion is mirrored by Katerina Pawlowski Hanafin, COO and Co-Founder, of Huriya Private, who says social conditioning can be a restriction. “Some women are scared to seek higher paid jobs in male-dominated industries or assume that certain jobs are better handled by men” she urges.

Hanafin illustrates this: “In 2022, the percentage of women applying for a second citizenship was 24 percent; and this catapulted to 38 percent in January and February 2023,” she observes.

Source: Gulf News

March 11, 2023 0 comment

Newer Posts

Older Posts