Rabat — Legislative institutions of Morocco and the European Union (EU) are called upon to be a model for promoting gender equality, Speaker of the House of Representatives Rachid Talbi Alami said on Friday in Rabat.

In his opening address to the Forum of Women Parliamentarians, held as part of the closing seminar of the Morocco-European Union institutional twinning project, Talbi Alami stated that parliamentary institutions must honor women's representation, through providing greater opportunities to women who have always demonstrated proven efficiency and made significant efforts in both representative and executive functions.

This meeting, attended by women parliamentarians from various EU national legislative institutions, is focused on examining ways of strengthening cooperation, promoting the sharing of experience, and the mutual recognition of national practices in the field of implementing equality in legislative institutions and decision-making centers with a view to enshrining equality in public life in general, he added.

For her part, President of the French National Assembly Yaël Braun-Piet emphasized that France has come a long way before achieving true gender equality, and expressed her institution's willingness to share best practices in reinforcing the presence of women in decision-making centers.

Stressing the importance of women in positions of responsibility, particularly in representative positions, Braun-Piet noted that women's participation would enable the full range of issues facing modern societies to be taken into account.

In turn, Chairwoman of the Advisory Committee for Social Emancipation of the Belgian House of Representatives Anne Pirson described the event as a forum for exchange, learning and collective action to reflect on the place and role of women in parliaments the world over.

The forum features two discussion forums focusing on political participation and feminist diplomacy.