The regional workshop on Rural Women as Agents of Change and Development in the Near East and North Africa region was held in Damascus, Syria from 28 to 30 May 2005 . The workshop was inaugurated by Mr. James Carruthers, Assistant President of IFAD, and Mr. Adel Safar, Minister of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform of Syria. Messrs Carruthers and Safar both stressed the importance of gender equality and women empowerment for rural development and the steps their organizations have taken to achieve this goal.

Ms. Mona Bishay, Director of the Near East and North Africa Division, IFAD, delivered the closing statement of the workshop and summed the way forward for IFAD on the basis of views and recommendations raised in the workshop. Ms. Bishay emphasized that these recommendations will serve as key inputs in the process of formulating the new IFAD strategy for the Near East and North Africa region, and for ensuring that the strategy has a clear gender equity focus.

Approximately 90 participants from 11 countries of the region attended the workshop, representing decision making and technical levels in the ministries of agriculture, national women machineries, staff of on-going IFAD-financed projects, collaborating NGOs, UN agencies (particularly the Economic and Social Council of Western Asia, FAO regional office and Syria office, WFP regional office and Syria office, and ILO regional office) and IFAD staff. For nearly 3 days, they actively debated 3 key issues, institutionalizing gender equity, promoting equitable access to assets, empowering rural women.

Participants' views and recommendations yielded a consensus over the key assets where IFAD should support gender equity. These are access to natural resources such as land and water, rural finance, marketing services and market institutions, with education and health care continuing to be prerequisites for developing women's capabilities. Two institutions stood out prominently as the focus of on-going and future efforts for institutionalizng gender equity, rural extension services and local grassroots institutions. On the question of policies, and in relation to IFAD investments, two areas were highlighted as priority, microfinance and natural resources management.

The workshop was organized by the Programme of Action to Reach Rural Women in NENA region (Near East and North Africa Division, IFAD), under the auspices of the Ministry of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform in Syria, and in collaboration with the Fund for Integrated Rural Development in Syria (FIRDOS). The workshop was financed by IFAD.