Ivanka Trump praises Saudi Arabia for gender equality progress at Global Women’s Forum
Kingdom and four other countries lauded by speakers at Global Women’s Forum in Dubai
US president’s adviser Ivanka Trump and heads of World Bank and IMF among those
BY CALINE MALEK · 16 February 2020 ARAB NEWS, SAUDI ARABIA
Ivanka Trump, advisor to US President Donald Trump, congratulated the Kingdom and four other countries in the MENA region for instituting significant reforms over the past two years. (AFP)
attending gathering
BY CALINE MALEK · 16 February 2020 ARAB NEWS, SAUDI ARABIA
Ivanka Trump, advisor to US President Donald Trump, congratulated the Kingdom and four other countries in the MENA region for instituting significant reforms over the past two years. (AFP)
WHERE IS HER HIJAB/NIQAB
Kingdom and four other countries lauded by speakers at Global Women’s Forum in Dubai
US president’s adviser Ivanka Trump and heads of World Bank and IMF among those attending gathering
DUBAI: Ivanka Trump has commended Saudi Arabia for its efforts in empowering women by changing laws to respect women’s freedom of movement and access to credit and financial services.
Speaking on the first day of the Global Women’s Forum, organized by the Dubai Women Establishment, in Dubai on Sunday, Trump, advisor to US President Donald Trump, congratulated the Kingdom and four other countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region for instituting significant reforms over the past two years.
“Progress ultimately builds upon progress,” she said. “Bahrain has introduced legislation to prevent discrimination in the workplace; Jordan eliminated legal restrictions on women’s ability to work at night; Morocco expanded women’s land rights; and Tunisia introduced critical laws to combat domestic violence.
“We all need to applaud these achievements and advancements. And yet, we won’t grow complacent because there is still so much more work to be done.”
Trump said too many women continue to face obstacles to entering the workforce, starting their own businesses, reaching their full potential and charting their own future.
In the region, on average, women have only half the legal rights of men, yet their economic equality has the potential to add $600 billion to the global annual GDP by 2025.
“This number represents far more than an economic boom,” she said. “It represents millions of lives full of promise, mothers who can provide for their children, daughters who could be the first to graduate high school, and young women who could start businesses and become job creators. This is the future that we can and must achieve together.”
She lauded the courage to shatter the barriers of inequality and blaze a new path of opportunity that gives hope to millions.
White House economists have found that if nations address the five legal barriers, namely accessing institutions, building credit, owning and managing property, traveling freely and restrictions on women’s employment, women’s economic activity could increase the annual global GDP by around $7.7 trillion.
“Imagine the lives transformed, the cities that would be built, the new schools that would open their doors, the children that could be helped, if we could come together and make these reforms a part of our future,” Trump said.
“Every woman here today has an incredible story, from brave innovators to bold entrepreneurs that are bringing greater opportunity to their home countries. You are the women who are going to imagine new industries, discover new cures, create works of beauty and improve lives around the world.”
She asked nations in the region to come together to continue to work as a whole to break new ground, to institute changes, legally and culturally, that will give every woman a chance to determine her own destiny and bring greater peace and prosperity to this region and to the world.
And, although slow, progress is happening. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the gender gap dropped to 20 percent in 2018 compared to 27 percent in 1990.
“I’m convinced the tide is turning,” said Kristalina Georgieva, the IMF managing director.
“We are finally seeing women stepping up and men supporting that because gender equality is morally right but, beyond that, it’s great economics.”
She praised women entrepreneurs, especially in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), that are now categorically proven to be better than men. “If we want the economy to prosper, we have to create space,” she said.
“Knowing that 40 countries are growing five percent or more, but the rest of the world is sluggish, we need the boost that women can provide.”
A world with 100 percent gender equality would add $172 trillion to global wealth, according to the most recent data. “We would be a much richer world,” Georgieva said.
“The time for women is turning in the Middle East. If we are to just bring the MENA to par with the more advanced economies, over the (coming) years, there would be $1 trillion more in output for everybody to share. So, we are talking about very significant improvements.”
Beyond economic impact, women create a more diverse workplace and boardrooms, while ultimately “making better decisions. We know that what women often bring more of is consensus orientation,” she said.
“When women are engaged, then we have more peace on the planet, it’s a proven fact. So, for the wellbeing of our societies, the advancement of women is a fabulous gift.”
