Woman leadership

Women, Management and Globalization in the Middle East
Author(s): Beverly Dawn Metcalfe
Source: Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 83, No. 1, Women, Globalisation and Global
Management (Nov., 2008), pp. 85-100
Published by: Springer
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Journal of Business Ethics (2008) 83:85-100 ? Springer 2008
DOI 10.1007/sl0551-007-9654-3
Women, Management and Globalization
in theMiddle East Beverly Dawn Metcalfe
ABSTRACT. This paper provides new theoretical insights
into the interconnections and relationships between
women, management and globalization in the Middle
East (ME). The discussion is positioned within broader
globalization debates about women's social status inME
economies. Based on case study evidence and the UN
datasets, the article cnrtiques social, cultural and economic
reasons for women's limited advancement in the public
sphere. These include the prevalence of the patriarchal
work contract within public and pnrvate institutions, as
well as cultural and ethical values which create strongly
defined gender roles. The discussion examines the com
plexities of conceptualizing women's equality and
empowerment in Islamic states. The paper reveals that
there have been significant achievements in advancing
women in leadership and political roles, but that there are
still institutionaland culturalbarriersembedded inbusi
ness systems. Linking feminist, development and man
agement theoretical strands a development framework is
proposed which is sensitive to the Islamic Shar'ia
encompassing government, organization and individual
level strategies. It is suggested that scholars should inte
grate literatures from gender and management, develop
ment and Middle East studies, and in particular that
critical scholars of gender and organization should con
sider the interrelations of the national and transnational in
critiques of contemporary global capitalism to understand
the complexity of women and social change in theME.
KEY WORDS: women, globalization, Middle East,
management, transnational feminisms, empowerment
Introduction
As the societies of theArabME confront theprocess
of globalization, incorporating pressures for demo
cratic change, social justice and tradedevelopment,
no issue todayoffers amore formidablechallenge for
governments than the unequal status of women.
Since the 1970s examination of women's role in the
ME has often dominated in representations of
political and economic transformationsas evidenced
in The IranianRevolution, current debates about
constitutional democracy in Iraq and the Taliban
regimes inAfghanistan. Yet, it isonly recently that
women's contribution to trade and development is
being addressed (Acker, 2005; Noland and Pack,
2004). The ArabHuman Development Report 2003
argued that the full empowerment of Arab women,
recognizing their right to equal participation in
politics, society and the economy, as well as to
education and other means of building capabilities
was a significant aspect of the region's future
development in a global society (Metcalfe, 2006,
2007;World Bank, 2003a, b, c;World Bank, 2005).
The eradication of gender inequalities and the
empowerment and participation of both sexes in all
spheresof public life are a global concem (Walby,
2005). For example,modemization has transformed
women's opportunities in the UK and USA, yet
women's active participation in political life and
congress remains relatively low. A great deal of
women-in-management literaturehas examined the
barrierswhich limitwomen's social and economic
development, yet these substantivewritings are lar
gely positioned within westernand developedcultural
spaces (for example USA Powell, 2000). The limi
tations that hinder women's progress in organiza
tions arewell documented, including thepersistence
of gender stereotypes (Powell, 2000; Reskin and
Padavic, 1994;Walby, 1990); biases in recruitment
and selection practices (Dickens, 1997;Hamrs, 2002;
Powell, 2000; Truss, 1999); and few female role
models (Davidson andBurke, 2004; Powell, 2000).
Scholars have also noted how organizations are
gendered and reproduce unequal power relations
(Heam et al., 2006; Legge, 2004). Only recently
have scholars in management and organization

86Beverly Dawn Metcalfe
behaviour examined gender issues within developing
or transitional countries or regions (for example
Budwhar and Debrah, 2004; Metcalfe and Afanas
sieva, 2005). While there wiU be some common
concerns that men and women may share globaUy, it
is important to examine the specificities of socio
cultural and political processes and their impact on
gender systems (Fagenson, 1993; PoweU, 2000; see
also Roald, 2001).
It is, however, the ME countries where the gap
between the rights of men and women is the most
visible and significant, and where resistance to wo
men's equality has been most chaUenging (Mernissi,
1991; Metcalfe, 2007; Moghadam, 2005; UNIFEM,
2004). Women face discrimination in both the
economic and social spheres, and many women do
not enjoy equal rights as citizens (CAWTAR, 2001;
Seikaly, 1994; World Bank, 2003a). Women are not
aUowed to vote in Saudi Arabia, UAE and Kuwait.
Although women's rights organizations have
repeatedly raised the issue, not one country in the
Arab region has a law thatmakes domestic violence a
criminal offence (UNIFEM, 2004). Arab women are
significantly under-represented (or entirely absent)
in senior executive positions in politics, public
administration and legal systems and professional
roles in the
private
sector. Yet, women are chal
lenging the prevailing social ethics which require
that they define their self-identity in the home
sphere and eschew a career. In addition to the
change that women face in their local communities,
their status is affected by transnational feminisms and
global political developments. The emergence of
extremist Islamic organizations presents
a threat to
the gains women have achieved as weU as to the
possibilities of reform (Badran, 2005; UNDP, 2003).
The politicization of Islam seriously complicates the
advocacy of equal rights (Badran, 2005; Esposito,
2005). This is not to suggest, however, that Islam
represents ethical value systems that undermine
equality between men and women, rather, as the
paper wiU argue, that Islam has been used in global
discourses to reinforce patriarchal social and work
systems.
