Haneen Al-Wahsh -Women in Development and Peace
The representation of Yemeni women in the government sector remains at low levels, while men dominate various administrative positions in public units and institutions. A large segment of men justify this by citing the difference in experience, an experience that is not measured by the amount of knowledge, but rather by the length of professional service, which is something women who have been forcibly and for a long time denied their right to public employment lack.
While most governments rely on cultural exchange and foreign scholarship programs to develop the capabilities and skills of employees working in their institutions, these programs are rare in Yemen. If they do exist, they are a male prerogative, while they are almost absent for the female workforce, except for some seminars and conferences that the National Women’s Committee, a government body representing women, is officially invited to attend. However, the women’s administrations, with their branches in all ministries and administrative units within the government, are excluded from such participation.
The Role of Organizations Working in Yemen
Organizations operating in Yemen are demonstrating a positive approach to gender issues, providing women with equal representation alongside men in internal training and qualification programs offered to young people. This includes courses specifically designed to train young government staff, such as “Sharakat” project recently launched by the organizations “Youth Without Borders” and ” Afaq Shababia Foundation.” This initiative has provided opportunities for women to participate actively.
One participant, who chose to remain anonymous, states: “This is the first time I’ve participated in a training course. My ministry might not have nominated me if the implementing organization hadn’t stipulated that 50% of the course participants had to be women.”
She adds: “Months ago, my colleague and I were promised representation for our ministry at a conference abroad. However, they actually nominated senior leadership, and these high-level positions are usually male-dominated. Instead, we were nominated for this local course, according to them.”
Lack of Resources
Multiple sources within the Yemeni government claim that there is a scarcity of cultural exchange programs for women in the public sector due to limited resources. This is corroborated by Intisar Al-Jafri, Deputy Director of Girls’ Education and Training at the Ministry of Technical and Vocational Education and Training. She believes that the chances of a government employee participating in a foreign course depend on how well the course agenda aligns with the employee’s specialization, regardless of social or gender considerations.
Al-Jafri believes that actively engaging female staff in foreign training and qualification programs would offer women significant knowledge gains and enhance their chances of being involved in policy development and decision-making, ultimately breaking the male dominance in leadership positions.
She reiterates that the government’s reduced financial budget allocated for external educational programs has significantly restricted this activity.
A Gap Between Academics & Practice
While a limited number of women have been able to represent the government sector in which they work at external workshops and courses, it has made a significant difference for some, opening up new academic and practical horizons, as described by Maria Rashid, the media official for the National Women’s Committee.
Maria Rashid, a young leader at the National Women’s Committee, was thrilled to be nominated to attend a workshop abroad. She said, “I was overjoyed to receive the news of my nomination to attend a course on preparing international reports on women in Beirut, Lebanon.” She added, “I understand the significance of gaining knowledge and skills from international circles with their established expertise and experience, which is a result of stable and secure conditions. This is something that is lacking in a country experiencing prolonged conflict, where the government sector is starting its operations from scratch.”
Maria learned new skills and abilities in preparing internationally recognized reports, including Beijing Platform for Action and CEDAW report (Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women).
Beijing Platform for Action was launched at the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing in October 1995. It is an action plan with a vision related to women’s empowerment and a framework for analyzing the status of women around the world and evaluating the efforts made by countries to empower them. It is based on the fundamental principle that women’s human rights and the rights of girls are fundamental and inherent, and cannot be separated from universal human rights. The platform also emphasizes that women share common concerns that can be addressed through collective action.
Maria says that she benefited greatly from the course, learning how to prepare and present international reports – Beijing and CEDAW – including the procedures involved and the Sustainable Development Goals and their relationship to the Beijing Platform. However, she reiterates that women face many challenges in applying their newfound knowledge to their work. Most prominent among these is the economic challenge: “The lack of government funding (as a result of the economic crisis the country is experiencing) limits the preparation of such reports and delays their submission.”
Maria Rashid calls on government agencies, stakeholders, and international supporters to focus on building the capacity of women working in government institutions, particularly in strengthening institutional structures and work mechanisms within the government sector. She also advocates for training in the experiences of other developed countries with strong institutional frameworks, exploring ways to elevate and improve the government sector. In her view, this is what women need to acquire the necessary expertise for career advancement.
Limitations, Challenges, and Solutions
In recent times, there has been a growing demand for granting women their right to participate in politics and integrate them into positions of power to support peace efforts. These continuous demands, championed by activists and civil society members, have achieved some gains for women in terms of their rights and natural entitlements. Among these gains is their right to external representation in the government sector where they work, through attending external training workshops and participating in cultural exchange programs.
However, this progress is not without significant challenges. One of the prominent challenges is societal restrictions that prohibit women from traveling without a male guardian within the same country or city. Crossing national borders further complicates matters.
Sahar Mansoor shares her unique experience of having the opportunity to travel abroad for training purposes as part of her ministry team. However, her family prevented her from doing so and insisted that she take her brother as her male guardian.
She explains, “I tried to obtain an additional ticket from the ministry for my brother to accompany me as a guardian, but they refused due to limited resources and because it wasn’t within their purview. Instead, they permitted my brother to attend, provided it was at my personal expense. This was a difficult choice, considering my monthly salary doesn’t exceed $50.”
Financial challenges are among the many obstacles faced by women working in the government sector. Additionally, their presence predominantly remains limited to two sectors: education and healthcare. Other crucial sectors often lack adequate female representation. Although there has been relative improvement in women’s representation within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it still falls far short of equal opportunities and job positions granted to men.
The armed conflict in 2015 posed a significant obstacle to women’s rights, despite the new constitution recognizing full citizenship and independent legal personality for women. As a result, they secured a 30% share of decision-making positions, which would have ranked Yemen second after Tunisia in terms of legal representation of women in positions of authority among Arab countries.
Reports emphasize the importance of women working in the government sector participating in external conferences. Such participation enhances Yemen’s international image as a country that values women’s roles and encourages their involvement in various fields. It also provides an opportunity to showcase Yemen’s achievements in women’s empowerment on the global stage. Yemeni women can learn about best global practices in areas such as administration, governance, and public policies. Furthermore, it boosts women’s confidence in their abilities to succeed in diverse fields and contributes to achieving Sustainable Development Goals that call for gender equality.
To achieve this, programs should offer training to women in presentation and communication skills. Ministries and government institutions should actively nominate women to attend external conferences, raising awareness of its significance.
