Massouda Jalal

Massouda Jalāl (Persian: مسعوده جلال) is the first woman in the history of Afghanistan who ran for the Office of the President of Afghanistan in 2002, 2004, and again in 2019. Dr. Jalāl emerged as a leading voice of Afghan women after her election as the Representative to the 2002 Loya Jirga (Grand Assembly) as she became one of the frontrunners for the position of Interim President of Afghanistan, opposite to ex-president Hamid Karzai.

Serving as the Minister of Women's Affairs (2004-2006) in the cabinet of government of Afghanistan and the head of the Commission for the Law on the Elimination of Violence against Women (EVAW), she left behind a string of legacies that includes the framework for the National Action Plan for the Women of Afghanistan (NAPWA), a ten-year plan for women to liberate Afghan women from poverty and promote their participation in public life.

Between 2001-2004, Dr. Jalāl also served as the only Afghan woman as the member of the “Peace Delegation of Afghanistan". Before joining politics, she worked as a Professor at the Kabul Medical University, and she has also worked in leadership positions in the UN World Food Programme, UNHCR, and the International Committee of the Red Cross in Afghanistan. She is fluent in Persian, Pashto, English, Dutch, and Hindi/Urdu and moderately fluent in French and German languages.