This paper contributes to the scarce knowledge
that currently exists on the position of women in
management and leadership in theME. Through the
integration of literatures in gender, management and
ME studies the focus wiU primarily be on unveiling
the socio-cultural, economic and institutional barriers
that limit women's advancement, as weU as docu
menting the progress that has been achieved by
women in politics and the professions only in the last
few years. The paper presents a framework which can
be used to evaluate women's progress in leadership
and management incorporating government,
organization and individual level strategies. Signifi
cantly, the model recognizes that the gender regime
in Islamic states is based on sex difference (Dickens,
1997; Legge, 2004; Liff, 1996;Walby, 1990). The
underpinning arguments presented suggest therefore
that we cannot examine women's public position
without connecting to broader socio-cultural debates
relating to Islam and gender.
Gender, globalization and work
The Arab world is diverse economicaUy, sociaUy,
historicaUy and politicaUy. Yet Arab people are
linked in a variety of ways. The great majority are
linked by common language (Arabic), religion (Is
lam) and cultural identity and heritage (Ahmed,
1998; Ali, 1995, 1999; UNIFEM, 2004). Global
ization processes and economic opportunities remain
uneven, between countries, within countries and
between individuals (Acker, 2005; UNIFEM, 2004;
World Bank, 2003a, b, c). The region continues to
face social transformations, demographic shifts,
economic waves of affluence as weU as civil strife
(Ali, 1999; Noland and Pack, 2004; Norris and
Ingleheart, 2002). Consistent with the contradictory
nature of globalization the impact on women
has been mixed (Walby, 2005; Pfeifer and Posusney,
2003). One feature of economic globalization has
been the generation of jobs in export processing, free
trade zones and world market factories asweU as e
commerce and finance, especiaUy in oil/gas-rich
economies such as Bahrain, UAE and Saudi Arabia.
Labour market policies such as Emiritarization,
Omanization, Bahrainization and Saudiazation have
also created job opportunities in public administra
tion for women (Adler, 2004; Moghadam, 2003,
2005). In addition, foUowing international trends
there are signs of increased entrepreneurial devel
opment amongst women especiaUy in Jordan, Egypt
and Bahrain (Basma, 1999; Carter andWeeks, 2002;
Tzanntos and Kaur, 2003).

Women, Management and Globalization in theMiddle East 87
Development scholars stress that globalization
overaU has tended to increase inequality between
men and women as manifest, for example, in the
'feminization of poverty' and gendered international
divisions of labour (Walby, 2005; World Bank,
2005). Women are still likely to be paid less than
men, have lower literacy levels, and are less likely to
be represented in government and senior public
administration roles (Acker, 2005; World Bank,
2003c). ParadoxicaUy, structural adjustment
programmes associated with liberalizing markets and
finance flows have often have led to declines in
public expenditure in social services such as health
and education, and have increased insecurity for
many where many women are employed (Pyle and
Ward, 2003). It should be stressed that it is usually
the better educated and younger women, rather than
the poorest women, who benefit from economic
integration and globalization (UNIFEM, 2004;
Walby, 2005).
Nonetheless, heightened transnational feminist
dialogue, the mobilization of women's networks and
the requirement ofME societies to expand into new
markets have made gender a salient issue and placed
women's empowerment
on
policy agendas
of inter
national organizations and national governments
(Edwards and KuriviUa, 2005 Hearn et al., 2006). In
the foUowing sections, we detail more closely how
globalization is shaping gender regimes that disad
vantage
women at the structural, cultural and indi
vidual identity levels.We draw on Acker's theoretical
framework of inequality regimes which examines the
interrelations of
practices, processes, actions and
meanings that result in, and maintain, gender
inequalities in organizations (2006, p. 443). Although
Acker's approach is positioned within western orga
nization analysis the approach is valuable since it
acknowledges that inequalities are interconnected to
the
surrounding society, politics, history and culture.
Gendered work structures
zAcker argues that gendered occupational structures
have caused inequalities in organization hierarchies and
limited women's opportunities (Acker, 2005, 2006).
These limited opportunities are particularly prevalent
for women in the ME, for while globalization has
transformed economic opportunities forwomen in the
Arab ME, the rate of women's labour market partici
pation is stiU the lowest in theworld (UNIFEM, 2004;
Wirth, 2001). Table I provides selected data for Arab
countries and the USA and UK relating to women's
labour participation rate, the GEM ranking, the
number of women professional and technical workers,
women's current
participation
in cabinet and the year
women received the
right
to vote.
The Arab countries can be divided into three
categories, depending on their labour and natural
resource endowments: labour-abundant and natural
resource-rich countries, labour-abundant and natural
resource-poor countries and
labour-importing
and
natural resource-rich countries (UNIFEM, 2004).
The rate of women's participation in the work force
tends to be higher in countries with abundant labour
and relatively limited resources such as Egypt, Leb
anon, Morocco and Tunisia, as
opposed
to countries
that are abundant with labour and rich in resources
such as Algeria, Iraq, Syria and Yemen. There is a
high degree of gender and occupational segregation
with the majority of Arab women working in the
service sector and in the public sector where social
security exists (UNDP, 2003; UNIFEM, 2004).
This ismore pronounced in oil-rich countries. GCC
countries that are endowed with natural resources
which import labour, however, show high rates of
women's participation. Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar
are the three countries with the highest levels of
women's
employment.
