NINETY-ONE per cent of Bahraini mothers filing for divorce have been physically abused by their husbands, a survey has revealed.
According to the study, 2,165 women out of 2,391 surveyed had been abused after bearing children, while after marriage and before pregnancy it was 152 (6pc) and during the engagement period it was 74 (3pc).
Bahrain Women's Union president Mariam Al Ruwaie said the survey showed there was a strong link between violence against women and personal status.
She called upon the authorities of Bahrain to toughen up the country's laws against those who commit violence against women.
The rights activist pointed out that article 353 of Bahrain's penal code stipulated that whoever raped or had illegitimate sex with a woman would not be punished if the situation was corrected by marriage.
However, she said, such laws allowed abusers to get away with their crimes.
"There is an urgent need to find a legal platform that criminalises abuse," said Ms Al Ruwaie.
"We need to pass a protection against family violence law that has already been presented to parliament, and we need to amend the penal code for stricter punishments."
The survey was conducted by the union at 13 family council centres and law offices in Bahrain.
It revealed that violence against women was ethically and socially acceptable.
It found that in 623 (19pc) cases recorded at the centres and law offices, the wife continued to suffer without getting a divorce while her case remained in the court.
The survey revealed that in such cases 40pc dragged on for less than a year, 32pc for five to eight years, and 2pc for eight to 10 years.
Out of 247 cases filed, 110 (45pc) women were still waiting for a divorce after a year or less. While 102 women (41pc) were still waiting for a divorce after one to three years, and 10 (4pc) after eight to 10 years.
The main reason women asked to be separated from their husbands was in 27pc of cases due to his immoral behaviour.
While in 23pc of cases it was because the husband failed to take proper financial responsibility for his wife and children.
Other reasons were that the woman's husband was psychologically ill or had abandoned her.
Ms Al Ruwaie presented the results of the survey at the United Nations celebration to mark International Women's Day.
The event was held at the Cultural Hall, near the Bahrain National Museum, yesterday and was attended by government officials and representatives of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and members of the media.
Ms Al Ruwaie applauded the co-operation and co-ordination of the government and NGOs on the issue of combating domestic violence.
She said recent steps in this direction included the creation of a committee for domestic violence against women at the Health Ministry, as well as a training programme for the police and Public Prosecution on how to deal with victims of abuse.
Another positive step, she noted, was the Dar Al Aman shelter, which had been established by the Social Development Ministry and was now being run by the Bahrain Sociologists Society.
"However, all these steps are still modest and don't meet the requirements for the escalating problem of violence against women," said Ms Al Ruwaie.
Meanwhile, Ms Al Ruwaie said steps are also needed to protect housemaids from domestic violence.
She said according to 2001 figures (the latest available), there were 29,583 domestic helpers in Bahrain of which 21,291 were women. However, more up to date data on domestic helpers was needed, she said.
"In Bahrain there is a lack of societies or organisations that work for the rights of domestic workers and there are no statistics on abuse cases towards them that have gone to court," she added.
-- Gulf Daily News By REBECCA TORR
Showing posts with label statistics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label statistics. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Monday, March 9, 2009
Yemen: GPC tops political parties in terms of woman participation level
Almotamar.net - A government report revealed that the General People’s Congress GPC ruling party in Yemen tops the list of political parties and organisations in terms of the volume and level of women participation in the leading bodies of parties at a rate of 20%, next to it the Yemen Socialist Party by 14%, the Unionist Nasserite Organization by 7% then the Yemeni Congregation for Reform Islah by 4%.
The report on assessment of the level of carrying out the Woman Development Strategy and the 3rd five year plan, presented at the 4th national Conference of the Woman that concluded in Sana’a Sunday, clarified that the GPC scored the first place by 33% with regard to the woman presence in the leading positions of political parties and organisations.
The report also affirmed the increase in the proportion of women working at decision-making positions, the cabinet, undersecretaries and assistant undersecretaries, directors generals, judges and local councils from 0.57% in 2005 to 1.9% in 2006 and the increase of the proportion of women in the leading bodies of political parties from 6.8% to 9.9% for the same period.
According to Al-Mithaq newspaper in its today’s issue the woman participation is still very limited especially in the higher positions.
-- Al-Motamar.net
The report on assessment of the level of carrying out the Woman Development Strategy and the 3rd five year plan, presented at the 4th national Conference of the Woman that concluded in Sana’a Sunday, clarified that the GPC scored the first place by 33% with regard to the woman presence in the leading positions of political parties and organisations.
The report also affirmed the increase in the proportion of women working at decision-making positions, the cabinet, undersecretaries and assistant undersecretaries, directors generals, judges and local councils from 0.57% in 2005 to 1.9% in 2006 and the increase of the proportion of women in the leading bodies of political parties from 6.8% to 9.9% for the same period.
According to Al-Mithaq newspaper in its today’s issue the woman participation is still very limited especially in the higher positions.
-- Al-Motamar.net
Friday, June 27, 2008
Saudi Arabia: Varsities to absorb 86% high school grads
Eighty-six percent of secondary school graduates will get seats at Saudi universities this year. Higher Education Minister Dr. Khaled Al-Anqari has given his instructions to universities in this respect.
