The Royal Academy of Morocco has launched the "Women and Society" chair, which will be supervised by researcher Asmaa Al-Marabait. This initiative aims to open up a new field of knowledge to study the representation of women in culture and thought, and to analyze the changes that have occurred in the social roles historically assigned to them.
Al-Marabait, a member of the Academy and supervisor of the chair, stated that this step is in line with Morocco's orientations on women's rights at a crucial historical moment. She also recalled the history of the Moroccan women's struggle for rights that have now become a given, after being considered impossible two decades ago.
Al-Marabait emphasized that legal reform is not enough to change patriarchal mentalities, making a deep reform of the educational system necessary. She also called for moving beyond the debate on whether Moroccan society is ready to engage in a discussion of modernity, as it has already entered modernity and beyond.
The researcher criticized the talk of a contradiction between Islamic moral reference and the universal human rights system, explaining that the chair will work to dispel this confusion by opening an informed scientific debate to serve Moroccan society, men and women alike.
In a related development, Moroccan Fatima Othman was elected as the Vice-President for African Affairs of the Arab Business Women's Council, attached to the Arab League, in Cairo. This election, which took place during the eighth regular meeting of the Arab Business Women's Council, is a culmination of Othman's work within the Council since she joined in 2014.
The "Jusour" association welcomed the appointment of Fatima Al-Zahraa Al-Mansouri as Head of Government, calling for this step to be used as an entry point to consolidate equality and parity within institutions and public policies. The association considered Al-Mansouri's appointment as a significant milestone in the history of women's political participation in Morocco.
The appointment of Al-Mansouri as the first woman to hold the position of Head of Government in Morocco's history has been welcomed by various parties. The "Jusour" association and other stakeholders are now looking forward to seeing how this appointment will translate into concrete actions to promote women's rights and empowerment in the country.
Key points
- The Royal Academy of Morocco launches "Women and Society" chair to study women's roles in culture and society.
- Moroccan researcher Asmaa Al-Marabait to supervise the "Women and Society" chair.
- Fatima Othman elected as Vice-President for African Affairs of the Arab Business Women's Council.