Women's current labour participation rate in the
Arab region has seen tremendous increases of late
(UNIFEM, 2004; Wirth, 2001; World Bank,
2003b). The percentage of female labour participa
tion for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA)
increased 47% between 1960 and 2000. This masks
the vast differences across countries. During the
period between 1960 and 2000 Bahrain's women's
labour participation increased by 668%; Kuwait's
486%; the United Arab Emirates 548%; while
Yemen's female labour participation increased only
15%. (World Bank, 2003b). Moghadam (2005)
argues that in many countries this labour market
growth is largely attributable to the 'feminization of
public employment'. ME occupational structures are
strongly gendered with the majority of women
employed in health, education and social care. There
is also evidence of vertical segregation with women
concentrated in lower level roles (World Bank,

0000
TABLEIMiddle East countries
2005
(compiled
from Human Development Report 2005)
CountryGEMSeatsinMinisterialpositions,FemaleeconomicFemalelegislatorProfessTechWomenreceived
parliament(%)actualnumberactivityratemanagers(%)workers(%)righttovote
UN2005UNIFEM(2004)
UK1817.93(1924)53.533541918,1965USA1214.85(1952)59.646551920,1965
Bahrain687.5a4(2000)c34.52110191973a2002^
Egypt774.33(1962)309311956?
SaudiArabia780022.418316-^
Jordan-7.91(1982)e28.1d24-1974?j
Oman-7.86(1995)20.3171994,2003|
Kuwait-05(1996)36.2230-2005b* UAE-12(1996)32.113825-f Qatar13(1996)42.6151999J.
_r^
aAccordingtotheconstitutioninforce(1973)aUcitizenswereequalbeforethelawbutwomenwerenotaUowedtocasttheirvoteuntilthenationalreferendumheldinFebruary2001whichapprovedtheNationalCharter.Womenwerenominatedinthenationalelectionsin2002butnonewasappointed.
On16May2005parliamentvotedalawgrantingwomentherighttostandforelection.
cNewconstitutionbeingfinalizedprovideswomenrighttovotebuttheyhavenotvotedyet.
TheJordaneconomicassessmentreportbytheWorldBank(2005)estimatestherealfigureissomewherebetween12and26%.
eJordan first appointed a woman a ministerial position in 1980. Since then
there
has
always been female representation
PlanningandInternationalCooperationisSuhairAlAli.
Dataobtainedfrompersonalknowledge.Thedateinbracketsindicatesthefirstyearawomanwasappointedminister.Itshouldalsobenotedthatinanumber
ofstatesawoman'sministerialpositionisattributabletoherroyalbirth,forexampleMinisterofPlanningandInternationalCooperationSuhairAlAliinQatar,
Ministerof EconomicPlanningSheikhaLubna al-Qassemiin UAE.

2003c, 2005). In some countries women are also
barred from certain professions, for example archi
tecture, some fields in medicine and engineering
occupations (Bahry and Marr, 2005; Kingdom of
Saudi Arabia, 2003).
While women's work opportunities may be lim
ited, education advances have been dramatic. Wo
men's university participation has grown rapidly in
some countries over the last 5 years. According to
figures for enrolments in 2004 there are now more
women than men in the universities in Jordan (60%),
Bahrain (66%) and Qatar (76%) (Bahry and Marr,
2005; UNIFEM, 2004) and an equal number of
women registered in Saudi Arabian universities in
2003 (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 2003). However,
education systems still sustain gender stereotypes
directing women into 'appropriate' professional and
female education programmes in social work and
education (World Bank, 2003c, 2005).
Women's development in politics has been signifi
cant in the last few years, although the results inTable I
reveal that increased labour market participation in the
USA andUK has not necessarily increased the number
of women political representatives. Indeed, Oman
currently hasmore women inministerial positions than
do the UK and USA. Wmle not aU countries have
given women the vote (Saudi Arabia and UAE)
women have accessed power and
decision-making
roles and have strongly advocated women's rights, have
suggested changes to legal codes and have served as a
role model forwomen acrossME states. A key figure is
Sheikha Lubna al-Qasami who was appointed Minister
of Economy and Planning, the first woman inUEA
history to be appointed at that level. She is unusual
compared to other female political representatives in
theME as shewas educated in the US, is not married
and does not plan tomarry. Other key female figures
hold primarily stereotypical female political roles
including Fatima Balooshi at Social Affairs and Dr.
Nada Haffad at Health in Bahrain's governing body.
Nonetheless, these figures are quite dramatic since less
than 10 years ago there was virtuaUy no female political
representatives in the Arab states at aU.
Gendered employment practices
Gendered organization theorists have shown how
organizing process and
practices produce class and
gender inequalities (Acker, 1992). In the majority of
Arab states women's right to work is granted (for
example Jordan Constitution 1952; National
Charter 2001, Kuwait Constitution 1996; Bahrain
National Charter 2001); however, the interpretation
of labour laws is guided by urf (custom) and Shar'ia
law which reflect the need to protect women and
create a moral work environment. As such,
employment protection legislation is limited and
does not cover sexual discrimination, since dis
crimination is perceived as being embedded within
Shar'ia law. Labour market structures and
employ
ment regulation frameworks support gendered work
practices at the organization level in several ways.
Tax, business loans and employment-related benefits
are often channelled only through men, preventing
women's entrepreneurship development. Even
women's
banking
services require
a male relative or
husband as executor (El-Azhary, 2003; Kandoyti,
1996). In Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman and Qatar
oil companies support gender segregation by subsi
dizing sex-separate offices and educational facilities.
This spatial organizing structure in itself limits career
choices for women (Kandoyti, 1996; Moghadam,
2005; see also Budhwar et al, 2002). Metcalfe
(2006) found in sex-segregated organizations in
Bahrain and Oman that there were limited funds for
skills development for women since training budgets
were largely allocated to men, especiaUy if the
training was tied to a professional or higher degree.
A further study examining gender and HRM
relationships in the ME found that that equal
opportunities or diversity issues did not constitute
part of general HRM procedures since equality was
considered as being constituted within the guidelines
of Islamic Shar'ia (ILO, 1998; Metcalfe, 2007).