“This is the highest university intake in the world. In most countries a maximum of only 50 percent secondary school graduates get to universities,” the minister said.
The tremendous increase in intake comes with the opening of 12 new universities and several colleges in different parts of the Kingdom. During the last four years the number of government universities in the Kingdom rose from eight to 20.
Al-Anqari said some 5,000 students would be sent abroad for higher studies, especially for master’s and doctoral courses and fellowships, in the fourth phase of King Abdullah Scholarship Program.
More than 40,000 Saudi students are currently pursuing higher studies in universities and institutes in Europe, America, China, Japan, Singapore and South Korea. “We are studying prospects of increasing the allowances given to Saudi students abroad,” he said.
Last month Al-Anqari signed a number of contracts worth more than SR1.23 billion to establish higher education facilities and new colleges in various parts of the Kingdom. They include medical, engineering and computer science colleges.
“The new colleges will help absorb more secondary school graduates in the future,” he added.
Efforts are under way to establish campuses of King Abdulaziz University (KAU) in Rabigh, Khulais and Kamil. Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal has instructed municipalities to allocate five million square meters of land in each town for the projects.
Subsequently the three municipalities have set up committees to select suitable locations for the projects. “The selection will be completed within a week,” one official said.
Dr. Abdul Rahman Al-Yubi, undersecretary at KAU, said 11 colleges for boys and girls would be established in the three cities with Rabigh, receiving the highest number of colleges.
Six colleges for medicine, engineering, computer science and information technology (IT), business administration, applied medical sciences and sciences will be established in Rabigh.
Al-Yubi said three colleges would be established in Khulais for applied medical sciences, computer science and IT and sciences, and two in Kamil for sciences, computer science and IT.
Prince Khaled announced the opening of KAU campuses when he visited the towns recently.
-- Arab News
“This is the highest university intake in the world. In most countries a maximum of only 50 percent secondary school graduates get to universities,” the minister said.
The tremendous increase in intake comes with the opening of 12 new universities and several colleges in different parts of the Kingdom. During the last four years the number of government universities in the Kingdom rose from eight to 20.
Al-Anqari said some 5,000 students would be sent abroad for higher studies, especially for master’s and doctoral courses and fellowships, in the fourth phase of King Abdullah Scholarship Program.
More than 40,000 Saudi students are currently pursuing higher studies in universities and institutes in Europe, America, China, Japan, Singapore and South Korea. “We are studying prospects of increasing the allowances given to Saudi students abroad,” he said.
Last month Al-Anqari signed a number of contracts worth more than SR1.23 billion to establish higher education facilities and new colleges in various parts of the Kingdom. They include medical, engineering and computer science colleges.
“The new colleges will help absorb more secondary school graduates in the future,” he added.
Efforts are under way to establish campuses of King Abdulaziz University (KAU) in Rabigh, Khulais and Kamil. Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal has instructed municipalities to allocate five million square meters of land in each town for the projects.
Subsequently the three municipalities have set up committees to select suitable locations for the projects. “The selection will be completed within a week,” one official said.
Dr. Abdul Rahman Al-Yubi, undersecretary at KAU, said 11 colleges for boys and girls would be established in the three cities with Rabigh, receiving the highest number of colleges.
Six colleges for medicine, engineering, computer science and information technology (IT), business administration, applied medical sciences and sciences will be established in Rabigh.
Al-Yubi said three colleges would be established in Khulais for applied medical sciences, computer science and IT and sciences, and two in Kamil for sciences, computer science and IT.
Prince Khaled announced the opening of KAU campuses when he visited the towns recently.
-- Arab News
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Yemen: Violence kills 130 Yemeni women in '07
Approximately 130 Yemeni women have been killed in 2,694 incidences of violence and sexual assaults on females in 2007, an government report has revealed.
A further 970 women, including 345 under 18 years of age, were injured as a result of those attacks, said a Ministry of Interior report, UAE daily Gulf News reported on Wednesday.
The report, prepared by the Centre for Studies and Researches of Gender at Sana’a University, studied the incidences and causes of violence against women. The research attributed the main cause of violence against women to the tradition of early marriage, adding that Yemen was yet to criminalise the act of child marriages.
The report also cited poverty, illiteracy and age-old barbaric customs as some other reasons behind the violence.
Among total marriages held in 2006 and 2007, about 52% of Yemeni girls and about 7% of boys were under the age of 15, the report said. Around 70% of the child marriages have occurred in rural areas where about 75% of the 22 million population of Yemen reside.
The university report also revealed that the age gap between the wife and the husband was very big in those marriages. In many cases the age of the husband was about 50 years more than the wife, Gulf News reported.
A further 970 women, including 345 under 18 years of age, were injured as a result of those attacks, said a Ministry of Interior report, UAE daily Gulf News reported on Wednesday.
The report, prepared by the Centre for Studies and Researches of Gender at Sana’a University, studied the incidences and causes of violence against women. The research attributed the main cause of violence against women to the tradition of early marriage, adding that Yemen was yet to criminalise the act of child marriages.
The report also cited poverty, illiteracy and age-old barbaric customs as some other reasons behind the violence.
