Introduction
Gender equality is realizing and enabling the knowledge that women have an equal right to education, voting, and holding political seats, labor, and many other areas. The United Arab Emirates is among the leading nations in gender equality in the Middle East region. The accomplishment comes from the fundamental belief that males and females are equal societal partners. Through various initiatives in both private and public sectors, women continue to play an increasingly more substantial role in government, business as well as STEM fields. To further demonstrate the country’s progress in females’ inclusion, security, and justice, it is placed at the 24th position worldwide and the highest amongst Arab nations. For many years, the UAE has served as an excellent example for others, such as Saudi Arabia. This paper aims to explore women’s rights in the UAE while highlighting the difference between the country and other Arab nations, as well as how it has achieved equality.
Discussion
Inequality in Other Arab Nations
Inequality in Education
Females in the Middle East region have the highest rates of illiteracy in comparison to the rest of the world. The power of patriarchy in the area trivializes women and denies them fundamental human rights (Sarhan, 2021). Compared to the global average, their lack of education is an important issue (Sarhan, 2021). Whereas education for women in some Arab nations has undergone significant reforms, it is still insufficient (Sarhan, 2021). Additionally, although females have proven to outdo males, they are probably to be denied education as a result of poverty (Alsawalqa, 2021). This is something that plays a critical role in the matter in some families (Alsawalqa, 2021). While a country such as the United Arab Emirates is developed and has adequate resources for all, the situation is different in some places where a choice is made between boys and girls (Alsawalqa, 2021). For instance, it has been witnessed that in the event the parents do not have sufficient funds, they prioritize the male child. The female children are allowed to grow to the teenage stage and taught household duties.
Inequality in the Corporate World
13 of the 15 nations with the lowest female participation rates in their workforce are in the Middle East. There are three main reasons that contribute to this situation (Biju et al., 2021). They include the patriarchal structure of the countries, weak private and dominant public sector employment, and inhospitable surroundings for females (Biju et al., 2021). The socioeconomic settings discourage women from working in spite of encouraging them to earn an education, particularly in oil-rich nations. Oil, as well as oil-related revenues, enable patriarchal family structure due to the states being their citizens’ patriarchs, employing and offering them a ready income (Biju et al., 2021). This means that the latter do not have to search for ways to generate revenue outside of state patronage and may reinforce the available gender roles where females remain at home.
Furthermore, patriarchal state institution systems usually mean a weak and reliant private sector that does not desire or cannot afford to assume the cost of females’ reproductive roles. This hinders their logistical and practical participation in the workforce (Biju et al., 2021). The inhospitable business surroundings in the sector discourage females from working (Biju et al., 2021). The majority of the Arab countries do not have a lawful quota for the percentage of women they have to include on corporate boards. Such matters make these areas unsafe for the modern woman who is encouraged to explore various fields professionally (Dickson & Tennant, 2021). After providing them with an equal chance of getting an education, it is important to create opportunities and avenues for women to apply their skills.
Inequality in Politics
From suffragettes to contemporary feminists, men and women have fought hard for the right of females to vote or hold official positions, and the progress can be seen. As of six years ago, women in all countries possess this right since Saudi Arabia was the only one left (Khadhar, 2022). Nowadays, numerous nations are led by women, and some, for example, Finland, have female-dominated cabinets. These accomplishments have been made possible majorly due to gender equality measures (Khadhar, 2022). In the Arab nations, where the progress is slow, the adoption of quotas by twelve countries increased the percentage of females in parliaments from ten to eighteen percent between 2012 to 2018 (Khadhar, 2022). However, experts still claim that this is slow as well as uneven.
Females are underrepresented in the political scene, parliaments, and public life. On the one hand, they account for less than twenty-three percent of members of parliament, with an average of eighteen percent in the Arab area. On the other hand, males comprise more than seventy-seven percent, which creates an above fifty percent gender divide. Attitudes toward female candidates can be associated with deeply ingrained stereotypes. The opponents will usually utilize the latter to criticize women’s abilities.
When talking about the participation of females in politics, it is easy to envision the unoccupied seats around the deciding table and more difficult to picture the various hindrances and challenges females encounter to earn them. There is an increasing recognition that women are marginalized from politics. In the last few years, this has been seen to occur in the elections. Women are coming forward for different political positions, yet the number of people supporting them is still low. Although it is widely accepted that peace, prosperity, and development cannot be achieved in societies without half of the world’s populace, females continue to be ignored. The discrimination still exists as they encounter socioeconomic, structural, cultural, and institutional barriers. Dealing with the obstacles needs effort on the part of all elements in the society, whether it is civil society, government, academia, media, private sector, males, and the youth.
Equality in the United Arab Emirates
Equality in Education
Whereas the literacy rate of both males and females is almost ninety-five percent in the United Arab Emirates, more women complete the basic levels of education and join colleges and universities for further studies. According to statistics, seventy-seven percent of these women enroll in higher education and account for seventy percent of students in the country (Alzaabi et al., 2021). Fifty-six percent of the public university graduates in technology, science, mathematics, and engineering are females, making the literacy rate to be high (Alzaabi et al., 2021). Eight years ago, the nation started the first military college in the region for women (Alzaabi et al., 2021). The institution offers world-class training, leadership development, and physical fitness sessions (Alzaabi et al., 2021). The nation has four female fighter pilots and has trained more than thirty as well to work with the special security forces.