These gendered HRM practices have been found to
be prevalent inwestern organization policies too (see
Truss, 1999).
Important factors limiting women's progression
are the recruitment and HR practices of private
sector organizations in the Arab region. There is
reluctance by private sector institutions to employ
women partly due to social norms and partly due to
additional costs that may be incurred for maternity
provisions (Al-Lamki, 2000; Kingdom of Bahrain
and ILO, 2002; Wirth, 2001). It should be noted,
however, that women themselves prefer towork for
public agencies since the working conditions and

benefits are often more favourable (Kingdom of
Saudi Arabia, 2003; Wirth, 2001).
Gendered cultural practices
While the above outlines the structural barriers that
limit women's opportunities there are also embed
ded cultural practices that define gender roles in very
particular ways. Gender, work and social relations
are governed by a traditional patriarchal structure in
ME states (Al-Lamki, 2000; Walby, 1990; World
Bank, 2003a). This attributes a higher value to job
roles and abilities to dominant masculinities (Acker,
1992). Women's most important role, according to
the society, is as a homemaker and mother, while the
man's responsibility is to support and protect the
wife and the family. The man is considered the head
of the household even in cases where the woman
makes large contributions to the family's income.
Hence, women enjoy limited, if any, recognition,
for their contribution to the family, and are often
seen as legaUy, financiaUy and sociaUy dependent on
men (World Bank, 2003b, p. 9). In addition, there is
a code of modesty that rests on the dignity and
reputation of the woman, with restrictions on
interactions between men and women and anchored
in family laws based on Shar'ia law as already indi
cated (complied from UNDP, 2003, 2005; World
Bank, 2003a, b). This is supported by the dominant
cultural practice of qiwama (protection), which
requires
that men must
'protect'
a woman's honour
and sexuality. Within an Arabic cultural context,
however, the concept does not denote superiority of
men over women (Roald, 2001; UNIFEM, 2004,
pp. 59?60). Notwithstanding this, the consequence
of this is that women tend to get married younger
and have children earlier (UNIFEM, 2004).
There are also restrictions that are imposed
on
women which limit their mobility within their
country (for example Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan,
Kuwait), as weU as women having to obtain per
mission to travel overseas from their husband or
guardian (for example Bahrain, Oman, Saudi Arabia,
Egypt). These cultural practices create gendered
work relations and organization
structures and
sustain sex-segregated
work spaces and, likewise,
sex-segregated occupations.
Difference, Islam and identity
While the foregoing discussion has reviewed struc
tural and cultural processes that influence gender
relations, one
important aspect that needs unravel
ling is the religious context in the ME. It has been
argued that religion is one of the many factors that
can contribute to the formation of national culture,
and which, through national culture, may influence
management processes and individual subject posi
tions (Tayeb, 1997). Islam has remained an impor
tant source from which the cultural fabric of Arab
society gained its patterns (AU, 1995). The role of
Islam plays a significant role in shaping economic
and social and identity relations.
The importance of Islam as a social and organizing
influence is shown in research which examines how
the Qu'ran and Hadith provide amoral framework
which guides the behaviour of aUmen and women.
The achievement of the 'weU being' (falah) of aU
men and women (AU, 1995, 1999; Ahmed, 1998) is
an underlying philosophy in aU human activity and
communications. The concepts of unity (itihad),
justice (adalah) trusteeship (khilafah) have a signifi
cant bearing
on ethical behaviours in management
and organization relations (Rice, 1999; Rice and
Al-Mosawi, 2002). ME scholars also note that the
Qu'ran is explicit in identifying the different but
complementary roles of men and women (Ahmed,
1998; Roald, 2001). A recurring theme is the equal
but different identities of men and women:
And themale isnot like the female (Surah, The Family
of Imran 3:36)
And everything
we have, is created in pairs, that you
may remember (Surah Scattering ofWinds, 51:49)
The prevalence ofthe embedded different subjec
tivities of men and women is revealed in recent
research which reaffirmed the engrained belief in the
differences of men and women and the public roles
that they perform. The Women Affairs Committee of
the Democratic Arab-Islamic Wassat Society (2002)
in Bahrain found that over 60% of the female popu
lation did not support female political candidates
because they felt that women did not possess appro
priate skills to participate in politics, had limited
political knowledge
and awareness, as weU as
ques
tioned whether women's role in politics could detract

from women's role in caring for the family (Gulf
Centre for Strategic Studies, 2004; Kingdom of
Bahrain and United Nations, 2003). These gendering
processes are an integral part of an individual's sense
making practices regarding their own and others
professional and work identities (Acker, 1992, 2006).
The commitment to difference
as a social and
organizing principle is perhaps best encapsulated by
reviewing the status of Arab countries signed up to
the United Nations CEDAW convention. Of the 22
Arab League states, 16 have ratified or acceded to
CEDAW although most have stated reservations
(see Table II). Arab states argue that they are not
against the principles of CEDAW but wish to
maintain their commitment to Islamic Shar'ia. This
stresses that men and women be treated differently,
not unequaUy. As UNIFEM state this stance 'may be
a reflection of equity considerations rather than
biases against women' (2004, p. 26). Feminist eco
nomics scholars note, however, the different but
equal philosophy is difficult to sustain as 'differences
are too entwined with power and resources' (Wal
by, 2005, p. 374).
