Moving Forward with The AGDI: Senegal and The Gambia Jump on the Band Wagon

22 June 2006

Chairing the launch meeting of the Senegalese National Advisory Panel of ECA's African Gender and Development Index (AGDI), Dakar, 7 June 2006, H.E Aida Mbodj, Minister of Women, The Family and Social Development, reiterated the  pledge of her Government to give full support to the AGDI process.

Such pledge was also stressed by The Vice President of the National Assembly in Senegal who met with ECA/ ACGD team attending the launch meeting and renewed to them the commitment of the Senegalese government to achieving gender equality and women's empowerment.

Following on the heels of Namibia, Senegal has recently set up the National Advisory Panel of the AGDI and organized a launch meeting that was attended by senior officials from key ministries such as Economy and Finance, Health, Education, Justice, Agriculture, Employment and Gender. Attendants came also from the National Bureau of Statistics who is responsible for monitoring the PRSP and the MDGs processes.

All National Advisory Panels set up within the framework of the AGDI process include, in addition to representatives of major line ministries, representatives of women's organisations and independent gender experts.

Many representatives of women's organisations in Senegal welcomed the AGDI as a promising initiative that could be used to advocate for the advancement of women. It could also serve,  they said, as an entry point to lobby for increasing women's participation in decision- making processes, especially in the framework of the ongoing review of the Senegalese National Electoral Code.

After Senegal, it was the turn of The Gambia to launch its AGDI National Advisory Panel that took place on 21 st June 2006. The whole initiative was coordinated by The Women's Bureau under the leadership of the Office of the Vice President.