The second edition of the Women’s Economic Empowerment Global Summit (WEEGS 2019) unveils tomorrow (Tuesday) at the Al Jawaher Reception and Convention Centre (JRCC) in Sharjah in the presence of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council, and Ruler of Sharjah.

Themed ‘Drivers of Change’, the two-day event held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council, and Ruler of Sharjah, and Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammad Al Qasimi, wife of the Ruler of Sharjah and Chairperson of NAMA Women Advancement Establishment (NAMA), will combine global efforts to ensure women’s full inclusion in all sectors, promote equal opportunities for women locally and globally, and contribute to advancing the women’s economic agenda within the 2030 Agenda of Sustainable Development.

Organised by the NAMA Women Advancement Establishment in collaboration with UN Women, the event will also address ways to promote women’s role in economic and social development.

Concluding on December 11, WEEGS 2019 will feature 18 theme-specific sessions and 29 result-oriented workshops bringing together a host of local and global experts, women empowerment advocates and senior industry figures to address development horizons and opportunities available to women across four pillars: gender-responsive procurement, women’s participation in value chains, the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs), and women’s access to finance.

From December 10 – 11, an expected hundreds participants including prominent government officials and heads of international community organisations will take forward the important conversations on women advancement and empowerment in both economic and professional domains. The list of speakers participating in the 2019 edition of the event includes several high-profile ministers, senior officials and specialists, most notably HE Hessa bint Issa Buhamid, UAE Minister of Community Development; Sheikh Fahim Al Qasimi, head of the Department of Governmental Relations in Sharjah; and HE Reem BinKaram, Director of NAMA Women Advancement Establishment (NAMA).

Other prominent delegates include Ambassador Dr. Haifa Abu Ghazaleh, Assistant Secretary-General, Head of the Social Affairs Sector at the League of Arab States; Abdullah Al Saleh, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Economy for Foreign Trade Affairs; Dr. Nawal Al Hosani, Permanent Representative of the UAE to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA); and Ketsoway Dlamini, Senior Officer, UN Women.

Policy reviews, women’s access to capital and role of technology in the creation of a more equitable world will be amongst the main sessions under discussion at WEEGS 2019. Change-makers, influencers and entrepreneurs from the UAE will lead the workshops that are both practical and educative in nature and which will help participants develop strategies, set goals, and implement effective and sustainable solutions for women’s economic inclusion in line with the 2030 Agenda.

The opening ceremony on December 10 will present the achievements of those organisations which had pledged to implement some of the UN’s Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) at the first edition of WEEGS in 2017.