While many ME women are embracing funda
mentalist precepts that would ostensibly identify
women's role as positioned in the family, others are
remoulding Islamic traditions, finding Islam as a
vehicle for rebellion against existing political (male)
authority (Ahmed, 1998; Badran, 2005; Roald,
2001). As Amat-al-Aleem Alososwa, the first woman
to be appointed to aministerial position in Lebanon
commented: 'women's
rights
are human
rights
are
Islamic rights' (Badran, 2005, p. 22). There is thus
great debate and discernment amongst feminist
scholars and Islamic scholars about the empowering
and disempowering effects of Islamic philosophy.
A key chaUenge presented by feminist scholars is
that women's individual subject positions are largely
related to the limited knowledge of women's rights as
citizens (Moghadam, 2005). A major problem for
women in the ME region is a lack of information
about women's leadership and women's global
TABLE II
Selected Arab States and CEDAW accession and reservations compiled from United Nations Datasets 2004
StateDate Date Art 2 Art 7 Art 9 Art 15 Art 16 Art 29 Total
of signature of ratification _ reservations
(a-g represent respective paragraphs)
Jordan 3/2/80 1/792 Ratify 9/215/4 16/1 (c) (d) (g)3
Algeria 22/5/96 Accession 2 9/2 15/4 1629/1 5
Iraq 3/8/86 Accession 2 9/19/2 18 29/14
Kuwait 2/9/94 Accession 7(a) 9/2 16/1 (?) 4
Lebanon 21/4/97 Accession 9/2 16/1 (c) (d) (f) (g) 3
Egypt 16/7/80 18/9/8 Ratify 2 9/2 6 29/1 4
Saudi Arabia 7/9/2000 7/9/2000 9/229/12
Bahrain 18/6/02 18/7/02 Accession 2 9/2 15/4 16 29/1 5
UAE UAE has not signed CEDAW
Article 2: Condemns discrimination against
women in all forms and agree to pursue all appropriate
means to eliminate it
(particularly incorporating principle of equality in laws and actions).
Article 7: Political and public life (voting and participation in public office and NGO).
Article 9:
Nationality of mothers to be passed
to children.
Article 15: Women's equality with men before the law.
Article 16:
Equality of rights in
marriage and
family relations.
Article 29: Settling of disputes by arbitration or International Court of Justice.
aSaudi Arabia has made a
general reservation
against the CEDAW convention as foUows: 'In case of contradiction
between any term of the Convention and the norms of Islamic law, the
Kingdom is not under obligation
to observe the
contradictory
terms ofthe Convention' (See UNIFEM, 2004).

achievements. They also lack knowledge and access to
independent
women's
advocacy organizations.
Fur
ther, while women's
advocacy
in most
regions exists,
many are tied to government or Islamic societies.
Independent women's groups are not permitted to
operate openly without some measure of government
control in the UAE, Qatar or Saudi Arabia for
example, and in Bahrain and Oman they face strict
controls over membership (Bahry andMarr, 2005).
Women's progress and development
in the Middle East
The foregoing discussion has highlighted that glob
alization and women's economic and social progress is
multi-faceted and complex. While there are barriers
inherent within governance systems, labour market
structures, as weU as women's individual subject
position themselves, there have been remarkable
advancements in women's overaU status of late
(Kandoyti, 1996; Moghadam, 2003). The UN Beijing
Conference on Women in 1995 sparked a global
commitment to the empowerment of women
everywhere and drew unprecedented international
attention. The internationalization of discourses on
equality, empowerment, autonomy, democratiza
tion, participation and human rights has been taken on
by women's organizations
and governments around
the world (Acker, 2005; Moghadam, 1997). The
adoption of theUnited Nations CEDAW protocol on
gender equity as already highlighted by many ME
states
represents the countries' commitment to social
and economic change (see Table II on CEDAW
Accession). AU Arab states adopted the MiUennium
Development Goals (MDGs) which emphasize gen
der equality and the empowerment ofwomen (Acker,
2005; UNIFEM, 2004). In the foUowing sections we
provide a critique of women's progress, especiaUy in
management and leadership positions in theME. The
analysis includes institutional developments, organi
zation initiatives and women's individual attempts to
secure political agency and representation through the
growth and activities of women's professional devel
opment organizations and NGOs. We draw attention
to the variation in
gender machineries, women's
political representation
as weU as consider transna
tional governance institutions such as the United
Nations and ILO.
Women and institutional development
While detailed critique of the democratic structure
and governance systems is beyond the scope of this
paper (see Esposito, 2005 for an exceUent summary)
many ME states have made significant efforts in
improving institutional frameworks that can tackle
inequalities (Gulf Centre for Strategic Studies, 2004;
UNIFEM, 2004; World Bank, 2005). FoUowing the
Beijing conference which caUed for countries to
develop National Action Plans (NAP) for women,
the majority of ME states have established inde
pendent
women's ministries or sections to ensure
that women's issues are included in public policy
planning and development (see Table III). These
bodies advocate the empowerment of women in a
range of areas including economic empowerment,
social empowerment, legal rights awareness, capacity
building for women as weU as working to incor
porate gender mainstreaming principles in aU aspects
of public administration and policy planning. An
objective of these units is also to start the process of
data coUection on women's work and status in their
regions in order that they benchmark progress and
can prepare gender-sensitive development plans
(UNIFEM, 2004).
In Egypt as part ofthe Women atWork Programme,
equal opportunity units were established in 32 min
istries to ensure equality between men and women, in
addition to ensuring that women's constitutional
rights in theworkplace were observed. In addition the
establishment of aWomen's Business Resource Centrehzs
provided administrative, research and marketing
support to women seeking to start smaU business. In
the year 2005 the centre provided consultations to
1240 women, conducted 247 feasibility studies of
smaU enterprises
and ran a series of seminars and
training sessions targeting university graduates and
entrepreneurship development (Metcalfe, 2007). A
major success has been the establishment of The E
Marketing Support Centre, which was created to help
women running smaU businesses acquire the skiUs they
need to promote their products on the Internet (Egypt
Council forWomen, 2006).