Among total marriages held in 2006 and 2007, about 52% of Yemeni girls and about 7% of boys were under the age of 15, the report said. Around 70% of the child marriages have occurred in rural areas where about 75% of the 22 million population of Yemen reside.
The university report also revealed that the age gap between the wife and the husband was very big in those marriages. In many cases the age of the husband was about 50 years more than the wife, Gulf News reported.
UAE: Initiative to provide data on UAE women
DUBAI — The Dubai Women Establishment (DWE) has signed a strategic co-operation agreement with the Dubai Statistics Centre (DSC) to share crucial data that will further the goals of both organisations to provide better understanding on the status of UAE women.
The agreement was signed by Mona Al Marri, Chairperson of the board of Dubai Women Establishment, and Arif Obaid Al Muhairi, CEO of the Dubai Statistics Centre, recently.
The DWE aims to source relevant updated data on women that will aid the establishment to provide an in-depth analysis of their status and their individual and collective capabilities to contribute to the national economy.
Mona Al Marri said, "The agreement is among the initial outcomes of the DWE's five-pronged strategy that aims to enhance Emirati women's contribution in the society. Such exclusive statistics and numbers will help us identify real challenges the UAE working women face in their day-to-day life and will allow us to offer most appropriate solutions while paving the way for their active participation through leadership positions in the private and public sectors.
"Apart from exchanging statistics, our cooperation with the Dubai Statistics Centre will ensure the joint implementation of statistical initiatives including women-oriented surveys. With the guidance of experts from the centre, we will launch new research initiatives exploring women's role in the society and to become the reference on UAE women."
Underlining the importance of cooperating with governmental establishments to support Dubai Strategic Plan 2015, Al Muhairi said the centre is keen to align itself with any organisation through providing data, market indicators and statistical forecasts or surveys.
Al Muhairi said: "The synergy between the two establishments emphasises our commitment to obtaining and categorising information that would be beneficial to UAE women, especially in research. We are confident that the agreement will help the DWE devise relevant strategies and implement the most appropriate programmes for the advantage of UAE women."
As part of its holistic objective to ensure Emirati women play a key role not only in the local arena but throughout the Gulf region, the DWE has initiated several women-centric programmes with the active participation of private and public sector organisations. It recently signed a memorandum of understanding with the Mohammed bin Rashid Programme for Leadership Development to formulate programmes for training and developing a significant number of elite Emirati leaders.
-- Khaleej Times
The agreement was signed by Mona Al Marri, Chairperson of the board of Dubai Women Establishment, and Arif Obaid Al Muhairi, CEO of the Dubai Statistics Centre, recently.
The DWE aims to source relevant updated data on women that will aid the establishment to provide an in-depth analysis of their status and their individual and collective capabilities to contribute to the national economy.
Mona Al Marri said, "The agreement is among the initial outcomes of the DWE's five-pronged strategy that aims to enhance Emirati women's contribution in the society. Such exclusive statistics and numbers will help us identify real challenges the UAE working women face in their day-to-day life and will allow us to offer most appropriate solutions while paving the way for their active participation through leadership positions in the private and public sectors.
"Apart from exchanging statistics, our cooperation with the Dubai Statistics Centre will ensure the joint implementation of statistical initiatives including women-oriented surveys. With the guidance of experts from the centre, we will launch new research initiatives exploring women's role in the society and to become the reference on UAE women."
Underlining the importance of cooperating with governmental establishments to support Dubai Strategic Plan 2015, Al Muhairi said the centre is keen to align itself with any organisation through providing data, market indicators and statistical forecasts or surveys.
Al Muhairi said: "The synergy between the two establishments emphasises our commitment to obtaining and categorising information that would be beneficial to UAE women, especially in research. We are confident that the agreement will help the DWE devise relevant strategies and implement the most appropriate programmes for the advantage of UAE women."
As part of its holistic objective to ensure Emirati women play a key role not only in the local arena but throughout the Gulf region, the DWE has initiated several women-centric programmes with the active participation of private and public sector organisations. It recently signed a memorandum of understanding with the Mohammed bin Rashid Programme for Leadership Development to formulate programmes for training and developing a significant number of elite Emirati leaders.
-- Khaleej Times
Qatar: Participation of women in public life ‘very low’
THE department of statistics has released its second report enumerating the targets achieved by Qatar in various fields of development during the period 1990 – 2007, according to reports published in the local Arabic press.
The report is in the context of the eight broad objectives for growth in the new millennium as ratified by the nations of the world in a universal declaration.
On poverty the report says Qatar has had no incidence of poverty because it is one among the wealthy nations of the world. The daily expenses of any individual in Qatar are on an average $33.
In education, and especially in the field of primary education, Qatar has as much as 97.6% of children in the primary schools and reading habit among the youth in the age group of 15 to 24 years has increased to 99.1% in 2007 as against 96.5% in 1990.
In gender equation girls are numerically higher than boys in completing different levels of education leading up to graduate and post graduate studies. But participation of women in public life, especially in politics, is very low and the report calls for action to reduce the gender gap.
In reducing the mortality rate Qatar has achieved a ratio of 9:1 death in every thousand infants in 2007 as against 16:6 in 1990.
In combating diseases such as HIV/Aids, malaria and other contagious diseases Qatar has succeeded in taking effective measures in controlling these diseases. On environment protection Qatar has successfully implemented the infrastructure projects to control pollution and protect the ozone.
