TORONTO, Aug 16 (IPS) – Once upon a time, the kingdom of Sheba (Seba’a) (modern-day Yemen) had a prominent queen. Women were literally held in a higher position in the presence of men.
The situation has since changed to the disadvantage of Yemeni women, who live in a strongly tribal and patriarchal system.
Amid an eight-year war between the government and Houthi rebels that has created a humanitarian crisis considered one of the worst in the world, there is a small piece of good news. While the armed conflict has kept Yemeni men busy on the front lines, some Yemeni women have found themselves on a social and economic lifeline, driven by a national need to generate income for themselves and their families to stay afloat.
Women started setting up small, low-risk businesses.
Dhekra Ahmed Algabri, Executive Director at Al-Amal Foundationpraises the rise of women in many professions and commercial sectors, although they are “linked to conservative patterns established by society, such as sewing, hair care and styling, cooking, handicraft making, incense and perfume production, and women’s clothing.”
Absence of an integrated, reinforcing system
Najat Jumaan, Dean of the Faculty of Commerce and Economics, Dean of the Faculty of Finance and Management at Ar-Rasheed Smart University and member of the board of directors of Jumaan Trading and Investment Co., believes that Yemeni women run projects here and there, “but they are not subject to an integrated system that empowers and encourages them from an early age to be an active element in the economic and productive process.”
Nevertheless, some Yemeni women broke free from cultural constraints and entered traditionally male-dominated fields, such as programming and engineering. Algabri explains that “during the ongoing conflict, women turned to e-commerce, e-marketing, and professional services of consulting and training.”
The positive side that businesswomen saw in the murky situation in Yemen was their existence in a closed market that they knew inside and out.
“I can move around in it and find solutions to different problems. When you achieve things in a more natural and organic way, you attract public recognition and get extra exposure,” said Eman Al-Maktari, co-founder and CEO of MOSNAD Talents Marketplace.
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for gender equality in Yemen underlines the need for “the full and effective participation of women and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life.”
However, there is a lack of official and reliable figures on the real extent of women’s contribution to the economy. According to Jumaan, “women’s participation is very limited and they are poorer compared to men in Yemen.”
Her statement is confirmed by Statistics from the World Bank that female participation in the labor market at 5.1 percent compared to 60.4 percent for men in 2023. The same study noted that there were no official statistics for shares in companies. Only 5.4 percent of women had a bank account compared to 18.4 percent of men.
Obstacles and the blessing of social media
Long-standing obstacles are deeply rooted in the culture of the society and endure for generations, such as the separation of men and women and the restricted freedom of movement of women (the imposed “mahram”). Individual exceptions can overcome some of the barriers, as in the case of Al-Maktari, whose family is more open, but the majority face “a glass ceiling that prevents them from rising, growing, advancing and making a profit,” says Jumaan.
To make matters worse, war-related obstacles arose. Sana’a airport was closed for long periods, hampering participation in meetings and conferences. Furthermore, Al-Maktari believes that her Yemeni nationality prevented her from “entering other countries to participate in opportunities available to other women around the world, resulting in an unfair advantage. The ventures I have undertaken would have yielded two to three times more returns if I had been in another country.”
The alternative rescue came from social media which opened up opportunities for Yemeni businesswomen to promote and showcase their work. However, it did not solve the problem of regional inaccessibility and the reluctance of foreign investors to join and expand in the fragile and volatile Yemeni market.
Incentives but unclear future
Civil society organizations, donor agencies, the banking sector and the government are investing in “many incentives, initiatives and forms of support for businesswomen through training programs, workshops, financing, loans, professional networks and consultations,” Algabri emphasizes.
The General Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry in Yemen also plays an important role, although not as significant in light of the crisis, in supporting the economic and commercial sector in the country.
Al-Maktari took advantage of mentorship and training programs to gain insight into business and start her own company.
“I got support from an Indian mentor in the IT field. That helped me immensely as I developed into a digital expert and found a platform to build projects and make a name for myself.”
Yet she describes the current situation in Yemen as “foggy,” with an unclear future for businesswomen in a country plagued by the many obstacles women face in their path.
“Even economists are not able to answer the question about our future. We cannot plan annually or quarterly and have very short-term business plans.”
Despite all the challenges, hope is growing for Yemeni women. “If the conditions and components of success are met, many of which are related to women and the belief in and perfection of their skills, they can achieve their economic power when they are given the opportunity to teach, learn, qualify, and gain experience and talents,” says Jumaan.
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© Inter Press Service (2024) — All rights reservedOriginal source: Inter Press Service
