The history of women’s empowerment in the United Arab Emirates’ social progress is framed by declining fertility rates and a concerted attempt to incorporate women into the workforce. In the midst of this fascinating journey, where the fertility rate has gradually dropped from 4.54% in 1990 to a measured 1.46% in 2021, the United Arab Emirates is at a turning point in its history, overcoming both obstacles and successes as it works toward a future characterized by demographic transitions.
In the face of economic fluctuations, exemplified by a decline in GDP from $417 billion in 2019 to $349 billion in 2020 before peaking at $508B in 2023, UAE remains steadfast in its commitment to stability. This commitment is reflected in the deliberate strides towards gender equality within the workplace, transforming a historical landscape of imbalance. Political leadership, once devoid of female representation at 0% in 1997, has evolved to an inspiring 50% in 2022. Similarly, management roles have seen growth from a modest 12.20% in 2017 to a commendable 23.6% in 2021, portraying a nation charting new territories with determination. Moreover, as shown in the heat map, female percentage of 6.31% among the total female employed population, compared to a male percentage of 4.92% among the total male employed population, the overall self-employment rate stands at 5.15%. This signifies that, in the realm of self-employment, women play a more substantial role, surpassing their male counterparts and collectively making a significant impact on the overall self-employed landscape in the UAE.
To address the challenges faced, a multifaceted approach is recommended. Firstly, actively promoting women’s participation in politics has proven to be transformative, exemplified by successful models achieving 50% female representation in national parliaments. Additionally, supporting and fostering women’s career advancement is crucial, evident in the rising trend of increased female presence in senior and middle management roles. Furthermore, it’s vital to prioritize maintaining healthy fertility rates. This can be achieved through the implementation of comprehensive family-friendly policies, encompassing affordable childcare, flexible work arrangements, and robust support for parental leave. Low fertility rates, prevalent in Western countries, pose significant concerns, and safeguarding against this trend is crucial, especially in the context of an Arab country like the UAE.
This complex journey has not been without its achievements. The increased representation of women in parliamentary roles and senior management positions serves as evidence of the UAE’s holistic approach to women’s empowerment. These accomplishments underscore the significance of an unwavering dedication to gender-inclusive policies, showcasing the nation’s commitment to ensuring continual progress. As the UAE confidently embraces change, it invites the world to witness a seamless blend of demographic adaptability and a resolute embrace of women’s empowerment, illustrating a nation shaping its future with foresight and purpose.
Ever heard of the Boiling Frog Syndrome? The ‘Boiling Frog’ syndrome is based on an urban legend describing a frog being slowly boiled alive. The premise is simple: if a frog is suddenly put into a pot of boiling water, it will jump out and save itself from impending death… But if you place a frog in a pot of cold water and slowly heat the water, the frog will not perceive the gradual temperature increase. The frog becomes accustomed to the warming water and does not react until it’s too late, eventually resulting in its demise as the water reaches a boiling point. The frog’s inability to sense the incremental change in temperature leads to its unfortunate fate.
Similar to the boiling frog, Lebanon’s population may have adapted to challenges it had been bearing, with some becoming desensitized to the increasing hardships. It is only when the situation reached a critical point, with a sudden and dramatic spike in inflation in 2019, that the gravity of the problem became evident. By this time, many were already deeply affected by poverty, economic instability, and a lack of basic necessities, setting the country on an uncertain path.
With the country already having been in debt before 2019, Lebanon was just falling into its worst state, for inflation rates were at an all time high, reaching record numbers, causing a widespread in poverty, where everyone got affected. Lebanon found itself among the top 10 countries with the highest inflation rates, a stark reminder of the severity of the issue. As if that weren’t enough, the nation’s Net Primary Income plummeted to record lows, exceeding $1.2 billion in negative Net Primary Income in 2019, causing hardships for its people and economy. In reference to Turkey, Turkey has also passed through inflation throughout its years, on a growing bases, however by 2021, Lebanon hit a 154% inflation rate with Turkey (even though it recorded its worst high ever) scored a 19.6% inflation rate.
