The UAE has developed and changed over the past 60 years architecturally, culturally, commercially and even economically. With the changes that have occurred, the women’s role in society has differed. Emirate women have become an active and important member of the country’s development. The women’s role has evolved from my grandmother generation to my mother generation to this contemporary generation significantly and remarkedly.
Women in my grandmother generation were limited on being a housewife that work on rearing children, cooking, meeting their husband’s needs where she should comfort him and relieve his worries and distresses. Traditionally, women were married at a very young age, often at 10-12 years. While she gets married, it’s important to become pregnant as soon as possible to get the respected status.
Due to the motherhood and the tradition, women were denied to go to school and get knowledge, they were able to learn the Quran and Arabic only but this was hard even for them. Emirati women were allowed to be midwife to help the other women on giving birth, add to be mutawa where it revolves around teaching women the Quran and the matters of religion. With the development and increasing availability of the western people in the country and interacting with them, the people became openable to many things. As I mentioned, education was limited, and they were taught at home.
In 1953, the first female school was established where it was operated under the Kuwaiti curriculum. My mother was able to go to school reverse her mother. With the evolution, universities began to emerge. But the cultural themes were impacting on the female education and employment.
Not all the major was available for women. For instance, they were unable to study engineering. And the mixed gender classes were unacceptable as this present time. The UAE government was support female education and employment by providing many opportunities for learning and working. At that time, women were able to work in many fields such as education, commercial, and even security domains. According to (Samara, 2016) “The first Emirati policewomen Ms Tufaha Alhamed joined the police in 1960”, where the first nurse Ms Atheja Ali who participate on the Arab-Israeli War of 1973 (Alramahi, 2018).
Women became involved the men in material matters, and she became one of the important members on making the country progress. Nowadays, the women role changed positively where she begins to participate the men on all the works with no barriers. The UAE society as a whole has been changed, they accept and support the women. The proof is the elections of the Federal National Council in 2006, where the first woman in UAE’s history Dr Amal Al Qubaisi won it.
As (Women in the UAE: A Portrait of progress) state “Today UAE women account for 59% of the national UAE labor force market in fields as diverse as engineering, science, healthcare, media, computer technology, law, commerce, university lecturers, government and the oil industry” where it is assumed to have increased in our day.
The opportunity of women’s employment is easily available, Emirati women are active now on military, art, media, and engineering. The education has changed and evolved also, female gets the same opportunity of learning now as the male. The role of women does not depend on raising children and doing household matters, but rather their role now is necessary of renaissance the country. The UAE has changed dramatically through three generation.
The society has accepted the idea of work and education for women more and more with the development of thought and openness to the current world. The Emirati women will contribute to making the UAE get the first rank in all the fields.
