Work Empowerment for Women in Iraq

The project aims to increase protection and access to equitable employment for women in Iraq. Through collaboration with the Iraqi Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs the Ministry of Justice’s Higher Judicial Council Iraqi law firms the Iraqi Bar Association Iraqi trade unions and local women’s community organizations the project informs women of their rights in the workplace gives them resources to ensure they are respected and thereby encourages them to join the workforce. Project activities include: (1) the training of up to 275 women following which at least 85% will be able to demonstrate knowledge of their rights in the workplace and how to assert them; (2) the establishment of a monitoring and liaison body on gender discrimination and harassment in the workplace. Up to 75 labour court judges and lawyers and up to 120 labour inspectors will be trained for this purpose; and (3) Addressing the social and cultural stigmas inhibiting women’s access to work and providing them with informed narratives that promote the role of Iraqi women in the country’s economic revitalization. As a result of this implementation Iraqi women will be able to enter and remain in the workforce without fear of discrimination or harassment allowing them to contribute toward Iraq’s economic revitalization.

The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) reduced vulnerability to harassment and discrimination in the workplace for women in Iraq; (2) improved good governance processes and networks of support for women in asserting their workplace rights in Iraq; and (3) improved social attitudes towards working women and their rights among businesses men women and families in Baghdad and Basra.