Women in Development and Peace – Afrah Borji
Media is a fundamental pillar in any society, playing a pivotal role in disseminating social awareness on various issues and highlighting efforts across different fields. Various media outlets, whether print, radio, or television, hold significance and influence, especially concerning matters relevant to Yemeni society.
However, despite its importance, the media has not adequately focused on women’s economic issues or highlighted the role of female entrepreneurs in Yemen. Instead, it remains preoccupied with covering current events, political conflicts, and military matters.
Regarding the role of media, particularly radio, Nusaiba Yousef (a writer and content creator working for “Niswan Voice”) emphasizes its crucial role in promoting economic empowerment for women. Radio can achieve this by shedding light on successful female entrepreneurs, sharing their stories, hosting discussions with accomplished businesswomen, and providing practical solutions to support them.
Furthermore, radio plays an essential role in challenging stereotypical views of women’s roles in the economy. By showcasing the achievements of pioneering women across various fields, encouraging female participation in economic activities, and presenting inspiring success stories, radio can break down societal stereotypes. Additionally, it underscores the importance of supporting women’s entrepreneurship by offering practical advice and legal guidance to aspiring female entrepreneurs.
Media and its Role in Breaking Stereotypes
Nusaiba says: “Radio contributes to changing societal perceptions of women’s role in the national economy by breaking stereotypes about women’s role in society. It does this by highlighting the achievements of leading women in various fields, encouraging women to participate in economic work, and showcasing inspiring success stories to the community. In addition, it promotes the importance of supporting women’s entrepreneurship by providing practical advice, and legal and administrative guidance to women who want to start their own businesses.”
On the role of journalism in highlighting the importance of supporting Yemeni businesswomen, journalist Walid al-Tamimi pointed to the role of the press in shedding light on leading businesswomen by highlighting the economic impact of leading women through publicizing their experiences through press interviews, keeping up with news of their participation in local and international forums, and the awards they receive, so that they become role models for other aspiring women.
Al-Tamimi added: “Women’s entry into the field of finance and business with various projects has contributed to strengthening their economic position in society. For their message to leave an echo in society, the press is supposed to allocate fixed sections to tell their stories and present them to the public from different angles that break the mold, including the link between their family stability and their professional success, and the lack of impact of their work and achievements on their personal lives, and the role of their male partner in achieving their dreams and supporting them step by step.”
On the other hand, journalist Yahya al-Akwari says: “The Yemeni press has not paid significant attention to the role played by women in the economic field, except for some success stories achieved by some women through small projects. These stories are addressed with shyness in the civil electronic press to fill a void, or according to a specific media project, while the official press has not paid any attention to this field. There is also a good amount of space that is interested in this field, especially in the press of organizations, whether internal or external, but it exaggerates in its coverage of women’s issues according to specific policies and frameworks.”
Mr. Mustafa Nasr, head of the Center for Economic Studies and Media, explained that the press plays an important role in supporting women entrepreneurs in Yemen by introducing businesswomen and their pioneering projects to the target audience, as well as raising community awareness by presenting the challenges and obstacles faced by businesswomen in implementing their influential business projects. This is to understand how to face them and work to create an enabling environment for the implementation of the project.
As for the television sector, it is of paramount importance in supporting the successes of Yemeni businesswomen and their experiences. Ahlam Abdullah, a graduate of Radio and Television at Al-Andalus University, says: “Television plays a pivotal role in highlighting women entrepreneurs working in various economic fields, by showcasing their experiences and stories through interviews and television reports so that they become role models for other women who want to have development projects that enhance their role in the Yemeni economy.”
Ahlam continues: “Businesswomen play a major role in the economic empowerment of women, and what the media in general and television in particular do is to highlight their positive role in society.”
The Positive Impact of Media on Society
Nusaiba explained that influencing public opinion by spreading awareness about the importance of women’s economic empowerment through various media outlets contributes to changing the stereotypical societal view of the role of women in general and supporting their participation in the workforce. It also helps other women to pursue their dreams and break down the barriers that prevent them from participating in economic work.
Journalist Mustafa Nasr also points out that showcasing the success stories of Yemeni businesswomen, especially in these exceptional circumstances that the country is going through, encourages others to venture into private projects. Here comes the role of the press in raising community awareness about the importance of women’s work and their participation in development, and facing the obstacles that hinder their participation in economic development.
Journalist Al-Akwari, for his part, stated that the Yemeni press must shed light on the economic role of women, due to its positive impact on society and the national economy, by focusing on the importance of encouraging women to join the labor market and participate effectively in improving the economic situation, whether through private projects, whether small or large, or through women’s participation with men in taking on jobs related to the economic side.
Challenges Facing the Media in Highlighting Yemeni Businesswomen
Nusaiba pointed out the most important challenges facing radio in highlighting businesswomen. The challenges are many, including the lack of programs dedicated to leading women in the economic field, especially at present due to the circumstances of the conflict, and the policy of radio programs, as there is not a sufficient number of programs that focus on highlighting the achievements of leading women.
She added: “Also, the difficulty in reaching leading women in some Yemeni areas, especially remote or rural areas, as well as the difficulty the radio faces in obtaining funding to produce high-quality programs on women’s economic empowerment.”
As for the press, journalist Yahya Al-Akwari says: “There are difficulties facing the press in highlighting Yemeni women, most notably the press’s preoccupation with political and security events and aspects of the conflict, and the allocation of a large part of its priorities to implementing the donor’s policy, and here is the biggest dilemma.”
Al-Akwari continued his talk about the challenges, saying: “The press currently does not work according to the needs of society and its issues in a basic and direct manner, but rather from the point of view of the supporting party, even if it dealt with some aspects related to women, whether economically or socially, it focuses on them from the angle of the policy drawn for it, and here the press has refrained from doing its duty in the required manner, and it is not possible to talk about addressing issues or dealing with aspects related to women or even men from several aspects except in the presence of an independent press.”
In the same context, Mustafa Nasr (Head of the Center for Economic Studies and Media) says: “There are challenges facing the media in highlighting businesswomen and empowering them economically, which is represented in the inability to reach leading women economically due to fear or security implications in different regions, and this is also related to the lack of sufficient incubators for these businesses; since most businesses are registered in the name of men.”
Proposed Treatments
Nusaiba Yousef (writer and content creator) concluded her talk about the treatments by saying: “The radio should cooperate with women’s organizations to identify leading women and present their stories to the public in a large and influential way, and work to use modern technology, such as online broadcasting and social media to reach a wider audience, as well as the radio can seek funding from donors interested in supporting women’s economic empowerment.”
There are press reports that confirm the importance of improving the situation of the Yemeni media in highlighting businesswomen, by increasing news coverage of Yemeni businesswomen, discussing their experiences, challenges, and achievements in various sectors, providing support and funding for female journalists to cover events related to the economy and women, and benefiting from social media platforms to spread everything new for businesswomen, communicate with the public and participate in exchanging experiences and learning from each other.