Supervisor Elham AbolFateh
Editor in Chief Mohamed Wadie

Sisi Meets Egyptian Women, Celebrates Their Own Day


Sun 22 Mar 2020 | 03:20 PM
Ahmad El-Assasy

Egypt`s President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi will meet with a number of Egyptian women from various fields at Heliopolis Palace to celebrate the Egyptian Women's Day, according to Presidency Spokesman Bassam Rady.

The meeting will be attended by Speaker of the House of Representatives Dr. Ali Abdel-Al, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli, Ministers of Planning and Economic Development, Finance, Health and Population, Social Solidarity, Media and President of the National Council for Women.

It is worth mentioning that Egypt celebrates every year on 16th  March, its own women’s day, aiming to focus on women`s historic struggle for their rights and also to recognize their current achievements and obstacles.

The 16th of March is a special day in the history of Egyptian women’s struggle towards their rights, the roots of the day dates back to 1919 when women participated for the first time in political demonstrations during the 1919 revolution.

During these demonstrations, the wives of Egyptian politicians and students from the Sunni Secondary School for Girls participated in these demonstrations, carrying both the crescent with the cross, confirming national unity.

These demonstrations were the beginning of a series of women-led demonstrations. The revolution led to the creation of female martyrs, the first of which was Shafiqa Mohamed Al-Ashmawi.

Four years after the great representation of women in the 1919 revolution, Hoda Shaarawy founded the Egyptian Women’s Federation on the same date on March 16, 1923, which was the first women’s union in Egypt, and the only association that represented Egypt in the first international women’s conference.

On 16 March 1956, Egyptian women obtained the right to vote and to be elected, which was one of the demands that Egyptian women fought for. It was officially fulfilled in the 1956 constitution.

Over the years, Egyptian women participated strongly in all fields, and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi declared 2017 as the year of the Egyptian woman.

Currently, Egyptian women constitute 25% of the government, with women representing 15% in parliament. The latest constitutional amendments also stipulate a quota for 25% women and 20% youth, starting in the upcoming parliamentary elections.