Press briefing of Cabinet Decision taken on 2022-09-05

Obtaining approval to formulate a Bill for Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment

- The Ministry of Women, Child Affairs and Social Empowerment has made several initiatives for empowering women by minimizing the gender imbalances and those programmes are planned to be implemented under the “Liya Sarani” a National Integrated Programme for Women. Not functioning the National Women's Committee which is for the formulation and regulation of women's policies and the Sri Lanka Women's Bureau involving women's empowerment and development, legally at national level has been identified as one of the major weaknesses in the exiting mechanism for women's empowerment. Accordingly, the Cabinet concurred with the proposal made by the Hon. President to request the Women Parliamentarians' Caucus in Parliament to prepare a preliminary draft to be used as a basis for the preparation of the “Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment Bill” incorporating the relevant provisions, with a view to ensuring the gender equality, rights and protection of Sri Lankan women.