Africa: Gender equality in the Arab world

Civil society organisations from across the Arab region met in Kuwait, from 4 to 5 May, within the framework of the Forum for the Future 2011, and unanimously adopted a declaration calling for the governments of the region to take urgent measures to eliminate discrimination against women. Based on universal standards and international law, the declaration calls on governments to abolish all discriminatory legislation within the next two years; to adopt laws to fight discrimination, violence and trafficking of women; and to withdraw all the reservations they have entered to the Convention for the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women (CEDAW Convention).