Online learning portal will provide capability development opportunities for women from across the Maldives to increase their participation in the political sphere

March 14, 2021: In a bid to promote women’s political empowerment, the ‘Kiyeveni’ Portal was launched today to provide capability development opportunities for women across the nation and help their participation in the political sphere. The primary objective of the learning portal is to provide skill-building opportunities for female candidates to build their capacity to effectively contest for the elections and prepare them for the roles and responsibilities in the elected position. The portal is accessible as a resource to both women and men, although it is targeted for women. 

“What better moment than now to launch this important initiative. The Maldives is going to exercise, for the first time in its history, the 33% reserved seats for women to be represented in the local councils, as decision makers in the island communities,” said Akiko Fujii, UNDP Resident Representative in the Maldives, at the opening ceremony of the unveiling of the portal.

The ‘Kiyeveni’ Learning Portal is an extension of the Women's Leadership Training conducted last year by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in the Maldives, supported by Australia and the United Kingdom, to help equip women with the skills and knowledge they needed to run for elections and take on this new role. With the disruptions to the process due to COVID-19, digitalization tools such as this online learning portal is a means for more women from all corners of the geographically spread nation to access the much-needed skill building trainings.

“Gender equality in politics will not only improve the design of public policy. Increased female participation in political parties, institutions and business will create a safer and more inclusive environment,” said British High Commissioner to the Maldives, Ms. Caron Röhsler, speaking at the launch.

The ‘Kiyeveni’ learning portal launched is a joint initiative of Local Government Authority, Ministry of Gender, Family and Social Services, Ministry of Youth, Sports and Community Empowerment and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in the Maldives, with the generous support of the Governments of Australia and United Kingdom.

“The launch of this online learning portal today is a great celebration of the potential for wider women’s political participation in Maldives, and of the transformative social impacts that can have,” said Deputy High Commissioner of Australian High Commission, Ms. Amanda Jewell.

While the primary target group of the learning portal is female candidates contesting for Local Council Elections and Women’s Development Committees, it is envisioned that online training and educational opportunities such as this would also generate interest among women seeking to pursue a career in this field or even male candidates who may be interested in undertaking related trainings. 

Minister of State for Gender, Family and Social Services, Fazna Shakir stated that the launching of the portal will open avenues for women across the country and will mark an important milestone for women in politics in the Maldives. State Minister Fazna was joined by Deputy Minister of Youth, Sports and Community Empowerment, Mohamed Nasih, who emphasized on how promising it is to see new and progressive opportunities opening for women within the regulatory and political sphere in the country.

“Overtime ‘Kiyeveni’ is expected to add-on important components targeting councilors, council staff and the general public. I am hopeful that this will be a tremendous step to build the capacity and confidence of women leaders,” said Chief Executive Officer of Local Government Authority, Ms. Fathimath Afshan Latheef.

The Sustainable Development Goals prove to us that sustainable development can only be achieved through the empowerment and engagement of all women and girls. With all the positive contributions of women during COVID-19 and beyond, and with SDG 5 in particular calling to ensure women’s full and effective participation by providing equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life, now is the time to work together to Build Forward Better while leaving no one behind, said Akiko Fujii.  

'Kiyeveni' portal can be accessed at https://kiyeveni.mv/

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Speech by Akiko Fujii, UNDP Resident Representative at the launch of Kiyveni Learning Portal

You can watch the launching ceremony at: https://bit.ly/3cywHjz