Women's Empowerment Requires Breaking 'Glass Ceiling' - CESE

The empowerment of women inevitably involves breaking the “glass ceiling” that tends to favor female immobility and systematically sends women back to a position of inferiority and subordination, says the Economic, Social and Environmental Council (CESE).

“A country cannot aspire to any kind of development and progress if half of its living force – namely women – is excluded. At a time when Morocco is mobilizing to move towards a new and more inclusive development model, it is inconceivable that women suffer violence and remain on the margins of the social, economic and civic spheres of life,” notes the Council in a document issued on the occasion of International Women’s Rights Day.

Despite progress, gender-based discrimination and violations of women’s rights still persist and their participation in development remains low, the same source deplores, stressing the need for several changes to promote women’s rights.

The Council advocates three major changes stemming from its reports and opinions devoted to the promotion of gender equality and the fight against all forms of discrimination.

It is in favor of accelerating the harmonization of national legislation with the principles and provisions of the Constitution and international human rights conventions ratified by Morocco.

According to the CESE, it is also a matter of making gender equality and the fight against violence against women and girls (zero tolerance) a national priority.

The Council also recommends that a portion of the public subsidy granted to political parties, unions, and associations be made conditional on achieving a minimum quota of 30% representation of women in their governing bodies.

With regard to operational changes, the CESE deems it necessary to initiate a national plan to open public or corporate nurseries throughout the country so as to make children’s school hours more flexible and to implement positive and targeted measures to ensure parity in access to positions of responsibility in the civil service.

It also calls for greater flexibility in the use of new forms of work within companies (telecommuting, part-time work, flexible working hours …) and for a stronger legal framework to combat moral and sexual harassment of women in public places and protected areas, especially workplaces.

On the social and cultural side, the CESE stresses the need for a public debate to change attitudes on issues related to child marriage, voluntary interruption of pregnancy, and inheritance procedures.

“All this cannot be achieved without removing cultural constraints that can be disabling for women, because building a modern and inclusive society requires an active fight against stereotypes, which are often degrading and humiliating and which establish a negative image of women,” concludes the Council.