Papeete – 19 to 20 April 2022 – The Parliamentary Assembly of la Francophonie (APF) held its meeting of the Network of Women Parliamentarians in Papeete, French Polynesia. This high-level meeting has the objective to unite the parliamentarians around projects and actions to protect women and girls. This year, the PAF Network of Women Parliamentarians focused on the fight against violence against women in parliaments, the economic empowerment of women, the choice of education courses for girls, and the role of women in the pandemic. Hon. Joana Lima (Portugal), Head of the Portuguese Delegation to PAM, contributed virtually to the debate.
In her communication, Hon. Lima announced that PAM also founded its own Women Parliamentary Forum (WPF), inspired by the 20 years of work achieved by the Network of Women Parliamentarians of the APF. The inaugural session of the PAM WPF will be held in July 2022 in Lisbon to which Hon. Lima invited Ms. Maryse Gaudreau, President of the PAF Network of Women Parliamentarians. Hon Joana Lima stated that the PAM WPF “will address various themes such as domestic violence, gender equality in the labor market, the role of young people in achieving gender equality, menstrual poverty, the impact of the Covid-19, as well as the burning issue of refugee women and children fleeing Russian aggression against Ukraine, and the crimes committed by the Russian military against civilians. ″
PAM will continue to work for a fairer society in which men and women share the same rights. She added that within the Assembly itself “PAM delegations are required to include both genders within their ranks hoping that gradually a better gender balance will be achieved to reach parity”.//