The Central Bank of Egypt’s (CBE) decision to obligate banks to represent women on boards of directors, with at least two members, was highly praised by women leaders working in banks, as well as by the National Council for Women.
Governor of CBE Tarek Amer confirmed that the decision to grant women two seats on bank boards comes within the framework of implementing President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi’s directives on the necessity of empowering women and their participation in leadership positions and decision-making positions.
Amer said in a statement to the Middle East News Agency that the decision obligates banks to grant women at least two seats on all bank boards of directors, within the framework of the Egyptian state’s directions to enhance the status of women and emphasize their effective participation in decision-making.
Maya Morsi, President of the National Council for Women (NCW), praised the decision and expressed her happiness with the decision, pointing out that it comes within the permanent efforts of CBE to empower women and support them economically through advanced policies, which reflects confidence in the capabilities of women.
She stressed that this decision also comes in line with the Egyptian state’s relentless efforts to support and empower women in various fields, expressing her pride in providing opportunities for women to benefit from their skills and expertise, which will necessarily reflect positively on the performance of these institutions.
Nour El-Zeini, Head of Corporate Communication and Social Responsibility at the Suez Canal Bank, said that the dream of empowering women to assume leadership and senior executive positions has become a reality for women, thanks to the recent decision by CBE to represent women with at least two seats on bank boards.
She explained that the decision comes in line with the state’s directions and serves as a continuation of the executive steps taken by the state in the file of women’s empowerment, starting with the 2014 constitution, which included more than 20 articles that did justice to Egyptian women, including Article (No. 11), which stipulates that the state guarantees achieving equality between women and men in all civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights in accordance with the provisions of the constitution, and the subsequent activities and executive steps embodied in announcing 2017 as a year for Egyptian women for the first time, as well as the launch of the National Strategy for the Empowerment of Egyptian Women 2030.
Zeini stressed that the decision supports and calls on Egyptian banks to benefit from the capabilities and experiences of Egyptian women competencies, especially after the successes that Egyptian women have been able to achieve, through assuming many high-level executive, administrative and leadership positions, which confirms the state’s confidence in the ability of women to contribute to advancing the national economy and contributing to achieving sustainable development goals and Egypt’s Vision 2030.
For her part, Ragia El Bassiouni, Senior Vice President and Head of Marketing at Mashreq Bank – Egypt, praised the Central Bank’s decision to represent women in banks’ boards of directors.
She said that there are many efforts made by the state and CBE to advance women in the banking sector, in line with Egypt’s Vision 2030.
She confirmed that the Egyptian women cadres have witnessed remarkable support recently, and succeeded in enhancing their effective participation in various strategic sectors, as they assumed many leadership positions.
She added: “I believe that this step is the beginning of a future that is more supportive of women’s capabilities to ensure equality and equal opportunities between the sexes in one of the most influential sectors, and comes as a continuation of the plans of the CBE, which is always keen to support women by launching many initiatives and encouraging banks to offering a package of services and products that contribute to women economic empowerment.”
