Committed to the cause of mothers, says Fatima

abu dhabi — On the occasion of Mother’s Day, marked in the UAE on March 21, Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the General Women’s Union, President of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, and Supreme Chairwoman of the Family Development Foundation, said that Emirati mothers have demonstrated their strength and resilience.

Some of these strong women are mothers of martyrs who sacrificed their lives to defend and protect the homeland for future generations. In a speech on the occasion, Sheikha Fatima also praised the UAE mothers’ keenness on raising their children with noble values and virtuous principles, which resulted in an educated generation able to contribute effectively to the UAE’s march of development, under the leadership of President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and following in the footsteps of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, who have always supported women empowerment.

Sheikha Fatima said that as part of her efforts to empower women, she has drawn up a national strategy for motherhood and childhood in 2017, which aims to make the UAE “a friend of women, children and young adults,” and boost ongoing efforts to encourage their participation in building society and enable them in all fields.

The strategy will also work to enhance the rights of mothers, children and adolescents as a key component of its objectives, policies, initiatives and projects, by providing support and better maternal healthcare, creating a mother-friendly environment in public spaces as well as motherand-child friendly workplaces, in addition to improving healthcare and safety for children and support opportunities for their learning and development.

“In the UAE, we are committed to supporting mothers and to providing them with quality healthcare in order to protect their lives and the lives of their children.” Sheikha Fatima noted that the quality of pre-natal and post-natal care in the country has risen to levels comparable to those in the most developed nations in the world, and so has the average life expectancy of UAE women. — Wam