Abu Dhabi: Emirati Women’s Day celebrations announced by Her Highness Shaikha Fatima Bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the General Women’s Union (GWU), Supreme Chairwoman of the Family Development Foundation (FDF) and President of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, will kick off tomorrow (Friday).

“We greet Emirati women for their deep allegiance and genuine belonging, selflessness, generosity and constant readiness to defend the nation and national gains,” Shaikha Fatima said.

Shaikha Fatima also endorsed the logo for Emirati Women’s Day which symbolises the unique identity of Emirati women and depicts the country’s flag with an illustration of a woman on one section.

Earlier this year, August 28 was declared Emirati Women’s Day. The date marks the anniversary of the creation of the GWU in 1975, and is considered a chance to celebrate Emirati women’s achievements since the group was founded.

The establishment of the General Women’s Union on August 27, 1975, with the unlimited support of Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan and under the chairmanship of Shaikha Fatima, represented a starting point in the march of women’s progress and empowerment.

The General Women’s Union has completed a continuous series of ambitious strategies, programmes and plans to strengthen the capacities of women and activate their role in community service, as well as promoting their position locally, regionally and internationally.

The National Strategy for the Advancement of Women, launched by Shaikha Fatima in 2002, is one of the major achievements of the march of the Union, most notably of all in the progress of women empowerment. The strategy provides a roadmap for the empowerment of women in eight main areas: education, health, economy, law-making, environment, social domain, information, political participation and decision-making.

The UAE was the first country in the region to launch such a strategy, keeping pace with strategies of international action for the advancement of women. It follows on from the National Plan of Action for Women in the UAE, approved by the General Women’s Union in 1999.

The GWU has continued its mission, thanks to the unlimited support of President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan; His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai; His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, and Their Highnesses the Supreme Council Members and Rulers of the Emirates.

In the view of Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid, “The UAE went beyond the stage of women’s empowerment. We are now empowering the community through women. “We have exceeded the phase of the women’s empowerment, as we enable the community through women, and our economy to strengthen women to play a greater role in the development of our government services as they occupy the leading posts.”

Shaikh Mohammad said in his book, Flashes of Thought, “We launch development projects run by women. We develop our infrastructure, health and education services, even our military forces, depending on women in all these fields.”

The existence of women in all these fields is logical, as about 70 per cent of the graduates from universities today are women, he said.

Shaikha Fatima said that the concept of women’s empowerment in the UAE is no longer just a term or a theoretical concept, but has turned into a reality, embodied in the active participation of women in different spheres of public life, thanks to the wise leadership of Shaikh Khalifa and his vision and belief in the absolute necessity in investing in human capital as the most effective way of building the nation.

Today, women in the UAE are key partners in leading the drive towards sustainable development and occupy the highest positions in the executive, legislative and judicial sovereignty authorities, as well as having a strong presence in the Arab, regional and international women’s arenas.

The UAE’s efforts in the field of women’s empowerment is not restricted to achieving steady successes and achievements for Emirati women in all areas, but has also reached out to support of women in the region and the world in general, she said.