In developmental activities abroad, Qatar is one of the leading nations in providing aid to the developing countries.
-- Gulf Times
The report is in the context of the eight broad objectives for growth in the new millennium as ratified by the nations of the world in a universal declaration.
On poverty the report says Qatar has had no incidence of poverty because it is one among the wealthy nations of the world. The daily expenses of any individual in Qatar are on an average $33.
In education, and especially in the field of primary education, Qatar has as much as 97.6% of children in the primary schools and reading habit among the youth in the age group of 15 to 24 years has increased to 99.1% in 2007 as against 96.5% in 1990.
In gender equation girls are numerically higher than boys in completing different levels of education leading up to graduate and post graduate studies. But participation of women in public life, especially in politics, is very low and the report calls for action to reduce the gender gap.
In reducing the mortality rate Qatar has achieved a ratio of 9:1 death in every thousand infants in 2007 as against 16:6 in 1990.
In combating diseases such as HIV/Aids, malaria and other contagious diseases Qatar has succeeded in taking effective measures in controlling these diseases. On environment protection Qatar has successfully implemented the infrastructure projects to control pollution and protect the ozone.
In developmental activities abroad, Qatar is one of the leading nations in providing aid to the developing countries.
-- Gulf Times
Monday, June 9, 2008
North Africa: Unemployment to blame for North Africa protests
RABAT- Unemployment disproportionately affecting young people is to blame for violent protests over the weekend in Morocco and Tunisia that killed one person and injured dozens, observers said.
"Endemic unemployment among young people from the Maghreb (northwestern Africa) is the cause of the protests that broke out in the past few days in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia," said Aziz, an activist from the Moroccan city of Sidi Ifni who asked not to be identified by his full name.
Clashes between security forces and young unemployed protesters erupted on Saturday in the Moroccan fishing port city 100 kilometers (60 miles) southwest of Rabat.
The national unemployment rate stood at 9.7 percent in 2007, according to government statistics, but four out of 10 of these jobseekers were younger than 25.
In Tunisia, the national unemployment rate reached 14 percent in 2007, according to a Tunisian government official.
"Youth unemployment, especially among thousands of graduates in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia is the common denominator in the three countries where demonstrations periodically take place in cities," Khalid Cherkaoui, president of the Moroccan centre for human rights (CMDH), said.
Sidi Ifni saw its first such protests in 2006, young people in the area said.
The violence this weekend left 44 people injured, including 27 police officers, according to hospital sources in Sidi Ifni. CDMH estimates however that between one and five people died as a result of the clashes.
The Moroccan government denies this. "There was not one death," said spokesman Khalid Naciri.
In the southwest Tunisian city of Redeyef, one person was killed in protests on Friday and several were injured.
Here the demonstrations were ignited by allegations that the region's main employer had doctored a recruitment campaign. Protesters believed that officials from the Gafsa Phosphate Company had manipulated a selection process to their own advantage.
In Sidi Ifni, where fishing is the primary source of income, police used force to unblock the port where 89 trucks waited with loads of some 800 tonnes of fish.
The blockade had begun May 30 when the results of a recruitment campaign were unveiled and three successful candidates randomly picked. After the draw, around 120 angry youths moved towards the port and blocked operations, said socialist deputy Abdelwahab Belfkih.
Another elected official, Lahcen Achouad, said the "demands of the young people are socio-economic in nature. They are asking for an equitable distribution of the city's wealth."
-- Middle East Online
"Endemic unemployment among young people from the Maghreb (northwestern Africa) is the cause of the protests that broke out in the past few days in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia," said Aziz, an activist from the Moroccan city of Sidi Ifni who asked not to be identified by his full name.
Clashes between security forces and young unemployed protesters erupted on Saturday in the Moroccan fishing port city 100 kilometers (60 miles) southwest of Rabat.
The national unemployment rate stood at 9.7 percent in 2007, according to government statistics, but four out of 10 of these jobseekers were younger than 25.
In Tunisia, the national unemployment rate reached 14 percent in 2007, according to a Tunisian government official.
"Youth unemployment, especially among thousands of graduates in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia is the common denominator in the three countries where demonstrations periodically take place in cities," Khalid Cherkaoui, president of the Moroccan centre for human rights (CMDH), said.
Sidi Ifni saw its first such protests in 2006, young people in the area said.
The violence this weekend left 44 people injured, including 27 police officers, according to hospital sources in Sidi Ifni. CDMH estimates however that between one and five people died as a result of the clashes.
The Moroccan government denies this. "There was not one death," said spokesman Khalid Naciri.
In the southwest Tunisian city of Redeyef, one person was killed in protests on Friday and several were injured.
Here the demonstrations were ignited by allegations that the region's main employer had doctored a recruitment campaign. Protesters believed that officials from the Gafsa Phosphate Company had manipulated a selection process to their own advantage.
In Sidi Ifni, where fishing is the primary source of income, police used force to unblock the port where 89 trucks waited with loads of some 800 tonnes of fish.
The blockade had begun May 30 when the results of a recruitment campaign were unveiled and three successful candidates randomly picked. After the draw, around 120 angry youths moved towards the port and blocked operations, said socialist deputy Abdelwahab Belfkih.
