Academy for Educational Development

Washington, D.C., May 4, 2009 —Twenty-one young female attorneys from Kuwait, Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates and West Bank are in court today in Jordan.  No, they are not on trial.  They are conducting one.  These women are participating in moot court-preparing legal briefs, testimony and arguments in a mock trial of famed poet Khalil Ghibran’s love, Egyptian author May Ziadeh-as a way to become better legal practitioners. 

It is part of WILpower, a new Women In Law program developed and managed by Washington-based AED with support from the U.S. Department of State’s Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI). 

“Facilitating a moot-court session is just one way that AED is providing professional, hands-on training to female Arab legal practitioners, ages 22-35,” said El Houcine Haichour, Ph.D, AED director, learning and technology/Middle East North Africa education and youth specialist, and WILpower program director.  “In addition, on-site regional trainings like this one are bolstered by WILpower’s online activities, including monthly webinars by local legal experts whom AED identifies and recruits.” 

“The great news is that trainees aren’t only using lessons learned in-person and online to train female colleagues back home,” said Amy West, AED’s WILpower project manager and the source of many innovations to the program since its inception over a year ago.  “They’re posting their newfound knowledge on Facebook, spreading the word globally.”

“WILpower was formed to support the professional and personal development of young Arab female legal practitioners through a regional network that increases technical legal expertise; keeps women engaged in critical family law, criminal law, commercial law, and international law issues; and inspires the next generation of legal practitioners to promote and advance the role of women in the law,” said Katharine Bartels, who manages women-focused programming with MEPI. 

Notable female presenters at today’s training included a representative from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights-Women’s Rights & Gender Unit, a female judge in Jordan’s Ministry of Justice, and a Jordanian attorney and entrepreneur.  Jordan plays a primary role because its Queen Rania Center for Entrepreneurship is a critical partner in the program.

The project’s first face-to-face training was held in Jordan, in January 2009.  There were 22 female participants (eight Lebanese, eight Palestinians and six Kuwaitis) who learned core skills in three areas: legal practice, leadership and entrepreneurship.  Trainees studied quality English/Arabic legal research, writing and oral argumentation skill-building activities, business/entrepreneurial skills (i.e. how to start up a law firm or legal research center) and more. 

These trainings are supported by online webinars and discussion forums on commercial, criminal, family and international law issues by legal experts and thought leaders, on the WILpower Web site (www.womeninlaw.net).  

Project managers report that following the first training, participants went home and trained 105 female colleagues in the West Bank (Ramallah and Nablus), 80 in Lebanon (Beirut and Tripoli), and 35 in Kuwait.  There has also been significant interest in the project by the legal community in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), leading to the inclusion of six female Emirati participants in today’s training, who were chosen from a slew of applicants.  Their story will be told in an upcoming feature piece by reporter Marten Youssef, in The National, a newspaper in Abu Dhabi, UAE. 

To hear firsthand how the program helped one Lebanese trainee break down barriers to her legal career, visit http://www.womeninlaw.net/voices.

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Editors: Media interviews are also available with local program coordinators, who are female attorneys. To schedule interviews, contact the individuals listed at the top of this release.  For more information on WILpower visit www.womeninlaw.net.

AED. AED is a nonprofit organization working globally to improve education, health, social and economic development-the foundation of thriving societies. Focusing on the underserved, AED's worldwide staff of 2000 implements more than 250 programs serving people in all 50 U.S. states and more than 150 countries.  For details visit www.aed.org.

U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, Office of the Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI).  The WILpower project is funded by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, Office of the Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI). MEPI supports efforts to expand political participation, strengthen civil society and the rule of law, empower women and youth, create educational opportunities, and foster economic reform throughout the Middle East and North Africa. In support of these goals, MEPI works with non-governmental organizations, the private sector, and academic institutions, as well as governments. More information about MEPI can be found at: www.mepi.state.gov. The opinions, findings, and conclusions stated herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the United States Department of State.