In almost every speech that President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi has made since his inauguration as president of Egypt in June 2014, he has emphasised the importance of Egyptian women's role in society, thus encouraging public awareness of the need to acknowledge the significance that women hold in the country today. On many occasions, he has personalised his speeches, referring to Egyptian mothers, wives and daughters, as well as to the intellectual achievements of women that have been noticeable in Egypt's political, intellectual, and corporate arenas over the past few years. The president has portrayed Egyptian women as crucial to the future of the nation, thus directing public opinion towards perceiving women as vital to its future prominence. The remarkable success of the 30 June Revolution should indeed be in part credited to the strength and willpower of the women of the country, for the triumph of that day was also a great victory for women. Contrary to what some may believe, millions of women took to the streets in the run-up to the revolution not because they were under the spell of the then future president's charisma, but because they wanted to contribute to the success of the nation. Egyptian female students, mothers, grandmothers and women holding high positions in various fields crowded onto the streets of Cairo and many other cities out of fears for Egypt's future. On that memorable day women over the age of 80 could be seen setting out chairs and sitting in the streets in order to save Egypt from the Muslim Brotherhood. This is how powerful the Egyptian woman is: she is strong enough to oust a whole regime. Women over the past few years have been appointed to important posts in the public sector. Their representation in Egypt's parliament has increased significantly. There has also been a significant rise in the number of women holding ministerial positions, and these female ministers now run strategic ministries, including the Ministry of Social Solidarity, the unified ministries of Investment and International Cooperation, and the Ministry of Immigration and Expatriate Affairs. We have also seen the appointment of the first female provincial governor in the history of the country, and the history books will long remember Nadia Abdou as the first Egyptian woman to be appointed a provincial governor in Egypt. In many universities, both public and private, there has been a rise in the number of female professors. Some public universities have appointed female deans. The question remains, however, whether these developments are more than a façade: do they really show that Egypt is promoting the rights of women, taking it to another level amidst the developed countries of the world? Gender equality is a major indicator for developing countries, but has Egyptian society really grasped the idea that women can successfully handle leading roles? Perhaps we should remind ourselves that it is always a woman that brings a man into life and nurtures him, investing a lifetime of her own in her son's future from the day he is born until he is ready to embark into the world. The role that each man takes on in life is often attributed to his mother and his wife, both women who stand by him in his quest for success. While women's empowerment in Egypt is real, there is still much work to be done even if the country is on the right track and heading in the right direction. Although statistical data can be useful, there is also a need to hear the voices behind the figures, those of women who face a struggle every day in their quest to make something of their lives. Interviewing several male university professors about discrimination towards women in their fields of work, I was assured that such discrimination did not exist, though there was discrimination in the form of nepotism, particularly in the medical field. Unfortunately, this form of corruption, still prevalent in many sectors of the country, has delayed the wheels of progress. While it is not related to discrimination against women, it does still paralyse the ambitions of many promising and eligible professionals in various careers. It still remains a fact that someone who may not necessarily be the best qualified can still attain a distinguished career in Egypt simply because he or she belongs to a family that is powerfully positioned in a specific field. Having interviewed various male professors, it was time for women to take the floor. They expressed both optimistic and pessimistic opinions. “There is still a mentality in Egypt that says that a male professional is more competent than a female one,” one female academic declared. “It's a man's world out there, and men support each other in every field. The problem stems from the way society perceives women as professionals.” While this highly qualified woman concurred with the direction the government has taken in appointing female ministers and provincial governors, saying “it is getting easier for women to attain senior positions in our country,” this, she felt, was “still at too slow a pace”. Too often, this woman said, “women get the positions that men allow them to have, in other words the less glamorous or unwanted ones.” Another female interviewee said that in her opinion there was no discrimination towards female professors in private and public universities. She even declared that many aspiring male professors in the public universities had had to abandon their careers due to the low salaries they earned, in search of better job opportunities to support their families. “This has given women an advantage, as women are often not the main breadwinners in the household. Women who are career-oriented or seek to help with household expenses thus may have a better chance of getting the high positions they deserve,” she said. Those interviewed, both men and women, said that women were becoming more acknowledged as leaders of opinion in Egypt, particularly in the more highly developed governorates of Cairo, Giza and Alexandria. In many other areas of the country women have less prominent positions, however, and they are may not be acknowledged as able to hold senior positions or even as having a right to education at all. The only way to remedy this problem is through working to raise public awareness and open discussion. Egypt is progressing, and women's empowerment is happening, but there is still much more work to be done before we reach a higher degree of gender equality in our country.
