A decade into the 21st century, women are still being overlooked as an active part of the work force, writes Niveen Wahish In Jordan, there are multiple free zones that have created hundreds of jobs for high- school educated women, yet Jordanian women are not applying for factory jobs and the country has had to import Asian labour. In Gulf countries, the situation is similar, according to Nadereh Chamlou, senior advisor at the World Bank to the chief economist for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Chamlou added that this reality illustrates how cultural and social norms are keeping women in the MENA region out of the job market. She explained that in some Arab societies, women's work is only deemed acceptable when their jobs require a university degree. But there are not enough jobs for university graduates either, said Chamlou. Indeed, university graduates have their own set of problems including prejudices by employers. Sherine Mohamed, an Egyptian who has taken up a university career, remembers that when she first graduated, she applied for a position in a bank and was asked whether she intends to get married in the following three years. She left and never came back. "Employers refrain from hiring women because they feel their productivity will be affected by marriage and maternity," Mohamed complained. Working women generally have a tough time. Gender consultant Mona Khalaf says women finish work at the office only to start again at home, meeting the needs of their children and husbands. Khalaf believes this is particularly the case in Middle Eastern societies, where women do not receive much help from men. "If they do not perform well in their domestic duties, they are always under threat that their husbands will stop them from working," the consultant explained. Meanwhile, Chamlou said she found these struggles quite normal. Developed countries dealt with the same issues between 20 and 30 years ago, she said. She believes that cultural and social norms change as needs develop. In today's world, women's work is no longer a luxury or a trophy celebrating self-realisation, but it is a family financial necessity. Chamlou wondered, however, whether the MENA region can afford the slow transition. "Are we not going to lose economic power by just waiting for things to happen by themselves?" she asked. To her, a strong society is about brains, as "we need to have the best and brightest." In order to make money, people need to transform reality and change the world around them. Around the world, there is a general trend that more women are becoming educated than men, said Chamlou, "making the cost of discriminating against women so much higher. And although it is important that women go to school so that they have better educated children, women can be participating in so much more." Chamlou spoke to Al-Ahram Weekly on the fringe of the MENA Gender and Economic Symposium: From Research to Action, which took place at the University of Chicago last week. The symposium was organised by the Centre of Arab Women for Training and Research (CAWTAR) and the World Bank. Addressing issues ranging from women's participation in the workforce to social and psychological hardships that women face, the symposium brought together economic researchers and experts from the West as well as the Arab world, Turkey and Iran. With the participation of members of the Arab Network for Gender and Development, discussions were held on how to turn study results into policy decisions and to develop and amend programmes and legislation, as well as on how to replicate initiatives locally and choose effective partners. To Chamlou, gender issues should not be considered an imported idea or one that is being imposed by donor agencies. Donor funding and international best practice are often accepted gladly in areas such as infrastructure, she said. "Why should making good use of half of our brain power be perceived differently?" Chamlou asked. The World Bank expert also stressed that women and men are the two legs on which the development of any economy stands. "They both need to be strong. If one leg is limping, it drags down the whole body," Chamlou added. Pointing out that the average income in the Middle East is lower than France, Germany and the United States, Chamlou wondered "why women in these countries have to work in order to make ends meet, while in the Middle East they do not?" She added that it is more expensive than ever to raise children nowadays, and the question of where the money is going to come from lingers. She added that "even if Qassem Amin had not advocated emancipation, women were bound to have to work unless they wanted to live in poverty," referring to a 19th century Egyptian judge who wrote a book encouraging the emancipation of women. Chamlou sees that bringing more women into the market will in itself create more jobs. "There is a multiplier effect to women's work which is so much greater than men's, because there are so many who depend on her," she said. If more women work, they will generate an increased demand for services in the economy, and that demand will in turn create new jobs.
