At the end of September, 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will be adopted by the United Nations General Assembly. The SDGs will replace the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that were first implemented in 2000 and have served to inform development initiatives across the globe over the past 15 years. The UN member states will have to determine which of the goals to prioritize in the coming years according to their country’s needs. Using the data collected from the Arab Millennium Development Goals Report to guide these recommendations*, the Arab world should primarily focus on three particular SDGs in order to improve the lives of women: goal 2, which aims to end hunger and improve nutrition; goal 5, which seeks to achieve gender equality; and goal 8, which aims to have full and inclusive employment.
Goal 2: End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture.
The issue of hunger is particularly dire in conflict zones and for refugees that have moved into overcrowded camps and urban areas. From 1991 to 2011, the percentage of people in the Arab world who are undernourished increased from 13.9 percent to 15.1 percent. Iraq, Yemen and Palestine were among the countries in the region with the highest proportion of undernourished residents, according to statistics collected by the UN. These three nations were rattled by political insecurity and armed conflict throughout that decade, and have become less stable since 2011. In Syria, since the onset of the crisis, around half of the bread-producing industry was shut down or damaged, causing the price of bread to rise by up to 1000 percent in some areas. Food security and availability for refugees in neighboring countries is equally strained as local economies are stressed by the increased population. On the other side of the spectrum, obesity and other lifestyle disorders resulting from poor nutrition are a significant health issue in the wealthy countries of the Gulf. Adult females in the Gulf have the highest rates of obesity, with more than 40 percent of women in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates considered obese. All countries of the region should prioritize ending hunger and improving nutrition.
Goal 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.
While this particular SDG appears to be less measurable than the other goals, if achieved, it can serve as a catalyst for the other two goals. A crucial element of promoting gender equality is to set a legal marriage age, criminalize child marriage and allow girls to complete their education. While most of the countries of North Africa have raised the legal marriage age to 18, several other countries allow marriages at ages as young as 15, and Saudi Arabia and Yemen have yet to set any legal limits at all. In addition to early marriage, violence against women prevents women from participating fully in society, as well as causing physical and emotional harm. Regional conflict and instability has led to increased levels of violence against women, was used as a tool of manipulation and intimidation during the Arab Spring, and has even been institutionalized in the territory controlled by the so-called Islamic State. While violence has an obvious human cost, some have estimated that the financial cost of treating endemic violence has cost the Arab states $430 million in medical treatment and loss of economic productivity. Women’s involvement in senior management positions, including medium-level government positions, is below 10 percent in most countries. While quotas and other measures have led to an increase in women serving in political bodies, efforts must continue to promote women’s political involvement as both candidates and voters.
Goal 8: Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all.
The Arab world has the lowest rates of women’s economic participation of all world regions, at 26 percent in 2010. While common logic dictates that low rates of economic participation could be caused by low rates of education, this model does not hold true in the Arab context. The Arab world has made significant gains in promoting gender equality in education, with women outnumbering men in tertiary education in a few nations, while several countries, including Bahrain, Kuwait, Egypt and Oman, have achieved nearly universal enrollment in primary education. These advances in education, however, have not led to an increase in women’s participation in the workforce. While the discrepancy in women’s labor force participation could be attributed to cultural norms, discriminatory laws and political conflict also prevent women from seeking economic opportunities. Investing in women’s economic participation will increase family incomes and promote economic growth.
Attempting to provide programmatic attention to 17 individual goals will be a challenge for all UN member states, but the Middle East, in particular, must concentrate its efforts. Goal 5 is part and parcel of the success of all the SDGs, and must be considered when designing strategies to achieve the other 16 goals. Promoting women’s rights in the region is a multifaceted issue, but supporting economic involvement, ending hunger and removing cultural and political boundaries for women are the key to progress.
*All data and statistics are based on the Arab Millennium Development Goals Report unless otherwise noted.
Ariana Marnicio is a research analyst in the Women’s Rights in the Middle East Program. Her current research focuses on HIV prevention programs in Jordan and Lebanon, while her future research plans include an examination of women’s access to reproductive health services in the Middle East and the promotion of educational and leadership opportunities for women in the region.