Another elected official, Lahcen Achouad, said the "demands of the young people are socio-economic in nature. They are asking for an equitable distribution of the city's wealth."
-- Middle East Online
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Middle East: Youth Bulge: Challenge or Opportunity?
Brookings Institute: The youth challenge is the most critical 21st century economic development challenge facing the Middle East.
In my brief remarks today, I would like to make one central point: The youth challenge is the most critical 21st century economic development challenge facing the Middle East. In a region where almost 65% of the population is under the age of 30, long term prosperity and stability hinges on the opportunities afforded to this generation. While radicalism and terrorism remain critical security concerns, the majority of Middle Eastern youth are involved in a different fight: a fight for better education, jobs and affordable housing. It is on the back of this generation that the Middle East will build a future middle class - a middle class which can be a catalyst for more open and democratic societies. Therefore to advance U.S. interests in the Middle East, we need more than anti-radicalization strategy; we need a strategy that elevates youth-development alongside defense and diplomacy both in principle and practice.
Drawing both on our research at Brookings and a recent trip to Jordan, Syria and Lebanon where I worked with young people I would like to elaborate on this main thesis by focusing on three areas: first, to show that the Middle East is at a critical juncture and how a large youth bulge presents opportunities for growth and prosperity; second, to outline the main challenges facing youth in the region; and third, to showcase some of the implications for policy, especially U.S. policy with regards to the region.
Recognizing that the Middle East is at crossroads, we have to realize that there is a narrow window of opportunity to build a foundation for lasting prosperity. The region faces a scenario of double dividend or double jeopardy: for the first time in its modern history, the Middle East is simultaneously experiencing an economic boom and a demographic boon. The region is experiencing its best economic performance in three decades – oil and non oil producing countries alike are showing record growth. Second, the region has a large youth bulge, presenting a large pool of human capital which if used productively can usher growth and prosperity. If countries can take advantage of the confluence of these two historic gifts, they can create a virtuous cycle of higher growth, higher incomes and savings. Failure to do so will result in a double jeopardy: the economic and social exclusion of youth drains growth and creates social strife. But the time for securing this double dividend is now. The window of opportunity – where countries have fewer dependents - will close in the next ten to fifteen years.
Middle Eastern economies can seize this opportunity as many Asian economies have done. However, without urgent reform, the region risks missing this historic opportunity. Already, there are some alarming signs. Despite good economic growth, prospects for young people are not improving significantly or rapidly. This has been a central pre-occupation of the Middle East Youth Initiative – to understand why young people continue to be excluded.
I will be sharing some of the concepts and ideas that our studies and work have led to.
The majority of 15-24 and 25-30 year olds in the region are confronted with a new life phase we have termed waithood – a concept that refers to the bewildering time in which large proportions of Middle Eastern youth spend their best years waiting. It is a phase in which the difficulties youth face in each of these interrelated spheres of life result in a debilitating state of helplessness and dependency. Waithood can be best understood by examining outcomes and linkages across five different sectors: education, employment, housing, credit, and marriage.
Poorly prepared for the labor market by their educational systems, Middle Eastern youth face unemployment rates that are nearly twice the world average (20-40 percent compared to 10-20 percent). Furthermore, their queuing time for their first job is measured in years rather than months compared to their counterparts in Asia and Latin America. I’ve met many youth in the region who have waited 3-4 years for a public sector job.
With regards to housing – all the oil money flowing into the region has sent the costs of real estate soaring in urban cities. This often compromises young people’s ability to get married and lead independent lives. Furthermore, while credit allows youth in other parts of the world to smooth their future consumption, in many Middle Eastern countries, poorly functioning credit markets fail in their basic purpose.
As a result of not being able to afford a dowry, or a house, young Middle Eastern men are involuntarily delaying marriage, which in the region, is a rite to passage for adulthood, independence and legitimate sexual relationships. Today, the average age of marriage is on the rise in most Middle Eastern countries, imposing economic and social costs which have yet to be fully understood. All this compounds the dependency of youth on their parents.
So we get back to the question: why does this waithood persist even in good times? The root cause lies in the economic and social institutions and the signals they send which shapes behavior and decisions. Think of this as the invisible infrastructure – the rules of the game which organize society. In the Middle East, this invisible infrastructure is based on an education system which prepares youth for public sector employment, thereby reinforcing three problematic ideas. First, that a university education is the only prize worth pursuing. Second, the notion of a lifetime secure desk job. Third, that readiness for marriage is largely contingent upon both a university education and a stable job which only perpetuates the lure for degrees and desk jobs. But with globalization and privatization, this invisible infrastructure is no longer functioning as it should. Let me illustrate this concept with some examples and facts from the ground.
Parents in the region invest billions of dollars in private tutoring to increasingly prep their children for standardized tests, so children end up learning a narrow set of skills. Then donors and governments must spend resources re-training these very youth to given them a wider range of skills because of the limitedness and poor quality of their initial education. Public policy would be infinitely more effective if parents had the incentives to invest in broader skills, rather than governments and donors undoing the investment of parents.
