NEW multi-million dinar projects catering to women’s needs are on the way, it has been revealed.
Capital Trustees Authority director-general and acting Muharraq Municipality director-general Mohammed Al Sehli said visionary municipal facilities and services would be announced in the upcoming days.
The announcement was made during the Muharraq Municipality’s Bahraini Women’s Day and National Day celebrations at The Art Hotel and Resort, Amwaj Islands yesterday.
“Women today are an integral part not just in municipal offices – as administrators, engineers, inspectors and even in high-ranking posts, but they are also instrumental in the way we approach municipal facilities and services,” said Mr Al Sehli.
“There are new multi-million dinar creative and innovative general developmental projects on the way that are aimed at meeting people’s needs, with a special emphasis on women,” he added.
“Whether they are public parks, gardens, walkways or something else, they have been designed in consultation with all members of the community and following feedback on where we can do better besides implementing some interesting suggestions that we have enhanced, upgraded and altered to match progress.”
Meanwhile, Muharraq Municipal Council chairman Abdulaziz Al Naar said focusing on women alone on future projects is by itself an overdue recognition.
“We don’t want women-only parks because that would mean other segments of society would be deprived of the public facilities,” he said.
“But having closed facilities that are women-only within parks for fitness, recreation or sports is something that we would like to see.
“Again, having women-only days is illogical since parks, gardens or walkways have low fences or walls and some don’t have any and anybody can jump over them.
“A lot of women have asked us for some sort of privacy and I have been informed that this demand will be approached in future in a more sensible and realistic manner.”
However, Mr Al Naar added that personally he was not against sporting, social and cultural clubs, centres, halls and facilities for women-only in general.
“Just to reflect on a recent proposal by the Southern Municipal Council, to close down public parks early at night, I am okay with such a restriction in residential areas due to noise complaints, but not those in main venues where parks remain a space for people to use following a stressful day at work or school,” he said.
“More security guards, women as well as men, have to be hired to safeguard municipal facilities.”
Outstanding female municipal officials and employees alongside journalists and media personnel were honoured at the event.
mohammed@gdnmedia.bh
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