Project profile — Work Empowerment for Women in Iraq

• Iraq (100.00%)

• Legal and judicial development:
Legal and judicial development (15130) (40.00%)
Women's rights organisations and movements, and government institutions (15170) (30.00%)
• Other Social Infrastructure And Services: Employment policy and administrative management (16020) (30.00%)

• Gender equality (principal objective)
• Environmental sustainability (cross-cutting) (not targeted)
• Participatory development and good governance (principal objective)
• Trade development (not targeted)
• Biodiversity (not targeted)
• Climate change mitigation (not targeted)
• Climate Change Adaptation (not targeted)
• Desertification (not targeted)
• Urban issues (not targeted)
• Children's issues (not targeted)
• Youth Issues (not targeted)
• Disability (not targeted)
• Indigenous Issues (not targeted)
• ICT as a tool for development (not targeted)
• Nutrition (not targeted)
• Disaster Risk Reduction(DRR) (not targeted)

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.

Results achieved as of March 2023 include: (1) reached 14,383,067 beneficiaries through the project’s efforts to increase awareness of women’s rights in the workplace; (2) trained on legal and administrative action on harassment at work - survey revealed 76% of women took legal or administrative action after experiencing harassment at work; (3) 88% of trained participants could identify at least 2 mechanisms for asserting their rights in the workplace; (4) disseminated 2,000 copies of the Generalized Manual on Gender-Sensitive Implementation of the Iraqi New Labour Law in English and Arabic to Iraqi lawyers, labour court judges and inspectors; (5) processed 10 cases with support from the Legal Aid Fund established by the project in labour courts on discrimination or sexual harassment, with 1 successfully settled; (6) provided free consultation sessions to 67 women through two dedicated hotline numbers; (7) established a training of trainers unit and a gender unit within the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, strengthening its capacity to investigate reports of harassment in the workplace; (8) supported 10 students (7 women and 3 men) to participate in a Legal Internship Program, strengthening their capacity to effectively represent women in claiming their workplace rights in court; with 2 students successfully hired following their internship; and (9) developed a mobile application where women can anonymously report cases of discrimination or harassment in the workplace with support from the private sector, civil society, and the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs.

• Proactive disclosure