Baku, Azerbaijan (December 20, 2011) – Nearly 60 stakeholders representing international organizations, local NGOs, embassies and government entities gathered together to launch the Women’s Participation Program funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

The Women’s Participation Program seeks to improve the status of women in Azerbaijan by raising public awareness on issues that affect women and empowering more women to participate in decision making processes. Implemented by Counterpart International, the two-year program will fund six women’s NGO coalitions in projects that aim to:

• increase public awareness of the Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and women’s issues;
• enhance the capacity of local civil society organizations to engage in policy dialogue with the Government of Azerbaijan on issues affecting women;
• increase the number and influence of women leaders in decision making processes;
• issue policy recommendations to the Government of Azerbaijan for improving implementation of CEDAW, including proposing legislative initiatives to improve the status of women.

“Promoting women’s rights is critical to achieving long-term, sustainable development,” said Michael Greene, USAID/Azerbaijan Mission Director, at the launch ceremony. “We believe that the Women’s Participation Program will play an important role in supporting the Government of Azerbaijan’s efforts to promote women’s rights and gender equality in all spheres of socio-economic and political life of the country.”

The event brought together representatives of local civil society organizations,  Parliament, the State Committee on Family, Women and Children’s Affairs, Council on State Support to NGOs, USAID as well as other international humanitarian/grant making organizations, such as OSCE, EU, UNFPA and others.

For information about the Women’s Participation Program, please contact Ulviyya Mammadova, Counterpart Gender Specialist (e-mail, or tel. +994.12.497.3788; 497.4273).

For more information, contact:
Michael J. Zamba
Communications Director
Counterpart International
Tel. (703) 236-4324
mzamba@counterpart.org

Counterpart International helps people build better lives and more durable futures, community by community. For 50 years, Counterpart has been an innovator, changing the way people look at, and solve, global development challenges. Today, we are working with more than 3,500 local organizations, and more than 150,000 leaders — including women and youth — in 24 countries around the world. Learn more atcounterpart17.wpengine.com.