On 17 July 2023, Mukabalisa Donatille, Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, officially officiated the Women Deliver Parliamentarians’ Forum which is taking place in Kigali Rwanda from 17 to 20 July 2023 during the 6th Women Deliver Conference.
In her address, the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies recalled the pivotal role of Parliamentarians in shaping a legislation that directly impacts the lives of women.
“Our leadership holds the power to bring about positive change and ensure that women’s health and rights are prioritized on the political agenda,” stated the Speaker Mukabalisa Donatille.
“Let us harness the power of collaboration, leveraging our collective leadership, to drive meaningful change and ensure that women’s health and rights are protected and promoted in every corner of the world. This would truly lead to the rejuvenation of democracy in our countries and should contribute to enabling the women to possess a more audible voice in the democratic processes of our countries,” Speaker Mukabalisa Donatille added.
In his Keynote, Mr Ian McFarlane, Director of the Division for Communication and Strategic Partnerships at the United Nations Population Fund, UNFPA shared UNFPA’s commitment to continue further strengthen the partnership with parliamentarians as champions of sexual and reproductive health and rights to accelerate progress towards the sustainable development goals.
The Women Deliver Parliamentarians’ Forum brings together about 50 Parliamentarians from across the globe working on improving access to sexual and reproductive health and rights. It is taken as a unique opportunity to inspire action and mobilise political will on the most critical issues surrounding rights, health, empowerment and well-being of women and girls, to develop strategies and sharpen programs that improve these aspects. (End)