Women

Empowerment
and
its Impact on
Development
The Perception
of
the Middle East
The Status of Women
in
Ancient Egypt
Egypt held women at a very high eminence rendering
them equitable status with men.

Egyptian versus Greek Women

Legal rights
Social rights
Political rights
Religious rights
Economic rights
 Moving to the Present Time
 Egyptranks among the highest 10 countries in
the world with regards to the gender gap.

 In
2015 the Global Gender Gap Index – that
measures discrepancies between men and
women in different countries- has placed Egypt
at 136 out of 145 countries.

 TheGender Inequality Index (GII) for Egypt has

registered 0.565 in 2015 placing it at 135 amongst
159 nations.
 USAID report in 2017 shows that women
involvement in the labor force compared
to men, registered 26% for women versus
79% for men.

 Themajority of the unemployed women

are university graduates or higher.
 Important Statistics & Facts
 Egypt is an emerging economy facing
immense economic as well as social
challenges.

 The population count is 104 million.

 Women make up for 49.44% of the

population.
The Vital Role of Women
 Granting
women equal access to
employment would increase the GDP by
34%.

 30% of the Egyptian households are

entirely supported financially by women
in addition to an evident percentage co-
supporting their families.
 Factors Constraining Women
Economic Activity
 Legal
 Conflict with social norms
 Enforcement issues
 Social
 Socially acceptable careers
 Compatibility with household role
 Economic
 Access to formal labor and credit possibilities
 Resorting to public sector
 Settling for informal labor
 Political
 Political agenda and lack of parallel support
 Controversial Issues
 Economic enablement ensures women empowerment

 The concept of ‘agency’ and choice

 Resource management

 Development organizations and the hidden agendas

 Population control
 Dampening the effects of structural reforms
 Income generating projects better empowerment or
more burden
 The difficulty of Measuring
Empowerment
 Empowerment is a dynamic process

 Empowerment is multidimensional

 Empowerment is context specific

 Collective voice versus individual choice

Women Empowerment
a
Work in Progress