Gender Equality in Arabia Essay

Gender Equality in the Gulf

Problem Description

Historically, there has been a marked dearth of gender equality and women’s empowerment in the countries compromising the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which include Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. There are a number of reasons responsible for this situation. Firstly, these countries are all predominantly Muslim. Traditional gender roles (and stereotypes) largely exist in Islam and in countries which adhere to this faith as their national religion. Women are supposed to remain covered up in their raiment and relegated to domestic roles. The problem is that women account for approximately 50 percent of the population in the GCC countries, yet only constitute approximately 25 percent of the labor force in those countries (World Bank). Therefore, these countries are disadvantageously affected in certain aspects of economics and society because of the lack of female contributions in both of these areas.

Literature Support

Existent literature proves the fact that there historically has been a lack of female participation—as well as a lack of gender equality and women’s empowerment—in the GCC countries. Traditionally, this part of the world was characterized by “a patriarchal ethos and conservative religious social and cultural norms that underline the rights and privileges of men vis-à-vis women while limiting women’s rights” (European Parliament 17). Nonetheless, there are a host of changes which have taken place in these countries, and which will continue to take place to fortify the rights of women in the hopes of achieving gender equality in this region. Perhaps the most salient of these is the Arab Spring and all of the internal political dissent and strife that has materialized in this part of the world fairly recently (European Parliament 14). These changes simply indicate that progress has been made and will continue to be made for gender equality in this part of the world.

Solution Description

The author of this document proposes to analyze the effect of active labor market policies that prioritize women in the different regions of the GCC. The proposed research will analyze these policies in conjunction with those stemming from Non Governmental Organizations, such as the United Nations, which recently implemented a United Arab Emirates Liasion Office for the Gulf Cooperation Council dedicated to empowering women in this regard (UN Women). The efforts of these organizations will be examined in conjunction with those spawned from “active labor market policies (ALMP) that increase the probability of female first-time job-seekers to find jobs” (World Bank).…