Providing women’s-only public transportation is a crucial element of promoting women’s participation in the public sphere, be it in education, the workforce or politics. Gender-segregated public transportation options, however, cannot be the only solution to women’s lack of safety or mobility in the public sphere. Continue Reading
At the end of September, 17 Sustainable Development Goals will be adopted by the United Nations General Assembly. Using the data collected from the Arab Millennium Development Goals Report, 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. Continue Reading
In a region where many laws and practices are informed by religious doctrine, the line between religion and the state blurs. Undeniably, religious leaders (imams, priests and rabbis) continue to play a critical role across the Middle East and North… Continue Reading
Qatar’s reforms have opened the floodgates of women’s opportunities in education and defined the small nation as a hub of research and higher learning within the greater Middle East. What are the implications of the abundance of highly educated women in Qatar? Continue Reading
Although the incidence of HIV in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is one of the lowest globally, with only 270,000 reported cases (1) that does not mean that the spread of HIV isn’t a threat. Since 2001, the number… Continue Reading
Marriage in the Middle East, as it is for many regions of the world, may not only be an expression of love and commitment, but also a way to bind two families together, strengthening social ties and ensuring financial stability.… Continue Reading
On Aug. 26th the Saudi Arabian cabinet made a groundbreaking decision and ratified the “Protection from Abuse” law, criminalizing acts of domestic violence for the first time in the kingdom’s history. According to the World Health Organization, a staggering one in three women is a victim of domestic violence, and women in the Middle East are known to be at especially high risk. The law represents a breakthrough in the fight against domestic abuse in Saudi Arabia and could lead to positive progress throughout the region. Continue Reading