Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has said that the government believes in equal opportunities for women across all sectors of society.

He said in a video message on the occasion of International Women’s Day on March 8.

In his message, Solih said the government believes in enhancing the role of women at top positions and their participation in decision making.

In this regard, he said that the government had ratified its amendments to the decentralization act which paves way for broader participation from women in governance, according to avas.mv.

The reform ensures the allocation of one-third of local council seats to women.

The president said these goals were being realized with the upcoming local council elections slated for April 10.

He said that the amendment will ensure the active participation of women in the governance of administrative divisions of the local councils.

The president stated that assisting women entrepreneurs to succeed by facilitating loans to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) run by women is an important pledge by the administration.

He added that the government also strives toward, securing adequate finances to support efforts to abolish discriminatory social norms and working towards the betterment of women.

Even if the role of women in society is celebrated, it must be acknowledged that there is still much to do in the sphere of ensuring gender equality, he added.

He assured that the government will continue to enhance its efforts towards increasing the participation of women within the civil service.