On 6th and 7th of October 2020, the United Nations Population Fund for GCC Countries (UNFPA GCC) with the Ministry of Social Development in Oman held a capacity-building workshop for the lawmakers and judges of the Supreme Judicial Council of Oman.
The workshop reviewed the main pillars and provisions of the CEDAW, and tapped into the comparative CEDAW legal analysis conducted by the UNFPA GCC last year. It also addressed the provisions related to women protection, social safety nets, and gender-based violence prevention and reporting mechanisms that have to be ensured in the country, and which provide for a further enabling environment for women.
The UNFPA GCC consultant provided good examples and case studies from several countries in the region that showcase significant progress in their law landscapes to match the provisions related to these areas in the CEDAW Convention. He also pinpointed the reservations made by Oman and several Arab countries and ways to create interlinkages between the applicable laws and the articles of this strategic international woman empowerment document.
The participants were engaged in a very interactive discussion, where they highlighted the legal transformations witnessed in Oman and the lawful mechanisms to empower women in the country.