Faced with this grim reality, Lebanon’s leaders and policymakers embarked on a journey to tackle inflation and work towards SDG 1, ‘No Poverty’, they implemented a multi-faceted approach. This included the introduction of transparent and effective monetary policies to stabilize the currency and control inflation. Additionally, they emphasized fiscal discipline, taking steps to reduce budget deficits, promote responsible spending, and enhance financial stability. Seeking international cooperation and drawing inspiration from successful global cases, Lebanon aimed to create an environment conducive to economic growth, job creation, and poverty reduction, ultimately striving to ensure that basic necessities became more affordable for its citizens.
In the least developed countries across the world, balancing the number of newborn and the unfortunate number of infants who pass away remains a challenge. These regions often face the difficult challenge of high birth rates, which contribute to an explosive population growth that strains their already limited resources. However, reducing infant mortality proves to be a crucial challenge. Today, we will discuss the complex and pressing issue of finding a balance between birth rates and infant mortality in the least developed countries, seeking to highlight the societal, economic, and health implications of this delicate balance.
According to word bank data, the average global infant mortality rate for 2021 is 45 deaths per 1,000 live births. However, in least developed countries, the average infant mortality rate is generally much higher, at 73 deaths per 1,000 live births. For example, in Guinea, the average infant mortality is 134 deaths per 1,000 live births which is double the rate seen in the least developed countries. On the other hand, we can clearly observe the low average of infant mortality rate in developed countries. Taking the European Union as an example, the average rate is just 5 deaths per 1,000 live births.
The high average rate of infant mortality can be attributed to various factors, such as inadequate healthcare quality, poor maternal health, political instability, exemplified by South Sudan and limited access to clean water, particularly in certain African countries.
To address the high average rate of infant mortality associated with these highlighted factors, enhancing healthcare infrastructure and quality in affected regions is crucial. This can be achieved by investing in medical facilities, providing training for healthcare professionals, and ensuring the availability of essential medical supplies and equipment. Moreover, improving maternal health can be achieved through educational program and accessible prenatal care, which significantly contribute to reducing the infant mortality rates. Efforts should also be made to provide clean water access to communities, especially in some African countries, by implementing clean water initiatives and supporting infrastructure development. Finally, promoting stability and peace in regions like South Sudan can create a favorable environment for healthcare improvements and access to essential services.
Several countries have already taken steps to improve their healthcare systems, including investments in infrastructure, expanding vaccination coverage, and enhancing prenatal care and skilled birth attendance. For example, Lebanon achieved a significant 39% reduction in infant mortality over a decade by implementing improvements in their healthcare sector.
In conclusion, ensuring access to quality healthcare is a key strategy to reduce infant mortality rates. To accomplish this, it is essential to support the collaboration between the public and private sectors, as well as international organizations, to improve the healthcare systems. Furthermore, efforts should be directed towards training local healthcare workers, strengthening the supply chain, and facilitating access to clean water. To transform these recommendations into tangible and long-lasting solutions, a steady commitment is necessary, along with consistent support from developed countries.
Fatou is a 27-year-old housewife. At 15 years old, she decided to quit her education to get married to the love of her life, a man 8 years older than her, who had promised her a wealthy life in which she wouldn’t worry about a thing.
A few years into her marriage, her husband wasn’t doing well financially, and she found herself financially abused by him. All the promises went into vain and she was there begging for a penny to get the most basic goods she needed. Looking at herself, she found herself with no knowledge or skills to help her stand on her feet. With no education to support her, she felt like all the doors were shut, and her only salvation was her husband, who in turn belittled her for always being dependent on him, noting that it had been himself who stopped her from being an achiever.
This is not only the story of Fatou, but also that of millions of women living in disparity because they couldn’t be self-sufficient and independent. This story is yet another example of what the SDGs tackle, like Reduced Inequalities, among others as Quality Education and Gender Equality.
The contribution of women in the society decreases early marriage, and early marriage is linked to low education.
The graph shows the countries with the highest number of women who were first married by age of 15.
The top 3 countries with the highest number of women who were early married are Niger with 37.37% , Bangladesh with 32% and Chad with 29.25%.
