I would like to congratulate all women in the Republic of South Africa on their National Women’s Day, the 9th of august, which is historical in making the change that they well-deserved. 74 years ago, exactly on the 9th of August 1956, more than 20,000 South African brave women marched in order to fight for their freedom and for attaining their inalienable right to freely move and protect their livelihood in their own country.
However, the road to achieve a global environment of women empowerment and advancement is still long and in need for genuine political will, since all countries must have the spirit and desire to achieve the women empowerment and advancement agenda. Women in many parts of the world still suffer disproportionately from violent extremism, conflicts, humanitarian disasters, forced displacements, climate change, poverty and other forms of exploitation. In this context, countries can benefit from the strategies of both Qatar and South Africa, in order to forge their national plans devoted to women empowerment and gender equality. In our world that became global town, we need to cooperate and share the experiences of each other in order to develop and flourish.
Again, congratulations to the Republic of South Africa and all its women and girls on this auspicious day, their day that became a landmark day for all of us.
Tariq Ali Faraj Al-Ansari
The Ambassador of the State of Qatar