In Bahrain the Supreme Council For Women was
established under the decree ofthe National Charter
and exists to: 'define and lead the women's move
ment to equip women to take up their rightful role
in the society, establishing constitutional and civil

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mechanisms for the development and empowerment
of women in Bahrain' (Supreme Council for
Women). The Secretary General Lulwa Al-Awadi of
the Council was given the rank of Minister in
December 2004. It is headed by Sheikha Sebeeka
(first wife of Sheikh Hamad), and while there have
been some moves towards assisting women in
leadership programmes such as the creation of a
Royal University (established October 2005) for
women's leadership and community training and a
Crown Prince Leadership Programme which is to
tackle issues of sustainable competitive advantage for
Bahrain, the majority of the council's efforts have
focused on upholding women's role in the family as
part of a commitment to the foundations of an
Islamic state (Metcalfe, 2006).
While the establishment of women's councils
represents a significant development, it should be
highlighted that any social changes thatmay transform
gender relations are governed by an Islamic gender
regime which is aligned with Shar'ia law. The King
dom of Saudi Arabia Human Development report
states that there is commitment to the: 'Expansion of
work opportunities for women by opening new fields
of employment in conformity with Islamic Sharia'
(2003, p. 112). In Jordan The Jordanian National
Council for Women has declared its commitment to
empowering women while preserving the country's
religious and social identity (World Bank, 2005). The
Jordanian national strategy focuses on the empower
ment of women in six fields, including legislation,
economics, society, education and health. Their
commitment
stipulates any women's strategy should:
...be consistent with the Jordanian constitution, Jorda
nian national charter, Islamic Jurisprudence, values of
Arab and Muslim society, principles of human rights,
aspiration
to progress and
development, regional and
international agreements (Jordanian National Strategy
forWomen, 1993 inMetcalfe, 2006).
The charter further declares that the strategy
should promote cohesion of the family and portray
an image of women as partners of men in society.
Women and international organizations
The creation of institutional and governing frame
works, however, also
requires support and
cooperation

from business partners. There is some evidence that
MNCs located in the ME region are supporting
women's advancement in the public sphere. SheU
and General Electric, for example, are promoting
women in business through Businesswoman and
Entrepreneurship of the Year awards (Metcalfe,
2006). These awards provide women leaders with
recognition and status and help chaUenge cultural
and gender stereotypes about women's role in
business (Adler, 2004; Carter and Weeks, 2002).
SheU and General Electric have also established a
women's ME network to help foster and support
knowledge transfer and learning. Their current HR
strategies also provide for building diversity objec
tives into long-term succession planning. It should
be noted, however, that the majority of MNCs tend
to employ female international staff at middle and
senior levels rather than local female staff.
Contrary to this, evidence from various studies of
gender and work in the global economy revealed
thatMNCs' commitment to an equality philosophy
in regional subsidiaries is uneven, and that MNCs
are more likely to perpetuate inequalities between
men and women (Pyle andWard, 2003; Zanani and
Jensons, 2003; see Hearn et al., 2006). Indeed,
Edwards and KuriviUa (2005) highlighted that
globaUy there was a great deal of ambiguity about
equality and diversity policies and their HR strategic
approach in regional subsidiaries was one of political
and social expediency.
A
good example
is that current government
policy in Saudi Arabia advocates part-time work for
women as this 'suits the special circumstances of
many women' (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 2003,
p. 112). MNCs, however, are reluctant to reform
employment systems since
part-time arrangements
are not a common feature of work practices inME
states. This highlights the ways in which transna
tional processes and local specificities intertwine
(Walby, 2005).
A reluctance by MNCs to tackle sensitive local
organization and managerial cultural practices that are
at odds with their global corporate philosophy
has meant that women's advancement in business has
been increasingly supported by international agencies
such as the ILO andUN (Hearn et al., 2006; Metcalfe,
2007). This is significant since it is international
organizations that are providing the lead in social and
equality transformations. An example is the micro
start initiative in Bahrain that has been able to help
more than 2000 low-income entrepreneurs in the
Arab region since 1998. The programme was funded
with US$1 miUion from the government of Bahrain
and US$ 500,000 from the UNDP. The Alexandria
Business Association (ABA) is playing a key role
in Bahrain's Micro-start Project as an international
micro-finance service provider (see Basma, 1999;
UNIFEM, 2004).
Women's leadership and entrepreneurial development
A number of important achievements have been
made by women in the sphere of leadership and
entrepreneurial development. In just 5 years the
Bahrain Chamber of Commerce grew from having
no female members to 1785. Dr. Lulwa Mutlaq,
Vice-President of the Arab Banking Co-operation,
was voted as President of the Bahrain Management
Society, a predominantly male organization in the
Gulf (Metcalfe, 2007). In Saudi Arabia the Chambers
of Commerce and Industry (CO) are setting up
female provisions to assist entrepreneurial develop
ment including information and advice with business
start ups and finance and legal counselling. In addi
tion Chambers of Commerce are expanding provi
sions for specialist women's training, including inter
alia: banking, finance, public relations, managing
smaU
enterprises,
and the management of social
services (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 2003). The
Princess Basma Resource Centre in Amman Jordan
provides similar services (Metcalfe, 2006).
