Rabat – US Ambassador for Global Women’s Issues, Kelley E. Currie, met with Moroccan female leaders from local organizations on January 7, to discuss US-Moroccan partnership in the field of women’s economic empowerment.
The Ambassador for Global Women’s Issues, Kelley Currie explained that partnerships with local organizations are at the heart of the Women’s Global Development and Prosperity (W-GDP) initiative. Launched in 2019, the initiative seeks to advance the economic prosperity of 50 million women in the developing world by 2025.
According to Morocco’s state media, ambassador Currie stressed the importance of the participation of local women’s organizations: “they have the local knowledge, know what needs to be done, can help to effectively intervene and identify the women who need what this program offers.”
Charity Wallace is the executive director of the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) for Global Women’s Issues and responsible for the 2X Women’s Initiative. She highlighted the partnership’s commitment to empowering women by investing in projects that are owned by women, managed by women, or provide a service that benefits women.
This opinion was shared by the manager of the Millennium Challenge Account-Morocco (MCA-Morocco), Ikrame El Houdali. Houdali said the fund will work to implement initiatives that improve women’s access to industrial zones through the financing of incubator initiatives, supporting small businesses, and financing vocational training programs.
The roundtable was organized as part of the newly launched 2X MENA Initiative. The US development office DFC announced on December 22 the launch of the 2X MENA Initiative. The initiative will mobilize $1 billion in investments for projects that advance women’s economic empowerment in the Middle East and North African region.
Through this initiative, the DFC will invest in solutions that provide economic opportunities for women that will enable them to participate more meaningfully in the economy, thrive in the labor market, and succeed as entrepreneurs.
Read also: Celebrating the Legacy of the “Empowering Women in the Atlas” Initiative
According to a 2020 study by Brookings Institute, Morocco has one of the lowest female labor force participation rates in the world. The study estimates that full and equal participation of women in the labor market could increase Morocco’s GDP by nearly one third.
