Tawazon activity enhancing capacities in legislative drafting From a women’s empowerment perspective
The legislative system in Jordan is characterized by stability and alignment with the state's public policies. In recent years, Jordan has witnessed a noticeable increase in the number of enacted legislations. These legislations aim to align with Jordan’s vision for economic, political, and administrative modernization transformation. This necessitated the need for new laws to be drafted using women’s empowerment lens.
USAID Tawazon – Promoting the Voice and Leadership of Women Activity, implemented by Mercy Corps Jordan, in partnership with the Jordanian National Commission for Women (JNCW) provided technical support to the Legislation and Opinion Bureau. The support aimed to develop and implement “Legislative Drafting from a Women’s Empowerment Perspective” training program. The program has so far targeted approximately 120 participants, representing 60 legal directorates and gender units across government entities and universities.
The training, a first of its kind, encompassed the fundamentals of legal drafting, principles of gender equality, analyzing laws and regulations from a gender perspective with guidance on applying Regulatory Impact Assessment, identifying gender biases in legislation, and integrating gender-sensitive approaches into drafting new laws.
“The Legislation and Opinion Bureau considered this training as one of the most important capacity-building programs aimed at bridging the knowledge and practical gaps for participants in legislative drafting, making it more comprehensive both in content and formulation. The participants were also equipped with skills for measuring legislative impact, to assess the effectiveness of policies and legislation.” Said Dr. Jawahir Al- Ajarmeh, Assistant Counselor – Head of Social Gender and Legal Impact Assessment Department - Legislation and Opinion Bureau.
“I have acquired a practical tool from the training which enabled both me and my colleague to draft a new administrative organization regulation for the Ministry of Political and Parliamentary Affairs, which is currently under review by the Legislative and Opinion Bureau,” stated Zaina Khraisat, Head of Legal Consultations Unit, Ministry of political and parliamentary affairs.
The impact of the “Legislative Drafting from a Women’s Empowerment Perspective” program is assist legal affairs and gender units' staff in developing equitable and non-discriminatory legislation. This is crucial to prevent negative impact that such legislation might have on women's participation in public life and their access to leadership positions.
Tawazon Activity is dedicated to having legislations that consider the rights of women and girls, which will play a significant role in bringing fundamental change to enhance women's voice and agency.