At the regional level the OECD's Centre for
Entrepreneurship
has been assisting
women's entre
preneurship training inMorocco and Turkey. The
World Bank has established a development project
Investment Climates and Women's Entrepreneurship
which is part of a larger gender project in theMiddle
East and North Africa (MENA) (World Bank, 2005)
which is assessing the opportunities for women
entrepreneurs inMENA client countries to promote
women's entrepreneurship.
Women's organizations
A contributory factor to women's leadership devel
opment is the growth of women's organizations

(CAWTAR, 2001; Roald, 2001). At the grassroots
levels women's organizations have been playing a
pivotal role in transforming social relations (Badran,
2005). Women's organizations have grown steadily
in the last decade especiaUy in the Gulf region
(Moghadam, 1997). A few of these social networks
as highlighted above have been supported by orga
nizations. The majority of women's organizations in
the ME, however, have grown from transnational
feminist movements and increased political con
sciousness about women's role in society (Acker,
2005; Badran, 2005; Walby, 2005). Global feminists
are bound together by a common discourse of
globalization and are developing a feminist organi
zation praxis that relies on coalition and network
building (Acker, 2006; Walby, 2005). While a great
deal of women's
organizations
concentrate on
pro
moting traditional female roles such as child care,
health education and religious education (for
example the UAE Women's Federation founded by
Sheikha Fatima), there are an increasing number that
are dedicated to advancing women in politics and
leadership roles. Specifically these organizations
contribute to women's
development
in
progressive
ways through provision of literacy programmes,
raising legal awareness about employment and per
sonal status rights, providing training programmes
for work-related skiUs aswell political participation
(for example Bahrain's Women's Society). Other
organizations unite professional women and offer a
development forum for enhancing women's
knowledge and skills.
The Jordan Forum for Women and Business' vision is
to
'empower women's participation in all social,
cultural, legal, business and economic development
in
Jordan, through education, advocacy, network
ing, training and professional support' (World Bank,
2005). In addition, the Bahrain Businesswoman's
Society (BBS) was recently successful in acquiring
funding from UNIFEM to support entrepreneurial
development skills training (Metcalfe, 2007).
Many women's
organizations, however, cannot
be managed independently and are often subject to
government checks or are tied to a religious party
(CAWTAR, 2001). Women's organizations are also
shaped by the nature of existing political regimes, for
example
an
independent women's
organization
movement in the context of political repression. It is
important
to
appreciate also that most of women's
organizations are united predominantly by their
middle-class background and their commitment to
retain and expand their civic rights (Bahry andMarr,
2005; Moghadam, 1997).
Advancing women in leadership
and management in the Middle East
The evidence in this paper has highlighted that there
are globalizing pressures that are shaping specific
forms of gender and economic relations at the
societal, organization and individual identity levels.
A unifying theme of these pressures is the principle
of Shar'ia law, albeit having slightly different inter
pretations
in
specific regions. That is, one conse
quence of globalization processes in theME has been
to make salient Islamic cultural values in shaping
gender and work systems. Islam is a unifying cultural
resource that forms a community of practice and
assists in the formation of organization practices and
individual subjectivities at institutional, organization
and individual identity levels (Acker, 2006; Ahmed,
1998; Ah, 1995).
Acknowledging this is important in mapping a
way forward to further assist women's empower
ment in the ME. An important consequence ofthe
foregoing discussion is that development initiatives
in Islamic states should advance the rights of women
as well as recognize the importance of family in
society. Family policies work to develop sustained
and efficient family support systems and open up
women's choice (Acker, 2005; Walby, 2005). A key
development
area then is to
help
women be able to
combine work and family responsibilities, and this
has been the primary characteristic of the develop
ment of equal opportunity policies in western
nations (Dickens, 1997; Hakim, 1996).
There has been more than one
way of conceptu
alizing the nature of and route to gender equality. At
least three major types of approach can be identified:
equality through sameness (equal opportunities or
equal treatment), through equal valuation of differ
ence (special programmes), and the transformation of
gendered practices and standards of evaluation (Liff,
1996). The first model is one inwhich equality based
on sameness is fostered, especially where women enter
previously male domains, and the existing male norm
remains the standard (Acker, 1992). The second isone

inwhich there is amove towards the equal valuation
of existing and different contributions of women and
men in a gender-segregated society. The third is one
where there is a new standard for both men and
women, that is, the transformation of gender relations
(Liff, 1996; Walby, 2005). Within theME states the
approach is clearly one of difference, and in valuing the
equal but different roles and abilities of men and
women. An Islamic lens would thus support the
development of women and management strategies
that value sex differences, acknowledging that men
and women may require different policy frameworks
to enable equal participation in the public sphere
(Hakim, 1996). Managing difference and the legiti
macy of women's needs are an important political
tactic in fostering social and economic transformation
(Hearn et al., 2006; Zanani and Jansons, 2003). That
is,women's unity is not essentialized but constructed
in relation to the organization of social and economic
relations (Liff, 1996; Hearn et al., 2006).
The debates on the conceptualization of gender
equality are informed by ongoing analysis of the
processes of changes in gender relations. In particular
there is a question of the extent to which progress
for women is closely associated with economic
development as contrasted to democraticaUy inspired
social and civil society development (Acker, 2006).
Here global critiques of empowerment are relevant.
While acknowledging that empowerment as a con
cept is fluid and variable according to social context,
there is consensus about women
having the ability
to
have options
and power and control over resources
(Longwe, 1997). The importance of sufficient wel
fare
regimes
and access to
productive
resources are
necessary requirements
to foster empowerment ini
tiatives in business spheres. However, the mobili
zation and coUective action of women to chaUenge
inequalities is also necessary. Significantly, women
should consider themselves as not only able to define
self-interest and choice, but also be entitled tomake
choices (Longwe and Clarke, 1994 in Malhotra
et al., 2002). This conscientisation (Longwe, 1997) and
awareness raising or agency focus as a locus of
empowerment is not to undo the responsibilities of
governments and multilaterals in creating enabling
factors to empower women, but to counter the fact
giving
women
greater control over resources has not
always led to the promotion of women's' interests.
