Mrs Mubarak stresses progress of Arab women

Egypt's First Lady Suzanne Mubarak has said that Arab women in all Arab states have made significant progress when it comes to developing their societies.

Interviewed by Abu Dhabi's satellite channel, Mrs Mubarak added that her several visits to Arab states and her meetings with women who play leading roles in their countries' social activities have revealed that Arab women need to be given an institution that will work for a better future for them.

Mrs Mubarak said that the first summit for Arab women which Cairo hosted last year was a great step forward, receiving a positive response from all the Arab countries.

Referring to the problems of Arab women, Mrs Mubarak said that they were the same as those faced by women worldwide. "But the main problem is women's role in making decisions - Arab women still do not enjoy the same level of decision-making as women in other parts of the world," she said, stressing that Arab women were quite capable of making decisions but that men are still preventing them from doing this. The First Lady explained that it is a cultural problem that affects Oriental societies in general.

Mrs Mubarak also discussed the conditions for Egyptian children today as compared with 20 years ago, saying they have vastly improved. "Twenty years ago, Egypt had a lot of economic problems which had a negative impact on education, health and social services offered to Egyptian children. But over the past years, Egypt has made great economic progress," she said.