Through a focus group we held in Jordan, we found that young men are willing to continue waiting for public sector jobs which may never materialize. They are not incentivized to search for a job in the private sector (informal or formal) because they feel the wait is much better than the stigma and insecurity attached to work in the private sector.
Why do youth who have lower opportunity costs not undertake more voluntary work? A Gallup poll in 2006/2007 asked Middle Eastern youth “in the last month, did you volunteer your time to an organization”. The regional average was just 11%; in countries like Jordan, only 4% of respondents answered yes. The reason is because youth and their families have no incentives to invest in volunteerism; neither public nor private sector jobs value these experiences, and universities base their decisions on nothing but national rankings on standardized testing.
But all is not lost – because here you have a region where parents are willing to do anything for their children; most youth are in school and spend years working for their future; and policy makers are increasingly more concerned about these issues.
Now I will touch upon the implications these challenges pose for policymaking with a particular focus on the U.S. perspective.
First, the youth challenges that the region is facing are driven by economic and social incentives, which in turn shape the decisions taken by millions of families and youth. Youth transitions constitute outcomes across several interconnected markets, most importantly in education, labor, credit, and marriage. Program and Policies need to exploit these inter-linkages. For example, if programs are going to provide credit to young people to start their own businesses, it is important to build-in clear criteria which are based not only on their diplomas but what they have achieved outside school to incentivize volunteerism and extracurricular activities.
Second, the chasm in U.S.-Middle East relations has emerged amidst greater convergence in ideas and aspirations. Triggered by a large youth cohort, the Middle East is undergoing change where it is aligning with fundamental drivers of globalization. The region has embraced the idea of market economy and values education. Middle Eastern youth ascribe to the fundamental pro-growth norms of behavior such as hard work and high investment in children including girls.
There is a strong foundation to build a future middle class. These are all areas where the U.S. is a leader. As the country with the world’s best record in harnessing the energy of youth, there is much the U.S. can offer the Middle East. The U.S. relationship with the region should be cast on broader terms, making youth development as a template for exercising smart power.
Key recommendations include exporting soft technology for institutional reform of education. Youth in the U.S. have a relatively smooth transition to adulthood compared to most advanced countries. Transitions to adulthood in the US are facilitated because of the close integration between the education system and the labor market. The U.S institutional set up may not fit the Middle East perfectly, but as with all exports, soft technology exports can be adapted to fit local conditions. The educational system in the U.S. has already provided the region with great institutions of higher education – such as the American Universities of Beirut and Cairo—which have produced many of the region’s leaders. The US can extend assistance on a broader scale encompassing curriculum reform for high schools, the transition from high school to university (reforms of university admission practices), and the transition from school to work. Government should create incentives for greater collaboration between Middle Eastern and U.S. non governmental organizations, research institutes and universities.
The challenge is how the U.S. can build on its strengths and can be seen as genuinely interested in economic development. At the moment, there is a lack of instruments for such an exchange. In fact, currently, the Foreign Assistance Act does not have an explicit window to target funds for youth. The language of the Foreign Assistance Act should be changed to overcome this policy flaw. Youth development should be given priority, particularly in countries experiencing “youth bulge” and high rates of youth unemployment.
And finally, the discourse on the Middle East is highly and exclusively political and lacks an economic development focus. Addressing Middle Eastern youth solely through the prism of potential extremism misses the opportunity for aligning U.S. policy with the aspirations of the majority of the moderate citizens in the Middle East. It alienates the very people we are trying to help. Currently, there is re-negotiation of the rules of the game in the region, and it is being spurred by youth, who we should be empowering and supporting.
By Navtej Dhillon, Fellow/Director of the Middle East Youth Initiative, co-presented at a panel of experts to congressional staffers from the Foreign Relations Committee on the implications and opportunities of the youth bulge and how states and outside organizations are trying to respond. Joining him were Honorable Marwan Muasher, Senior Vice President at the World Bank, and Ellen Laipson, President/CEO of the Stimson Center.
In my brief remarks today, I would like to make one central point: The youth challenge is the most critical 21st century economic development challenge facing the Middle East. In a region where almost 65% of the population is under the age of 30, long term prosperity and stability hinges on the opportunities afforded to this generation. While radicalism and terrorism remain critical security concerns, the majority of Middle Eastern youth are involved in a different fight: a fight for better education, jobs and affordable housing. It is on the back of this generation that the Middle East will build a future middle class - a middle class which can be a catalyst for more open and democratic societies. Therefore to advance U.S. interests in the Middle East, we need more than anti-radicalization strategy; we need a strategy that elevates youth-development alongside defense and diplomacy both in principle and practice.
Drawing both on our research at Brookings and a recent trip to Jordan, Syria and Lebanon where I worked with young people I would like to elaborate on this main thesis by focusing on three areas: first, to show that the Middle East is at a critical juncture and how a large youth bulge presents opportunities for growth and prosperity; second, to outline the main challenges facing youth in the region; and third, to showcase some of the implications for policy, especially U.S. policy with regards to the region.
