Source: Tunis Afrique Presse
Tunis, — The Young Women's Leadership in Political and Social Development (YWLD) Programme was launched, on Thursday, at a news conference held in Tunis.

This programme runs up to November 2016 in six Arab countries, namely Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon, Iraq, Tunisia and Yemen, in collaboration with six national civil society organisations.

The programme is developed by the Academy for International Development-Middle east (AIDME), in partnership with the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency.

It seeks to increase women's participation in public life in the Middle East and North Africa.

YWLD is geared towards 720 participants (120 civil society activists from each country); it is expected to benefit 3,600 young women indirectly.

Workshops, field studies, meetings and visits are on the agenda. A women's policy centre tasked with promoting women's leadership is also in the pipeline.

AIDME Chairman Ahmed Abdel El-Hamid Abdel El-Wahed said the programme aims to invest in the skills, expertise and infrastructure of partner organisations.

Women's empowerment programmes will cover several fields, National Coordinator of the programme in Tunisia Ahmed Allouche highlighted.

This will be made possible thanks to networking between the programme's local partners, he indicated.

• Tunisia