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The UAE Cabinet has approved the structure for the UAE Gender Balance Council, under the chairpersonship of Shaikha Manal Bint Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
The council was set up in 2015 to enhance the role of Emirati women in all avenues of work, and contribute to supporting the UAE’s position on a local and international level.

The board’s members include Mona Ganem Al Marri, Director-General of the Government of Dubai Media Office and Deputy Chairperson of the council, Noora Khalifa Al Suwaidi, Secretary-General of the General Women’s Union, Abdullah Nasser Lootah, Director-General of the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Authority, Abdullah Bin Ahmad Al Saleh, Undersecretary at the Ministry of Economy for Foreign Trade and Industrial Affairs, Younis Haji Al Khouri, Undersecretary at the Ministry of Finance, Sana Mohammad Suhail, Undersecretary at the Ministries of Community Development and Happiness.
Board members also include Dr Abdul Rahman Al Awar, Director-General of the Federal Authority for Government Human Resources, Reem Abdullah Al Falasi, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, Huda Al Shamsi, Assistant Director-General for Strategy and Innovation at the UAE Cabinet’s office, Dr Omar Abdul Rahman Al Nuaimi, Assistant Undersecretary at the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation for Communication and International Relations, Dr Abdullah Hamdan Al Naqbi, Director of the Department of Legal Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.

The council succeeded in launching the UAE’s gender balance index that culminated with His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, honouring winners in the index’s three categories: Best Personality for Supporting Gender Balance, Best Federal Entity for Supporting Gender Balance, and the Best Initiative for Supporting Gender Balance.

The council had also launched the Gender Balance Guide, in cooperation with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The gender is the first of its kind in the world to support gender balance in the workplace and used as a reference for the country’s public and private organisations to reduce the gap between the two genders.

The council participated in the UAE Annual Government meetings, proposing three initiatives that were adopted by the country: A social databank, legislations for balance and a network for members of boards of directors.

The UAE Cabinet had recently approved a law for gender equality in pay and wages, reaffirming that opportunities are available for women to prove themselves as men’s partners in consolidating the pillars of comprehensive development.