There’s real role for men as allies, champions for women: Australian envoy
Australia’s Ambassador for Gender Equality to visit Qatar this year
WOMEN in Qatar are making an impact across all fields and their contributions have really helped the country prosper and have transformed it into such a desirable place to live where hundreds of thousands of people are drawn from all over the world to pursue their dreams here, Australia’s Ambassador to Qatar HE Shane Flanagan has said. He was speaking at the International Women’s Day 2024 Networking Breakfast jointly held by the Australian and Canadian Embassies in Doha recently.
During the event, Flanagan also announced that Australia’s Ambassador for Gender Equality HE Stephanie Copus Campbell is expected to visit Qatar later this year.
In an interview with Qatar Tribune on the sidelines of the event, Flanagan noted that the visit, which will be held during the second half of 2024, seeks to boost cooperation between both countries in advancing gender equality.
Australia has just recently announced its first 10-year National Gender Equality Strategy: Working for Women, which outlines the government’s vision for gender equality and focuses on five priority areas: gender-based violence, unpaid and paid care, economic equality and security, access to health services, and leadership representation.
“We very much value our dialogue with Qatar on these issues. And we’re looking forward to hosting a visit to Qatar later this year by Australia’s Ambassador for Gender Equality. In doing so, we’d be very much looking forward towards identifying areas where we can advance our cooperation on gender issues and look towards more practical ways in which we can work together to advance gender equality,” the Ambassador added.
He also said there are potentially good areas of cooperation in terms of development assistance as well as women’s sport, which is another area where there’s great potential for collaboration.
“Women’s sport in Australia is incredibly popular and has been growing strongly. I think it’s another good area where we can strengthen in cooperation,” added Flanagan.
In Qatar, Australian women have been making strides in various sectors, with many Australian female business leaders running their own businesses in the country. Some of the major Australian engineering consultancy firms here are also headed by women.
“That is also true in many large Qatari companies as well run by Qatari female leaders too. We have a lot in common, there’s a lot of value in exchange in perspectives and working together,” the Ambassador noted.
Flanagan went on to stress Qatar’s positive role beyond its own borders as a “very generous provider of development and humanitarian assistance including through the Qatar Foundation, the Qatar Fund for International Development, as well as initiatives such as Education Above All.”
He added, “Much of Qatar’s assistance is provided to locations affected by conflict. And we know that conflict has a particular severe impact on women and girls. Tragically we are seeing that in Gaza. We’re horrified by the humanitarian crisis, and we have been calling for months for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire. We strongly support the constructive mediation role Qatar is playing which is critical to saving lives”.
The Ambassador, who is also a staunch supporter of women’s rights, reiterated the role of men in supporting women’s empowerment in various fields.
“There is a real role for men as allies and champions for women to be very conscious and look at their organizations and see what steps need to be taken to make sure that the playing field is an equal and fair one. So it is important to set positive examples as well in the way in which we go about our work, and we interact with all the members of our team. I think it’s very important for the male leaders in business and in government to model good behavior in this respect, and also thoroughly examine their organizations to see what they can do to genuinely promote fairness and equality. I very much look at the Canadian Ambassador as a mentor to me as well. So I think we can play a role in terms of helping each other, men and women,” Flanagan added.
We very much value our dialogue with Qatar on these issues. And we’re looking forward to hosting a visit to Qatar later this year by Australia’s Ambassador for Gender Equality. In doing so, we’d be very much looking forward towards identifying areas where we can advance our cooperation on gender issues and look towards more practical ways in which we can work together to advance gender equality
HE Shane Flanagan