UN Women along with the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), the Swedish Institute in Alexandria and LAU's Institute for Women's Studies in the Arab World are expected to issue a joint statement in Beirut Wednesday night to announce results of the first phase of a project on “Estimating the Cost of the Economic Impact of Violence against Women in the Arab Region”. 

The regional project aims to support Arab States in estimating the costs of violence against women (VAW) and using such costings as an instrument for policy reform, according to a statement distributed by the UN Information Centre (UNIC) in Cairo.

The launching ceremony will be attended by top Arab government officials, especially ministers of women's affairs; heads of national institutions for advancement of women, as well as representatives of the Arab and foreign diplomatic corps, the UN agencies and civil society organizations. The ceremony will be presented by Media Personality Ricardo Karam with the participation of Tunisian Actor Dhafer L'Abidine as a guest of honor, the statement noted.

The project produced a report on the status of violence against women in the Arab region, as well as an operational model to estimate the cost of violence as a key priority for Arab States, based on the recognition that VAW is a critical human rights violation that has negative multiplier effects on the rights of women, economic growth, public health and economic welfare, the statement further said.

ESCUA committee stated that although most Arab states have ratified the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), progress at policy level remains slow and uneven across the region, the statement added.

The report also provides an overview of the policy context of VAW and sets recommendations for state Institutions, UN and other international organizations, and civil society organizations, the statement pointed out.

Regional director of UN Women, Arab States Mohammad Naciri said that this project is incredibly important For UN Women as a tool to drive policy development, the statement read.

Naciri added that when policymakers recognize both economic and social burdens of a problem, and the cost savings that can be generated by strategies designed to address the problem, they would speed up the adaptation of the policy addressing the issue, the statement noted.

Source: MENA