Hijjah 05, 1431, Nov 11, 2010, SPA -- Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was one of 41 countries elected on Wednesday to the board of the new United Nations agency for gender equality called U.N. Women. The agency will be headed by Chile's former president Michelle Bachelet and is expected to be fully operational in January 2011. Regional representation rules required the board to have representatives from 10 African countries, 10 Asian countries, four Eastern European countries, six Latin American and Caribbean countries and five countries from Western Europe. Saudi Arabia and Mexico ran uncontested for the two slots reserved for emerging donor nations. Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sweden, Angola and Tanzania were among the countries elected on Wednesday. The last four slots will be filled by traditional donors: the United States, the United Kingdom, Norway and Spain. The 41-member board is charged with overseeing priorities and implementing overall policy.