Recognizing that the Middle East is at crossroads, we have to realize that there is a narrow window of opportunity to build a foundation for lasting prosperity. The region faces a scenario of double dividend or double jeopardy: for the first time in its modern history, the Middle East is simultaneously experiencing an economic boom and a demographic boon. The region is experiencing its best economic performance in three decades – oil and non oil producing countries alike are showing record growth. Second, the region has a large youth bulge, presenting a large pool of human capital which if used productively can usher growth and prosperity. If countries can take advantage of the confluence of these two historic gifts, they can create a virtuous cycle of higher growth, higher incomes and savings. Failure to do so will result in a double jeopardy: the economic and social exclusion of youth drains growth and creates social strife. But the time for securing this double dividend is now. The window of opportunity – where countries have fewer dependents - will close in the next ten to fifteen years.
Middle Eastern economies can seize this opportunity as many Asian economies have done. However, without urgent reform, the region risks missing this historic opportunity. Already, there are some alarming signs. Despite good economic growth, prospects for young people are not improving significantly or rapidly. This has been a central pre-occupation of the Middle East Youth Initiative – to understand why young people continue to be excluded.
I will be sharing some of the concepts and ideas that our studies and work have led to.
The majority of 15-24 and 25-30 year olds in the region are confronted with a new life phase we have termed waithood – a concept that refers to the bewildering time in which large proportions of Middle Eastern youth spend their best years waiting. It is a phase in which the difficulties youth face in each of these interrelated spheres of life result in a debilitating state of helplessness and dependency. Waithood can be best understood by examining outcomes and linkages across five different sectors: education, employment, housing, credit, and marriage.
Poorly prepared for the labor market by their educational systems, Middle Eastern youth face unemployment rates that are nearly twice the world average (20-40 percent compared to 10-20 percent). Furthermore, their queuing time for their first job is measured in years rather than months compared to their counterparts in Asia and Latin America. I’ve met many youth in the region who have waited 3-4 years for a public sector job.
With regards to housing – all the oil money flowing into the region has sent the costs of real estate soaring in urban cities. This often compromises young people’s ability to get married and lead independent lives. Furthermore, while credit allows youth in other parts of the world to smooth their future consumption, in many Middle Eastern countries, poorly functioning credit markets fail in their basic purpose.
As a result of not being able to afford a dowry, or a house, young Middle Eastern men are involuntarily delaying marriage, which in the region, is a rite to passage for adulthood, independence and legitimate sexual relationships. Today, the average age of marriage is on the rise in most Middle Eastern countries, imposing economic and social costs which have yet to be fully understood. All this compounds the dependency of youth on their parents.
So we get back to the question: why does this waithood persist even in good times? The root cause lies in the economic and social institutions and the signals they send which shapes behavior and decisions. Think of this as the invisible infrastructure – the rules of the game which organize society. In the Middle East, this invisible infrastructure is based on an education system which prepares youth for public sector employment, thereby reinforcing three problematic ideas. First, that a university education is the only prize worth pursuing. Second, the notion of a lifetime secure desk job. Third, that readiness for marriage is largely contingent upon both a university education and a stable job which only perpetuates the lure for degrees and desk jobs. But with globalization and privatization, this invisible infrastructure is no longer functioning as it should. Let me illustrate this concept with some examples and facts from the ground.
Parents in the region invest billions of dollars in private tutoring to increasingly prep their children for standardized tests, so children end up learning a narrow set of skills. Then donors and governments must spend resources re-training these very youth to given them a wider range of skills because of the limitedness and poor quality of their initial education. Public policy would be infinitely more effective if parents had the incentives to invest in broader skills, rather than governments and donors undoing the investment of parents.
Through a focus group we held in Jordan, we found that young men are willing to continue waiting for public sector jobs which may never materialize. They are not incentivized to search for a job in the private sector (informal or formal) because they feel the wait is much better than the stigma and insecurity attached to work in the private sector.
Why do youth who have lower opportunity costs not undertake more voluntary work? A Gallup poll in 2006/2007 asked Middle Eastern youth “in the last month, did you volunteer your time to an organization”. The regional average was just 11%; in countries like Jordan, only 4% of respondents answered yes. The reason is because youth and their families have no incentives to invest in volunteerism; neither public nor private sector jobs value these experiences, and universities base their decisions on nothing but national rankings on standardized testing.
But all is not lost – because here you have a region where parents are willing to do anything for their children; most youth are in school and spend years working for their future; and policy makers are increasingly more concerned about these issues.
Now I will touch upon the implications these challenges pose for policymaking with a particular focus on the U.S. perspective.
First, the youth challenges that the region is facing are driven by economic and social incentives, which in turn shape the decisions taken by millions of families and youth. Youth transitions constitute outcomes across several interconnected markets, most importantly in education, labor, credit, and marriage. Program and Policies need to exploit these inter-linkages. For example, if programs are going to provide credit to young people to start their own businesses, it is important to build-in clear criteria which are based not only on their diplomas but what they have achieved outside school to incentivize volunteerism and extracurricular activities.
Second, the chasm in U.S.-Middle East relations has emerged amidst greater convergence in ideas and aspirations. Triggered by a large youth cohort, the Middle East is undergoing change where it is aligning with fundamental drivers of globalization. The region has embraced the idea of market economy and values education. Middle Eastern youth ascribe to the fundamental pro-growth norms of behavior such as hard work and high investment in children including girls.
