Consultative meeting of the negotiating team members with several businesswomen

Sharifa Zurmati Wardak and Fawzia Koofi, members of the negotiating team, met with a number of businesswomen to discuss issues related to women in the peace process.
At the beginning of the meeting, Sharifa Zurmati Wardak, a member of the negotiating team, briefed on the advancements of the peace process and said that to make progress in the peace process, the views of all sections of society, especially women, are needed.
Emphasizing the importance of their presence in the peace process, the businesswomen said that they want to play an active role in advocating for their rights and preserving the achievements of women during the peace negotiations.
They said that the peace process would not be successful without the presence of women, adding that the conditions during the peace process should be clear. Likewise, the businesswomen would support the negotiating team.
The businesswomen also said that they are ready to cooperate in the economic field by presenting economic plans for the negotiations and post-negotiations process.
Fawzia Koofi, a member of the negotiating team, thanked the participants and said that there was a need for an economic approach to peace. She stressed that the economic opportunities which are available for businesswomen must be preserved and therefore it is necessary for these women to cooperate in the peace process and to involve themselves in the peace process by raising their voices.
She said there was a need to establish a link between the negotiating team and the businesswomen/entrepreneurs to work together to reintegrate the Taliban and provide alternative jobs and livelihoods in the post-negotiations period.
Ms. Koofi stated that committees would be set up alongside the negotiating team to advise the negotiating team.