Furthermore, the World Bank estimates that increasing female labor force participation in the region to the levels of men could boost regional GDP by 47 percent.
“Currently, $575 billion in regional income is lost because of gender-based discrimination in laws, social norms and practices that constrain women’s rights and opportunities,” said David Malpass, president of the World Bank Group.
“Fortunately, more countries recognize that their economies can only reach their full potential with full participation of both women and men. We are focusing on helping countries achieve good development outcomes.”
Malpass mentioned two key areas where the bank has been working hard, namely laws and regulation and broadening of access to finance. He said, historically, the region has had the lowest score in its “Women, Business and the Law” (WBL) report but, this year, it made the most progress.
“Jordan, Lebanon, Algeria and Bahrain made many reforms,” he said.
“The UAE, and Saudi Arabia in particular, made the most reforms. The UAE has pushed for legislative reforms, including equal pay and female representation in corporate boardrooms, while, in the Kingdom, laws were changed to protect women from employment discrimination and to prohibit employers from dismissing women during pregnancy and maternity leave. And there’s room for every country to improve.”
In the report, Saudi Arabia was ranked 70.6 out of 100 – a 38.8 jump since its last ranking – placing it first among GCC countries and second in the Arab world. “We have committed to double our corporate sourcing for women-owned firms by 2023,” Malpass said.
“We are helping unlock constraints faced by women. There’s still much to do and everyone can play a role.”
'Happy I can choose': New era sees Saudi women light up in public
Haitham EL-TABEI,
AFP•February 16, 2020
Some Saudi women are embracing cigarettes, shisha pipes or vaping as a symbol of emancipation (AFP Photo/FAYEZ NURELDINE)
Riyadh (AFP) - Rima settles in a chair at an upscale Riyadh cafe, looks around carefully and, seeing no one she recognises, drags on her electronic cigarette before exhaling a cloud of smoke.
"I feel that smoking in public is a part of exercising my newly won freedoms. I am happy that now I can choose," the 27-year-old Saudi who works for a private company in the capital told AFP.
Like Western feminists of the early 20th century, in an era of social change in Saudi Arabia some women are embracing cigarettes, shisha pipes or vaping as a symbol of emancipation.
The sight of women smoking in public has become much more common in recent months, an unthinkable prospect before the introduction of sweeping reforms in the ultra-conservative kingdom
The kingdom's ambitious de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has rolled out an array of economic and social innovations to project a moderate, business-friendly image.
Women are now allowed to drive, attend public sporting events and concerts, or obtain passports without the approval of a male guardian.
Rima, who started smoking two years ago, dismisses concerns about the harmful effects of tobacco, but is worried her family will find out.
She says she is prepared for a showdown.
"I won't tell them that this is about my personal liberty, because they won't understand that women are free to smoke like men," said Rima, dressed in a traditional black abaya with gold embroidery matching the hijab that covered her hair.
Najla, 26, who like Rima asked to use a pseudonym, said that despite the rapid social changes, double standards still existed, and that it was still considered a "scandal and disgrace" if women smoked.
The only woman lighting up amid several tables of male smokers, she said she intended to "challenge society" and ignore the occasional dirty looks.
"My rights will be fully respected when my family accepts me as a smoker," she said, recalling that a friend was sent to an addiction clinic when her parents found out about her smoking.
Najla started smoking while still a school student and, like her, up to 65 percent of female Saudi high schoolers light up secretly, according to a 2015 study by the medical faculty at King Abdulaziz University cited by Arab News.
- 'Everything is allowed' -
Despite the limitations, in a country where until just a few years ago religious police would chase and hit women for infractions like wearing nail polish or allowing a strand of hair to escape from their hijab, the changes have been head-spinning.
"Most of our women clients order shisha. It's something that was totally unimaginable just three months ago," a Lebanese waiter told AFP at an up-market cafe in north Riyadh.
Heba, a 36-year-old longtime smoker who sat at a table nearby, described growing up in a closed country where "everything was forbidden to women".
"I never imagined I would be able to smoke shisha in public next to men," she told AFP.
"Now, everything is allowed. Women venture out without hijab, without abaya and they even smoke publicly."
But even as the kingdom has introduced reforms, it has attracted condemnation for a heavy-handed crackdown on dissidents including intellectuals, clerics and female activists.
In 2018, authorities arrested at least a dozen women activists just before the historic lifting of the decades-long ban on female motorists.
Many of the detained have accused interrogators of sexual harassment and torture. Saudi authorities reject the accusations.