Equality in the Corporate World
Women in the United Arab Emirates actively participate in the private sector in different roles. They possess equal rights to economic resources consisting of assured equal pay and access to control and ownership over land as well as other property forms, fiscal services, natural resources, and inheritance (Morgan, 2021). Two years ago, the country had the highest number of females on the Forbes’ 100 most powerful businesswomen list for Arab nations (Dickson & Tennant, 2021). Additionally, women business owners comprise ten percent of the total private sector (Hamid et al., 2021). Twenty-three thousand female business owners run projects worth more than thirteen billion dollars and occupy fifteen percent of the seats in boards of chambers of commerce and industry countrywide (Hamid et al., 2021). In 2021, the United Arab Emirates Security and Commodities Authority gave a mandate that demanded organizations to have at least one female on the board of directors.
Equality in the Public Sector and Politics
In the United Arab Emirates, the participation of women is strong in the public sector. While females hold sixty-seven percent of the jobs in the country, they occupy thirty percent of leadership positions (Levchenko, 2021). Highlighting the significance of gender in policy dialogue, the country’s Gender Balance Council is a federal entity responsible for developing as well as implementing programs to improve gender balance (Levchenko, 2021). The Council targets to eliminate the gender divide across every government sector and accomplish gender balance in key positions (Levchenko, 2021). Moreover, in 2018, female representation in the Federal National Council rose to fifty percent (Levchenko, 2021). Close to thirty percent of the Cabinet of the country comprises women (Levchenko, 2021). In 2019, it became the only Arab nation to achieve gender parity in a national legislative body.
Measures Taken to Achieve Equality in the UAE
The United Arab Emirates is fully devoted to promoting the rights of women and considers their empowerment fundamental to creating a modern as well as a progressive society. In the country, females participate on an equal basis in economic, civil, and political areas of life (Meskiri et al., 2022). Since 1971, the country has placed much emphasis on the significance of empowering all its citizens. The Constitution assures equal rights for everyone providing them their privileges in legal status and access to education, employment, and health (Meskiri et al., 2022). In 2015, the nation held the first Emirati Women’s Day, a day set to celebrate females. Gender equality was part of the country’s vision 2021 agenda to safeguard women from every discrimination form in society.
The chairperson for the General Women’s Union, in collaboration with the Supreme Chairperson of the Family Development Foundation and President of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, launched the National Strategy for 2015 to 2021. This aimed to provide a scheme for the private sector, government, and civil organizations to draft plans to position the country among the most advanced nations in women’s empowerment (Mousa et al., 2021). In the Federal National Council elections conducted in 2019, two hundred women out of five hundred and fifty-five filed their nominations, thus accounting for about thirty-six percent of the total (Mousa et al., 2021). Out of twenty novel members elected to the council, seven won, something that made the nation one of the first to have females as half of the FNC members.
Additionally, females are involved in key portfolios interconnected with women’s empowerment both nationally as well as globally, for example, international cooperation, public education, social development, and youth. The United Arab Emirates Cabinet has adopted numerous policies to promote women’s participation in the judicial sector, peacekeeping operations, and international missions (Williamson, 2022). The country leads measures of female empowerment within its diplomatic service. As of 2019, almost fifty percent of workers of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation were female (Williamson, 2022). This includes high-profile ambassadors in major embassies, for example, the United Nations Mission in New York (Williamson, 2022). Moreover, women account for sixty percent of Emirates Diplomatic Academy graduates.
Whereas the federal government has shown its devotion to empowering every woman, the private sector in the country has given significance to female representation. In 2012, the government decided that women in the nation must be offered a chance on the boards of directors of federal bodies, private institutions, and companies (Williamson, 2022). In 2015, it established the United Arab Emirates Gender Balance Council to guarantee that Emirati women continue to play an important role in the nation’s development (Williamson, 2022). The council conducts several functions, which consist of reviewing policies, legislation, and initiatives to accomplish gender balance in the work environment. Females occupy sixty-six percent of public sector employees, including thirty percent in senior leadership spots and deciding roles (Williamson, 2022). Additionally, they account for seventy-five percent of posts in the health and education fields.
Conclusion
The paper has discussed the rights of women in the UAE by comparing the situation in the country and that of other Arab nations. It is important to understand that gender equality is when every individual in society, regardless of their sex, is given equal opportunities. For instance, it has been mentioned that women have the right to education, voting, and holding a political position, among others. This means that denying them, this would be promoting inequality. For a long time, the United Arab Emirates has shown that it is willing to lead other Arab nations in improving the welfare of females through empowering and offering them similar chances as men in different areas of life.
Education is one area that the government has guaranteed equality. The paper shows that even though the literacy levels for both males and females are high in the nation, the figure comprises more women. Statistics show that more women join or enroll in colleges and universities for further education. The government eight years ago launched a military college mainly for women in one of its efforts to continue supporting education for females. Compared to other Arab nations, the UAE has made great steps towards equality. Girls and women in other countries have the highest illiteracy rates worldwide. The main behind this is believed to be patriarchy which has forced girls and women into being taught matters concerning household duties only. Apart from education, other fields such as politics and labor have been affected by gender inequality as participation is restricted for girls and women. It is important that other Arab nations still practicing inequality, follow the example set by the United Arab Emirates as the inclusion of women in various sectors could lead to more development.
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