Paris, 18 January – The Palestine Women’s Research and Document Centre (PWRDC) was inaugurated today in Ramallah by Zahira Kamal, Minister of Women’s Affairs of the Palestinian Authority, and Pierre Sané, Assistant Director-General of UNESCO for Social and Human Sciences. 

During the ceremony, held under the patronage of Prime Minister, Ahmed Qureia’ (Abu ‘Ala), Zahira Kamal recalled that the joint committee established by UNESCO and the Palestinian Authority considered the creation of the Centre as a priority project. She also expressed the “hope that the centre will become an important Palestinian institution, giving a voice to Palestinian women at the regional and international levels.” 

The first of its kind in an Arab country, outside North Africa, this institution will serve as both a documentation and resource centre and as an observatory. It will be devoted to research on gender equality and human rights with an emphasis on women’s rights legislation, on the causes and consequences of poverty among women, on violence against women and on their participation in political life. Furthermore, the Centre will develop online databases, produce publications, organize training courses and provide information to ministries, NGOs, students and researchers.  

Housed at the Palestinian Ministry of Women’s Affairs, UNESCO provided US$200,000 to create the Centre and has allocated a further US$150,000 in operating costs for 2006-2007. The establishment of PWRDC is one of the major projects of UNESCO’s Programme of Assistance for Rehabilitation and Development in the Palestinian Territories. The programme, designed in 2004 in close consultation with the Palestinian Authority, aims to promote education, culture, communication and science for the benefit of the Palestinian people. 

A Memorandum of Understanding on the establishment of the Centre was signed by Mr Sané and Ms Kamal on 13 May last year. 

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Contacts:

Jasmina Sopova, Press Relations Section

 Tel. +33 (0)1 45 68 17 17 / j.sopova@unesco.org

Reem Attieh

Tel. + 972 (0) 546 286 479 or + 972 (0) 599 585 375

r.attieh@unesco.org