Euphrasie Kouassi Yao
Special advisor to the president in charge of gender
Incumbent
Assumed office
March 2017
PresidentAlassane Ouattara
Prime MinisterAmadou Gon Coulibaly
Minister for the Promotion of Women, Family and Child Protection
In office
January 2016 – January 2017
PresidentAlassane Ouattara
Prime MinisterDaniel Kablan Duncan
Personal details
Born (1964-04-18) 18 April 1964 (age 59)
NationalityIvory Coast

Euphrasie Kouassi Yao (also Yao Kouassi, born 18 April 1964)[1] is an Ivorian politician, who is the current special advisor to president Alassane Ouattara in charge of gender. She has also served as the Minister for the Promotion of Women, Family and Child Protection, and as a UNESCO chair on their committee on Water, Women and Decision-making.

Personal life

Kouassi Yao has a master's degree in Gender and Development from the Université de l'Atlantique d'Abidjan in Cote D'Ivoire.[1] Her brother Jean Claude Kouassi has also been a minister in the Ivorian government.[2]

Career

In January 2016, Kouassi Yao was appointed the minister for the Promotion de la Femme, de la Famille et de la Protection de l’Enfant (Promotion of Women, Family and Child Protection) by then Prime Minister Daniel Kablan Duncan.[3] Whilst in the role, she encouraged women to register to vote in the 2016 Ivorian parliamentary election.[4] She was removed from the role in January 2017.[3] In March 2017, she became a special advisor to president Alassane Ouattara, in charge of gender.[3][5][6] She has focused on promoting peace after the Second Ivorian Civil War, in particular commemorating women who provided food for their families during the conflict.[7] She promotes the organisation Amour, Solidarité et Audace (Love, Solidarity and Boldness) which has brought together 15,000 Ivorian women of different ethnic backgrounds and religions.[7] In 2018, she spoke on French television channel TV5Monde about women's development in Africa.[8] She has supported the government in its attempts to prosecute those who participate in female genital mutilation.[9]

In the Ivory Coast, Kouassi Yao has also worked as the National Director of Equality and Promotion of Gender, Technical Advisor to the Minister of Women, Member of the board of directors of the National Office of Drinking Water, National Coordinator of the Compendium of Female Skills,[1] and as co-ordinator of the Compendium of Women's Competences of Côte d'Ivoire.[6] She has also worked for UNESCO as a chair on their committee on Water, Women and Decision-making.[5][10]

For 2019 International Women's Day, Kouassi Yao was one of 20 Ivorian women honoured by the Global Platform for Enterprising Women. She was described as an "influential and inspiring woman".[11] In December 2021, she released a book Le secret d'une aventure (The secret of an adventure) .[12] The book detailed her roles in the government between 2004 and 2011.[13]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Euphrasie Kouassi Yao". Abidjan.net. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
  2. ^ "Présidence ivoirienne : l'ex ministre Euphrasie Yao pas encore informée de sa nouvelle nomination". Afrikipresse.fr (in French). 22 February 2017. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
  3. ^ a b c "Côte d'Ivoire: Après son départ du Gouvernement, Euphrasie Kouassi Yao ex ministre a été nommée à la présidence". Abidjan TV. 2017. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
  4. ^ N'Doli, Didier (July 2016). "Côte d'Ivoire : Euphrasie Yao invite les femmes aveugles à ne pas mendier". Radiodiffusion Television Ivoirienne (in French). Retrieved 24 March 2019.
  5. ^ a b "Côte d'Ivoire : Euphrasie Yao explique l'importance de la formation en ingénierie du genre". Afrique de l'Ouest (in French). 5 February 2019. Retrieved 24 March 2019 – via Africa Business Agency.
  6. ^ a b "Compendium des compétences féminines :Euphrasie Yao Kouassi, invite les femmes de Bouaké à se faire identifier# compendiumdescompétencesfeminines". Le Point Sur (in French). 29 October 2018. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
  7. ^ a b Hala, Alakagni (14 November 2018). "Euphrasie Yao (Conseillère du Président de la République chargée du genre): Nous devons concevoir des programmes qui contribuent à la paix". Fraternité Matin (in French). Retrieved 24 March 2019.
  8. ^ "LES TÊTES D'AFFICHES DE DENISE EPOTÉ" (in French). Radio France Internationale. 27 May 2018. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
  9. ^ "2016 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices". Government of the Ivory Coast. 3 March 2017. Archived from the original on 7 March 2017. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
  10. ^ Water, people and cooperation: 50 years of water programmes for sustainable development at UNESCO. UNESCO. December 2015. p. 192. ISBN 9789231001284. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
  11. ^ "Journée Internationale de la Femme 2019 : Euphrasie Yao et des leaders ivoiriennes bientôt honorées en Tunisie". Linfodrome.com (in French). 23 November 2018. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
  12. ^ "Côte d'Ivoire.Littérature : Euphrasie Yao partage ses leçons et expériences de vie dans un fascinant ouvrage" (in French). Abidjan.net. 1 January 2022. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  13. ^ "Euphrasie Yao décèle le grand secret de son aventure de vie sur Amazon" (in French). Abidjan.net. 21 February 2022. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
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