Afghan Ministry of Women Affairs
Encyclopedia
Dari (Persian)
Dari or Fārsī-ye Darī in historical terms refers to the Persian court language of the Sassanids. In contemporary usage, the term refers to the dialects of modern Persian language spoken in Afghanistan, and hence known as Afghan Persian in some Western sources. It is the term officially recognized...
: وزارت امورزنان افغانستان , Pashto
Pashto language
Pashto , known as Afghani in Persian and Pathani in Punjabi , is the native language of the indigenous Pashtun people or Afghan people who are found primarily between an area south of the Amu Darya in Afghanistan and...
:د ښځو چارو وزارت) is a new ministry in the Afghan government
Council of Ministers (Afghanistan)
The Council of Ministers was the governmental organ in the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan and later the Republic of Afghanistan. The leader of the Council of Ministers choose ministers for the different ministeral posts in the country. Under the leadership of Nur Mohammad Taraki, Hafizullah...
which was established in late 2001 by Afghan Transitional Administration
Afghan Transitional Administration
The Afghan Transitional Administration was the name of a temporary administration of Afghanistan put in place by the 2002 Loya Jirga and followed the Afghan Interim Administration which was installed after the Bonn Conference.-Background:Following the US Invasion in Afghanistan, a UN sponsored...
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MOWA is the lead agency for promoting women's rights and advancement in Afghanistan. MOWA had a major shift in its strategy from welfare oriented, direct implementing approach to a policy influencing body by 2002.
The current minister of Women's Affairs is Husn Bano Ghazanfar who took the post in July 2006, after replacing Massouda Jalal
Massouda Jalal
Massouda Jalal is a politician in Afghanistan, who served as Minister of Women's Affairs from October 2004 to July 2006. She was also the only woman candidate in theAfghan presidential election, 2004...
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Functions
Provide direction, build inter-ministerial collaboration and develop the capacity of government agencies to ensure that policy formulation, planning, implementation, reporting and monitoring equitably respond to the differential needs and situations of women and men. This is being done by:- Facilitating the setting up of gender focal points and providing them with gender advocacy skills, gender mainstreaming tools and related trainings;
- Establish partnership with training institutions and training units of government ministries to incorporate curricula on gender in their training programs; and,
- Facilitate the collection, compilation, analysis and dissemination of data and information that would track changes on the lives of women and men and inform policy planning and programme development.
- Pilot and develop focused projects for addressing the needs of target groups of special concern by working in collaborative partnerships with donors, developing government mechanisms for the identification and codification of measures to eliminate discriminatory and abusive practices, and develop its own mechanism for the promotion of media/communication activities and public awareness of all aspects of gender equality and women’s rights.
- Foster partnership and collaboration with women NGOs, human rights bodies, and civil society organizations for advocacy and mutual support in making government and donors respond effectively to women’s concerns.
- Monitor government’s action and prepare periodic report on the compliance to international treaties and commitments and the implementation of national policies on women
Mission
To ensure that Afghanistan women’s legal, economic, social, political, and civic rights including their right to be free from all forms of violence and discrimination are respected, promoted and fulfilled.Structure and priorities
As the prime agency for women’s advancement, MOWA is headed by a Minister who reports directly to the President and is a member of the Cabinet. The Minister is supported by a deputy minister for technical concerns and another for administrative and financial matters.In the fiscal year March 2004-2005, MOWA has a total of 1,268 staff in Kabul and 28 other provinces. Provincial Department of Women’s Affairs have not yet been set up in the provinces of Uruzan, Paktika
Paktika Province
Paktika is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan. It is in the south-east of the country. Most of the population is Pashtun. Its capital is Sharan.-Political and military situation:...
, Daykundi and Panjshir
Panjshir Province
Panjshir is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan. Containing the Panjshir Valley, in April 2004 it was created from parts of Parwan Province, which now lies along its southwestern border. Panjshir's population is about 139,000 and covers an area of 3,610 square kilometers...
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Legal protection
With the adoption of the new Constitution defining the country’s legal system and criteria, this department develops and expands its work within the Constitutional framework in order to further gender equality in the country. It liaises with the Ministry of Justice and the Commission of Judicial Reform to ensure that women’s human rights be explicitly recognized and protected in the judicial system and the standards set under international human rights instruments and being fulfilled.Women's Affairs Ministers of Afghanistan
| Date | Name | Notes |
| 2001-2003 | Sima Samar Sima Samar Dr. Sima Samar OC is a politician in Afghanistan, who served as Minister of Women's Affairs of Afghanistan from December 2001 to 2003... |
She became the first minister of the newly created Women's Affairs Ministery of Afghanistan. |
| 2003-2004 | Habiba Sarabi Habiba Sarabi Dr. Habiba Sarabi is a hematologist, politician, and reformer of the post-Taliban reconstruction of Afghanistan. In 2005, she was appointed as governor of Bamyan Province by President Hamid Karzai, becoming the first woman to ever be a governor of any province in the country... |
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| October 2004-July 2006 | Massouda Jalal Massouda Jalal Massouda Jalal is a politician in Afghanistan, who served as Minister of Women's Affairs from October 2004 to July 2006. She was also the only woman candidate in theAfghan presidential election, 2004... |
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| July 2006- | Husn Banu Ghazanfar Husn Banu Ghazanfar Prof. Husn Banu Ghazanfar is a politician in Afghanistan, serving as the Minister of Women's Affairs. She is also a writer, a poet, and a speaker.-Early life and education:... |
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