Yasmine Abdulhafeez – Women in Development and Peace
Yemeni universities face significant challenges in implementing educational policies to develop the country’s academic process. These policies, designed to provide higher education opportunities for all and equip graduates with skills to meet local and regional job market needs, are hampered by the current difficult political and economic conditions.
Educational policies in higher education vary across different institutions in their specific approaches but share the overarching goals of elevating the quality of education and expanding access for all. These goals are pursued through measures such as regular evaluations of universities and colleges to ensure quality standards, curriculum, and program development to align with market demands and the provision of higher education opportunities for all segments of society without exception. Further efforts focus on promoting enrollment in universities and colleges, particularly in rural and marginalized areas, while also prioritizing the training and development of academic staff to enhance their competencies. Additionally, fostering scientific research and innovation across various fields and strengthening international collaboration with other universities and educational institutions are considered crucial aspects of these policies.
Struggle in Policy Implementation
Yemeni female students face numerous obstacles in their educational journeys. After years of hard work and diligence, they encounter a new challenge: obtaining their graduation documents. Fatima Ahmad (pseudonym), a university graduate, experienced immense difficulty extracting her university documents to embark on her professional path. Her struggle reflects the harsh reality faced by hundreds of female students across various Yemeni universities.
Fatima recounts her prolonged ordeal, which lasted over a year: “Months after graduating, I initiated the process, paid all the required fees, and completed all the procedures. I was left waiting, constantly anxious about when I would receive my documents, especially with the destruction that has plagued many government facilities, including universities.”
Fatima continues, “A few months passed, and when no one from the university contacted me regarding the handover of my documents and certificate as agreed, I visited the faculty building. To my surprise, my documents had vanished. As the person in charge of the faculty archives searched through files and desk drawers, I realized there’s a significant deficiency plaguing Yemeni universities: a lack of effective oversight and accountability for employees, coupled with a failure to safeguard their rights to encourage dedication and sincerity in their work.”
She poses a poignant question: “If female students in Yemeni universities already grapple with numerous challenges in accessing facilities that encourage and enable them to complete their studies without obstacles, how can we expect them to participate more broadly in higher education and empower themselves in this field?”
Women Bearing the Brunt of Destruction
The education system in Yemen, particularly higher education, suffers from a noticeable deterioration in infrastructure and difficulty accessing and enrolling in universities with specialized scientific programs, especially for girls in rural areas. Their plight is exacerbated by restrictive societal expectations that limit their choices, unlike men who can overcome many challenges simply by being male in a patriarchal society.
Ni’ma Muhammad, an employee at a public university, observes, “Women bear the brunt of the destruction inflicted upon the education system in Yemen, including higher education, by the ongoing conflict that has exacerbated the sector’s pre-existing problems.”
Ni’ma outlines the primary challenges women face in higher education: “The biggest hurdle arises when a woman aspires for professional development, such as pursuing a Master’s or PhD degree. Scholarships are scarce and difficult to secure. Even when available, they involve lengthy processes, complex policies, favoritism, and nepotism, often awarded to undeserving individuals.”
She adds, “It’s incredibly disheartening to have your self-improvement journey come to a standstill because most doors are closed to you. The opportunity to apply for a position at an academic institution or a scholarship to continue your academic education forces you to wait indefinitely.”
Ni’ma continues, “Even if you succeed in securing a scholarship and leave the country, your stipend might arrive a year after your departure, creating another layer of hardship. You’re compelled to leave with a substantial sum of money, and those who cannot afford it hesitate to take the risk and embark on a journey with an uncertain end. Women also face the added challenge of balancing family responsibilities with their studies and work if they are mothers or wives.”
Enhancing Women’s Access to Higher Education
Every country possesses educational policies that empower women to participate actively in higher education and bolster their presence across all areas, including education quality, job appointments, leadership positions, and access to domestic and international scholarships. These policies aim to achieve social justice in this field.
According to academic Abdul-Karim Ghanim, a researcher in political sociology, educational policies encompass the decisions, regulations, systems, orientations, plans, and resources implemented by the country to develop and advance the education sector, utilizing it to achieve development and meet labor market needs.
Munira Ahmad, a PhD student, says, “The most prominent policies promoting women’s access to higher education in Yemen include granting women the freedom to choose their field of study without family interference, encouraging and instilling confidence in women to pursue higher education, and expanding the establishment of universities in both rural and urban areas.”
She believes that policies empowering women in higher education should include providing financial opportunities that allow them to dedicate themselves to their studies without the burden of working to generate income, encouraging them by securing employment opportunities after graduation, and ensuring safety and stability that enable them to commute to universities comfortably.
Ahmad emphasizes the significant positive role of educational policies in improving the quality of higher education, consequently enhancing the caliber of female graduates, who will become qualified professionals in various disciplines and fields.
She further notes that these policies play a crucial role in encouraging women’s participation in higher education, boosting their confidence in choosing technical and scientific specializations aligned with their aptitudes, aspirations, and ambitions.
Academic Abdul-Karim Ghanim states, “Boosting the enrollment of women and girls in higher education in Yemen requires investigating the obstacles hindering their access to this sector. This can be achieved through conducting field studies to examine the barriers faced by women and girls aspiring to pursue higher education. It’s essential for existing policies to prioritize the provision of safer learning environments for women and girls, alongside improving the overall quality of higher education.”
Ghanim adds to Women in Development and Peace newspaper, “Policies should mandate that authorities fulfill their duties in normalizing life in the country and society, addressing the exceptional circumstances resulting from conflicts. This includes strengthening public spending, particularly on higher education, and creating job opportunities for female graduates in government universities, research centers, and studies. Additionally, private universities should be encouraged to employ female graduates, potentially setting a timeframe to achieve a female employment rate of no less than 30% within a specific period, alongside increasing the proportion of women in leadership roles in higher education.”
He continues, “Given the importance of developing female leadership in higher education and their participation in decision-making processes, as well as their consistent and active presence in committees and leadership positions, existing policies need to incorporate programs focused on women’s empowerment. This should be done in collaboration with Yemeni universities in both the public and private sectors, along with international organizations. Furthermore, women’s empowerment should be integrated into the policies and programs of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, aligning with UN Security Council Resolution 1325, which calls for increased women’s participation in peace processes and political institutions. This approach should be reinforced through ministerial directives.”
Ghanim stresses that existing policies must be founded on the principle that jobs are gender-neutral. The traditional division of labor, assigning specific roles to men and women, is no longer relevant in today’s world. To ensure the effective implementation of these policies, they must be financially and morally supported. Additionally, the stereotypical image of women’s roles in Yemeni society needs to be dismantled, starting with school curricula and extending to bridging the gender gap in enrollment rates in engineering, information technology, technological sciences, and mathematics. Empowering women and girls to benefit from scholarships in scientific and technical disciplines is crucial for achieving equal opportunities for men and women in these fields.