IMOWYoung Women Speak the Economy

Stance of women around the world

Bayan Ali El-Bashier

When we hear a country’s name, certain images automatically come to our minds. A lot of the time we tend to be mistaken.

Saudi women in general are thought of as oppressed, underpowered & uneducated.

Women in Saudi Arabia are Less represented in political, Social, economic & scientific fields than in any other Arab or Muslim country!

Stereotypical Saudi Women

Saudi Arabia is perhaps one of the most misunderstood and stereotyped countries in the world, particularly when it comes to its women. Some of these negative perceptions could be justified. After all, it is the only country that does not allow women to drive, though the government has declared numerous times that it has no objections to giving women licenses. Saudi women are denied many of the rights granted to women in Islam. Under the Saudi system, male guardians control decisions concerning a woman's education, employment, travel, marriage, divorce, child care, legal proceedings and health.

A Rare & Optimistic Portrayal Of Saudi Youth Millions of Saudi women are highly educated and have received advanced degrees. The number of educated women exceeds that of men in Saudi Arabia.

Since 1992, women’s participation rate in the Saudi national labor force has nearly tripled.

Hospitals were amongst the first institutions in Saudi Arabia to create mix-gendered work environments, in part because women have long dominated many healthcare specialties such as nursing. Saudi patients in good hospitals in urban areas have now got used to female doctors, and to seeing women in positions of authority

Advocates of CHANGE!

The Saudi Female youth

are desperately seeking to

free themselves

from the shackles!

Saudi Arabia's first ever Olympian!!!

Saudi Arabian women are at the forefront of an economic transformation , acting as agents of change in Business.

OFF WE GO TO SUDAN…

Sudan is a country with diverse cultural, ethnic & religious realities. Such diversity accompanied with economic inequalities shaped the theme of instability & changes in political history of the country.

Nevertheless, Sudanese women acquire greater space for education & participation compared to women in the area. A reasonable amount of women are involved politically & economically.

A typical Sudanese female receives a university education

The Literacy rate; adult female (% of females ages 15 and above) in Sudan was reported at 59.60 in 2008.

Interacting with the rest of the world!

Searching for facts of life!!

Young women from the city going off to rural areas as part of a rural extension program to raise awareness.

Women enjoy many forms of leisure.

Open mic nights performances.

Countries all over the world have been affected significantly by the financial crisis. However, Sudan has another major issue which is of immense magnitude-the secession of the South from the North. Employment opportunities in the North have fallen dramatically. Those forced to go back to the South are going back to a land with practically no jobs, no services & no infrastructure.

Those going back to the South are going back to virtually nothing!

Finding a job is very challenging & nearly impossible for a university student in Sudan. Many university students can barely afford their tuition fees & so they’re forced to do some odd jobs on the side.Serving tea on road sides like this is quite common.

A doctor who is a resident at the pediatrics department receives only 500 SDG per month, which is around $200!!!

On the other hand, highly educated women are able to have great careers!

Off to the United Kingdom!

Unlike in both Saudi Arabia & the Sudan, women in the UK are presented with tremendous opportunities . In fact, they are on a different platform all together in terms of independence & empowerment. 51% of young women in the UK enter higher education. The cost of going to university in the UK might be high, but students are entitled to receive loans which they repay upon graduation. Student loans are unheard of in Sudan! Many women choose not to go to university, & work instead. They usually make that decision because they have alternatives! Furthermore, most students tend to work while they are studying in order to pay for their study expenses.

However, the UK has been hit hard by the financial crisis. It is claimed that one out of five women in some parts of the UK are currently out of work. A hidden army of young women is bearing the brunt of job losses in Britain's sickly economy, with the unemployment rate almost doubling among 18- to 24-year-olds in several areas since the start of the recession.

Young women in the UK are privileged with an up-to-date education.

As a result of the education that they receive, women in the UK are more equipped to become active participants in the economy. Furthermore, the UK government imposes no laws & regulations on women which might limit their involvement in politics, the economy, society etc unlike women in Arab countries who are governed by certain norms, values & religious beliefs. People around the world might think of Arab and Muslim women as oppressed. However, they are not. Restrained maybe… but hardly oppressed!