"There is no doubt that at the persona level there is more freedom," said Walid al-Hathloul, whose sister Loujain is on trial over allegations of having contacts with foreign media and diplomats.
"But the reforms in favour of women are part of a public relations campaign to improve the kingdom's human rights record," he told AFP.
"The arrest and demonisation of women activists is proof of this -- it's designed so that the reforms will not be credited to the activists."
Kingdom and four other countries lauded by speakers at Global Women’s Forum in Dubai
US president’s adviser Ivanka Trump and heads of World Bank and IMF among those attending gathering
DUBAI: Ivanka Trump has commended Saudi Arabia for its efforts in empowering women by changing laws to respect women’s freedom of movement and access to credit and financial services.
Speaking on the first day of the Global Women’s Forum, organized by the Dubai Women Establishment, in Dubai on Sunday, Trump, advisor to US President Donald Trump, congratulated the Kingdom and four other countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region for instituting significant reforms over the past two years.
“Progress ultimately builds upon progress,” she said. “Bahrain has introduced legislation to prevent discrimination in the workplace; Jordan eliminated legal restrictions on women’s ability to work at night; Morocco expanded women’s land rights; and Tunisia introduced critical laws to combat domestic violence.
“We all need to applaud these achievements and advancements. And yet, we won’t grow complacent because there is still so much more work to be done.”
Trump said too many women continue to face obstacles to entering the workforce, starting their own businesses, reaching their full potential and charting their own future.
In the region, on average, women have only half the legal rights of men, yet their economic equality has the potential to add $600 billion to the global annual GDP by 2025.
“This number represents far more than an economic boom,” she said. “It represents millions of lives full of promise, mothers who can provide for their children, daughters who could be the first to graduate high school, and young women who could start businesses and become job creators. This is the future that we can and must achieve together.”
She lauded the courage to shatter the barriers of inequality and blaze a new path of opportunity that gives hope to millions.
White House economists have found that if nations address the five legal barriers, namely accessing institutions, building credit, owning and managing property, traveling freely and restrictions on women’s employment, women’s economic activity could increase the annual global GDP by around $7.7 trillion.
“Imagine the lives transformed, the cities that would be built, the new schools that would open their doors, the children that could be helped, if we could come together and make these reforms a part of our future,” Trump said.
“Every woman here today has an incredible story, from brave innovators to bold entrepreneurs that are bringing greater opportunity to their home countries. You are the women who are going to imagine new industries, discover new cures, create works of beauty and improve lives around the world.”
She asked nations in the region to come together to continue to work as a whole to break new ground, to institute changes, legally and culturally, that will give every woman a chance to determine her own destiny and bring greater peace and prosperity to this region and to the world.
And, although slow, progress is happening. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the gender gap dropped to 20 percent in 2018 compared to 27 percent in 1990.
“I’m convinced the tide is turning,” said Kristalina Georgieva, the IMF managing director.
“We are finally seeing women stepping up and men supporting that because gender equality is morally right but, beyond that, it’s great economics.”
She praised women entrepreneurs, especially in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), that are now categorically proven to be better than men. “If we want the economy to prosper, we have to create space,” she said.
“Knowing that 40 countries are growing five percent or more, but the rest of the world is sluggish, we need the boost that women can provide.”
A world with 100 percent gender equality would add $172 trillion to global wealth, according to the most recent data. “We would be a much richer world,” Georgieva said.
“The time for women is turning in the Middle East. If we are to just bring the MENA to par with the more advanced economies, over the (coming) years, there would be $1 trillion more in output for everybody to share. So, we are talking about very significant improvements.”
Beyond economic impact, women create a more diverse workplace and boardrooms, while ultimately “making better decisions. We know that what women often bring more of is consensus orientation,” she said.
“When women are engaged, then we have more peace on the planet, it’s a proven fact. So, for the wellbeing of our societies, the advancement of women is a fabulous gift.”
Furthermore, the World Bank estimates that increasing female labor force participation in the region to the levels of men could boost regional GDP by 47 percent.
“Currently, $575 billion in regional income is lost because of gender-based discrimination in laws, social norms and practices that constrain women’s rights and opportunities,” said David Malpass, president of the World Bank Group.
“Fortunately, more countries recognize that their economies can only reach their full potential with full participation of both women and men. We are focusing on helping countries achieve good development outcomes.”