Moreover, 76% of girls in Niger are married before their 18th birthday and 28% are married before the age of 15. Niger has the highest prevalence of child marriage in the world and the 13th highest absolute number of women married or in a union before the age of 18 globally – 745,000.
As a result, Awareness campaigns must be done to limit early marriage, and impose laws on marriage before 18.
In the time it has taken to read this article 39 girls under the age of 18 have been married
Each year, 12 million girls are married before the age of 18
Team: Ibrahim Al Jaifi, Zahraa Jassar, Rami Haidar, Ali Hachem, Rim Zeaiter, Fatima Ayoub
“ We don’t go to school; we work in the daytime to support our families and spend the rest of our day playing in the streets.”
Said Omar and Yazan, two inspiring kids in Burj Al Barajneh, a refugee camp in the suburbs of Beirut. Under 10 years old, both already carrying the responsibility of working to provide for their families instead of being enrolled in education.
According to ILO, it is estimated that 160million children are involved in child labor, 79 million of which are in Hazardous Work that is likely to harm children’s health, safety or morals. All these children, including young Omar and Yazan, are at an age when they are supposed to be provided for, educated and protected. Having to spend most of their time working in jobs that are unsafe and exhausting, their chances of leading healthy and thriving lives diminish with each dollar they earn.
Child Labor in Lebanon
The emergence of the Lebanese economic crisis in 2019 brought with it an increase in percentage of families with children engaged in child labor from 29% to 38% between 2019 and 2021 according to IRC.
GDP, as an indicator of the economic performance of a country, noticed a 65% decrease from $52B to $18B during the period of 2019 to 2021. With this drastic drop in GDP, the unemployment rate rose from 11% to 15% while the CPI more than doubled, leaving thousands of families under the poverty line with no sources of income.
With these dramatic and sudden changes in the economic situation, 3 out of 5 children in Lebanon dropped-out of school and most of the rest switched to public education. Education has become less of a priority for both the government and families.
From a social perspective, 44% of parents who have taken part in a study by the World Vision Organization believed that involving their children in paid labor enhances their life skills and assures a source of income for their households. Meanwhile, the responsible government agencies have no clear and applicable laws in place to prohibit children’s exploitation or ensure they are enrolled in education.
Implications:
Child labor has destructive impacts on the health of the child, exposing millions of children to physical, mental and emotional abuse. As a result, their mental and intellectual development face significant disruptions. Considering the increasing crime rates in the country and the exposure of children to illegal work activities, the forecasted 30% increase in crime rate in 2025 would involve criminal acts by juveniles.
Proposed Solution
Mr. Aws Al Kadasi, senior research analyst at Merci Corps, commented on the topic during an interview for this project:
“According to the UNICEF, one in 5 children in the least developed countries are engaged in child labor. A problem that was aggravated by COVID-19 and global economic decline that it takes a walk in Beirut to believe these numbers. Children require different systems of protection that starts with parents and extends to every office, business, institution, organization and agency, local and international, governmental or otherwise. Everyone, who is not a child, is responsible”
Both 8 and 16 Sustainable Development Goals highlights the need for international efforts to tackle the issue of child labor:
Target 8.7: Take immediate and effective measures to eradicate forced labor, end modern slavery and human trafficking and secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labor, including recruitment and use of child soldiers, and by 2025 end child labor in all its forms.
Target 16.2: End abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence against and torture of children.
Inspired by these goals as well as social responsibility towards the community, our project team designed an initiative to capitalize on the work of international aid organizations and local organizations and projects working to fight child labor and illiteracy.
Future4Kids (F4K) initiative aims to establish a cooperative relationship between NGOs that provides cash assistance to families and campaigns against child labor. F4K initiative will work on partnering with cash aid organizations and NGOs working in child education. Receiving cash assistance would be conditionally linked to the enrollment of beneficiaries’ children in education with families being required to show evidence of child enrollment in education periodically.
The initiative platform will allow these two parties to join efforts to encourage families to enroll their children in education. F4K platform will also allow for receiving public donations for child education campaigns carried out by our partners.