There is a strong foundation to build a future middle class. These are all areas where the U.S. is a leader. As the country with the world’s best record in harnessing the energy of youth, there is much the U.S. can offer the Middle East. The U.S. relationship with the region should be cast on broader terms, making youth development as a template for exercising smart power.
Key recommendations include exporting soft technology for institutional reform of education. Youth in the U.S. have a relatively smooth transition to adulthood compared to most advanced countries. Transitions to adulthood in the US are facilitated because of the close integration between the education system and the labor market. The U.S institutional set up may not fit the Middle East perfectly, but as with all exports, soft technology exports can be adapted to fit local conditions. The educational system in the U.S. has already provided the region with great institutions of higher education – such as the American Universities of Beirut and Cairo—which have produced many of the region’s leaders. The US can extend assistance on a broader scale encompassing curriculum reform for high schools, the transition from high school to university (reforms of university admission practices), and the transition from school to work. Government should create incentives for greater collaboration between Middle Eastern and U.S. non governmental organizations, research institutes and universities.
The challenge is how the U.S. can build on its strengths and can be seen as genuinely interested in economic development. At the moment, there is a lack of instruments for such an exchange. In fact, currently, the Foreign Assistance Act does not have an explicit window to target funds for youth. The language of the Foreign Assistance Act should be changed to overcome this policy flaw. Youth development should be given priority, particularly in countries experiencing “youth bulge” and high rates of youth unemployment.
And finally, the discourse on the Middle East is highly and exclusively political and lacks an economic development focus. Addressing Middle Eastern youth solely through the prism of potential extremism misses the opportunity for aligning U.S. policy with the aspirations of the majority of the moderate citizens in the Middle East. It alienates the very people we are trying to help. Currently, there is re-negotiation of the rules of the game in the region, and it is being spurred by youth, who we should be empowering and supporting.
By Navtej Dhillon, Fellow/Director of the Middle East Youth Initiative, co-presented at a panel of experts to congressional staffers from the Foreign Relations Committee on the implications and opportunities of the youth bulge and how states and outside organizations are trying to respond. Joining him were Honorable Marwan Muasher, Senior Vice President at the World Bank, and Ellen Laipson, President/CEO of the Stimson Center.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Qatar: Women fail to break into the boardroom
SOCIAL and cultural factors have impeded female participation in the boardroom of GCC companies, according to a survey.
In Qatar, the number of women on boards was far below the GCC average, said National Investor — which carried out the survey among 3,493 board members occupying 4,254 board seats across 582 listed companies.
It will take a while for women to make headway in economic participation, said National Investor, a privately owned regional investment and merchant banking group.
“Female board representation is very low in the GCC. This was largely expected before we finalised the results of this research,” said the survey.
Of the total board seats, women held only 63 seats, which is a mere 1.5% of the total.
“The small representation of women on regional boards (1.5%) is unsurprising and looks minuscule compared with 13.60% in America and 22% in Norway,” it said.
In Qatar, the proportion was a mere 0.3% (one female holding a board seat out of a total of 322 seats), it said.
Kuwait and Oman have the largest number of women holding board seats. The figure was 2.7% and 2.3% respectively. In Kuwait women held 30 seats out of a total of 1,101. In Oman the number was 21 out of 905.
In Dubai, females were represented in three out of a total of 259, a proportion of 1.2%, while in Bahrain, they had four of the total 402 seats, constituting 1%.
Social and religious factors do explain some inter-regional differences, National Investor said, adding elsewhere, the fiscal environment may favour male inheritance and consequently discourage the economic involvement of women.
The survey said it was unclear at this stage whether the proportion of women directors would change as markets mature.
“Our belief is that some effort is being made to increase female economic participation, and that any material change in the GCC is likely to take time,” National Investor said.
By Santhosh V Perumal, Gulf Times
In Qatar, the number of women on boards was far below the GCC average, said National Investor — which carried out the survey among 3,493 board members occupying 4,254 board seats across 582 listed companies.
It will take a while for women to make headway in economic participation, said National Investor, a privately owned regional investment and merchant banking group.
“Female board representation is very low in the GCC. This was largely expected before we finalised the results of this research,” said the survey.
Of the total board seats, women held only 63 seats, which is a mere 1.5% of the total.
“The small representation of women on regional boards (1.5%) is unsurprising and looks minuscule compared with 13.60% in America and 22% in Norway,” it said.
In Qatar, the proportion was a mere 0.3% (one female holding a board seat out of a total of 322 seats), it said.
Kuwait and Oman have the largest number of women holding board seats. The figure was 2.7% and 2.3% respectively. In Kuwait women held 30 seats out of a total of 1,101. In Oman the number was 21 out of 905.
In Dubai, females were represented in three out of a total of 259, a proportion of 1.2%, while in Bahrain, they had four of the total 402 seats, constituting 1%.
Social and religious factors do explain some inter-regional differences, National Investor said, adding elsewhere, the fiscal environment may favour male inheritance and consequently discourage the economic involvement of women.
The survey said it was unclear at this stage whether the proportion of women directors would change as markets mature.
“Our belief is that some effort is being made to increase female economic participation, and that any material change in the GCC is likely to take time,” National Investor said.
By Santhosh V Perumal, Gulf Times
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