Malpass mentioned two key areas where the bank has been working hard, namely laws and regulation and broadening of access to finance. He said, historically, the region has had the lowest score in its “Women, Business and the Law” (WBL) report but, this year, it made the most progress.
“Jordan, Lebanon, Algeria and Bahrain made many reforms,” he said.
“The UAE, and Saudi Arabia in particular, made the most reforms. The UAE has pushed for legislative reforms, including equal pay and female representation in corporate boardrooms, while, in the Kingdom, laws were changed to protect women from employment discrimination and to prohibit employers from dismissing women during pregnancy and maternity leave. And there’s room for every country to improve.”
In the report, Saudi Arabia was ranked 70.6 out of 100 – a 38.8 jump since its last ranking – placing it first among GCC countries and second in the Arab world. “We have committed to double our corporate sourcing for women-owned firms by 2023,” Malpass said.
“We are helping unlock constraints faced by women. There’s still much to do and everyone can play a role.”
'Happy I can choose': New era sees Saudi women light up in public
Haitham EL-TABEI,
AFP•February 16, 2020
Some Saudi women are embracing cigarettes, shisha pipes or vaping as a symbol of emancipation (AFP Photo/FAYEZ NURELDINE)
Riyadh (AFP) - Rima settles in a chair at an upscale Riyadh cafe, looks around carefully and, seeing no one she recognises, drags on her electronic cigarette before exhaling a cloud of smoke.
"I feel that smoking in public is a part of exercising my newly won freedoms. I am happy that now I can choose," the 27-year-old Saudi who works for a private company in the capital told AFP.
Like Western feminists of the early 20th century, in an era of social change in Saudi Arabia some women are embracing cigarettes, shisha pipes or vaping as a symbol of emancipation.
The sight of women smoking in public has become much more common in recent months, an unthinkable prospect before the introduction of sweeping reforms in the ultra-conservative kingdom
The kingdom's ambitious de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has rolled out an array of economic and social innovations to project a moderate, business-friendly image.
Women are now allowed to drive, attend public sporting events and concerts, or obtain passports without the approval of a male guardian.
Rima, who started smoking two years ago, dismisses concerns about the harmful effects of tobacco, but is worried her family will find out.
She says she is prepared for a showdown.
"I won't tell them that this is about my personal liberty, because they won't understand that women are free to smoke like men," said Rima, dressed in a traditional black abaya with gold embroidery matching the hijab that covered her hair.
Najla, 26, who like Rima asked to use a pseudonym, said that despite the rapid social changes, double standards still existed, and that it was still considered a "scandal and disgrace" if women smoked.
The only woman lighting up amid several tables of male smokers, she said she intended to "challenge society" and ignore the occasional dirty looks.
"My rights will be fully respected when my family accepts me as a smoker," she said, recalling that a friend was sent to an addiction clinic when her parents found out about her smoking.
Najla started smoking while still a school student and, like her, up to 65 percent of female Saudi high schoolers light up secretly, according to a 2015 study by the medical faculty at King Abdulaziz University cited by Arab News.
- 'Everything is allowed' -
Despite the limitations, in a country where until just a few years ago religious police would chase and hit women for infractions like wearing nail polish or allowing a strand of hair to escape from their hijab, the changes have been head-spinning.
"Most of our women clients order shisha. It's something that was totally unimaginable just three months ago," a Lebanese waiter told AFP at an up-market cafe in north Riyadh.
Heba, a 36-year-old longtime smoker who sat at a table nearby, described growing up in a closed country where "everything was forbidden to women".
"I never imagined I would be able to smoke shisha in public next to men," she told AFP.
"Now, everything is allowed. Women venture out without hijab, without abaya and they even smoke publicly."
But even as the kingdom has introduced reforms, it has attracted condemnation for a heavy-handed crackdown on dissidents including intellectuals, clerics and female activists.
In 2018, authorities arrested at least a dozen women activists just before the historic lifting of the decades-long ban on female motorists.
Many of the detained have accused interrogators of sexual harassment and torture. Saudi authorities reject the accusations.
"There is no doubt that at the persona level there is more freedom," said Walid al-Hathloul, whose sister Loujain is on trial over allegations of having contacts with foreign media and diplomats.
"But the reforms in favour of women are part of a public relations campaign to improve the kingdom's human rights record," he told AFP.
"The arrest and demonisation of women activists is proof of this -- it's designed so that the reforms will not be credited to the activists."
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