In partnership with the wilaya of the Oued Eddahab-Lagouira region, the Council of the Moroccan Community Abroad (CCME) and the International Institute for Security and Development are organising the first edition of the "Africa Women's Forum". This meeting, the first of its kind, recently took place in Dakhla and brought together women leaders from 37 African states. The membership of numerous women, major national and international actors in this first edition of Dakhla, demonstrated the desire of African women to accompany the development of their continent. This "unprecedented" event brought together numerous African women leaders. It constituted the opportunity to develop themes around female leadership and its contribution to the development of the African continent, according to a press release from the CCME. The debates of the "Africa Women's Forum", which was intended to be a friendly meeting, were focused on the means to forge African female leadership and to overcome the multiple obstacles through panels dealing, among other things, with "Women and political leadership", "Women and economic leadership" and "Women, security and rights". They were led by eminent personalities from the four corners of Africa, including ministers, former ministers, deputies, senators and presidents of associative federations. Among others, Kane Maïmouna, special advisor to the President of the Republic of Niger, Marie-Laurence Sranon Sossou, minister in charge of the Family in the People's Republic of Benin and Ouafa Hajji, president of the Socialist International of Women. Note that the opening session of the work of this meeting was chaired by the wali of the Oued Eddahab region, surrounded by elected officials and regional personalities. During his speech, the wali highlighted this initiative which, he said, expresses the awareness of African women of the need to work, together, for the development of the continent. For his part, the president of the regional council welcomed the guests of Dakhla and wished full success for their meeting which enjoys African and international media coverage.

Call to lift the blockade imposed on the sequestered The participants in the first edition of the Africa Women's Forum, which ended on Saturday in Dakhla, called for the lifting of the blockade imposed on the sequestered in the Tindouf camps, particularly women and children. The speakers during the symposium on the theme "Women, security and peace", organised as part of this forum, called on the UN and international organisations to put an end to the drama of Moroccan female citizens sequestered in the Lahmada camps, on Algerian territory, which constitutes an illustration of the situation of African women victims of wars and insecurity prevailing in the continent. The participants expressed their solidarity with the women sequestered in the Tindouf camps where they suffer abuse of all kinds, including rape and separation from their children, noting the media blackout maintained by the Polisario with the aim of concealing this dramatic situation.