As Malhortra et al. argue: 'Without women's indi
vidual or coUective ability to recognize and utilize
resources in their own interests, resources cannot
bring about empowerment' (2002, p. 9).
Table IV represents a development model that
focuses on capacity building initiatives for women's
leadership advancement on three levels. To ensure
women's economic security,
there is a need for an
enabling institutional, legal and regulatory frame
work to facilitate women's access to economic
resources. At the government level a key concern for
women's organizations has been legislative measures
that prohibit gender-based discrimination in the
workplace since this is largely inadequate in most
Arab states (Moghadam, 1997). There also need to
be reforms in educational policy to include provision
for women in vocational, professional and entre
preneurial activities. This requires some of the
women's administrative bodies in Arab states to give
equal emphasis
to the work as weU as the private
sphere. The implementation of these institutional
changes would require a greater number of women
in public administration roles through gender inte
gration and empowerment planning. This is one area
where Arab states are actively promoting women's
leadership and there is current debate about whether
TABLE IV
Women, learning and leadership development
Organization
Government Individual
Diversity and EO policies Legislation
Women's networks
-
local
Learning and knowledge transfer Active role of women's councUs and international
Support women's networks Development and training and Commitment to
lifelong
CoUaborations and enterprise development support for vocational provision learning
with Chambers of Commerce Entrepreneurship support Political participation
Political empowerment

quotas are a viable way forward (Badran, 2005;
UNDP, 2005; World Bank, 2003c).
In terms of economic planning there is a
requirement for government agencies to consider
the effect of trade policies on women and to ensure
that gender mainstreaming principles
are incorpo
rated in trade agreements
to
support women's
economic opportunities (Walby, 2005). It is vital to
understand macroeconomics from a
gender
view
point and to encourage women's participation in
economic policy and decision making.
To ensure women's economic advance in man
agement and the professions, there is a need for
organizations
to
support general empowerment ini
tiatives in the ME through the integration of
equality principles in HR planning and generaUy
through promoting discourses of equality. The
expansion of social and professional organizations,
supported by business institutions referred to earlier
in this paper, would provide opportunities for
women to share knowledge and assist women's
movement in important business networks.
However, it is not just about recruiting and pro
moting women in organizations. There is also a need
to involve individual women in social and political
forums within community networks (Badran, 2005;
Langwe, 1997). The globalization of concepts and
discourses of human rights, and the activities of
women's organizations, NGOs and INGOs have
supported the development of transnational feminist
networks and as argued in this paper stirred feelings for
acquiring new knowledges, new rights and new
opportunities. Reaffirming the commitment to
women's agency we would stress women be involved
as agents of change rather than be recipients (Malhorta
et al., 2002). Acquiring knowledge and understand
ing of gender relations and the ways inwhich these
relations may be changed is important for women to
move forward (Moghadam, 2005). Developing a
sense of self-worth and a belief in one's ability to
secure desired changes and the right to control one's
life are skiUs that need to be fostered.
Conclusion
In this paper we have explored the relationship
between women, management and globalization in
the ME. Itwas shown that women face social and
organizational barriers in the labour market and
through gendered organization and cultural practices.
In addition women have mobUity restrictions placed
on them which limit training and career choice op
tions.
Sex-segregated
work
practices
as weU as sex
segregated social relations inmany Arab societies limit
women's potential for advancement in the public
sphere.
It was also highlighted, however, that women
have made significant gains in politics, leadership and
management roles of late, and that Arab states were
committed to social change and reform, albeit
within the framework of an Islamic gender order. A
significant factor contributing
to women's advance
was
grassroots women's
organizations
which had
supported women's empowerment through raising
literacy levels, making provisions for business pro
grammes as well as supporting entrepreneurial
development.
The difficulties that many women face in theME
are similar to other women in many parts of the
world. However, there are
opportunities and con
straints for women attributed to gender within their
culture. Both men and women believe that Islam
defines gender and family roles and responsibilities
and these are taken very seriously. Women's groups,
governments and
organizations advocate the inter
face between the Islamic and universal construction
of human rights and stress the family as a foundation
of an Islamic state (Badran, 2005; UNIFEM, 2004).
The implication is thatWestern experiences may
not provide the most appropriate model with which
to improve women's economic and social status in
the ME. The priorities of western women, day care,
abortion rights, higher pay and economic equality
with men are of less
significance
to women who are
struggling for elementary rights to vote, to have
access to education programmes, to work of any
kind and to an end of sexual discrimination. While
feminist issues are only now being recognized, reli
gion is still an important regulator of everyday life
and of a source of female identity. A development
model proposed that a difference equality strategy,
acknowledging the importance of the family, was
the most appropriate way forward to develop
women's management and leadership capabilities
targeting institutional mechanisms, as weU as
women's individual agency. It should be high
lighted, however, that an Islamic cultural lens, while

advocating difference between the sexes, should not
be linked to ideas of subordination and deference.
Islam is an aU-embracing concept depicting human's
relationship to God and represents a programme of
life (Ahmed, 1998). The analysis presented suggests
therefore that we cannot understand the complexity
of gender and globalization processes without con
necting to broader social and economic changes
relating to the rights of women in Islamic nations.
Notes
These phrases refer to the labour market policies of
the Gulf States which aim to graduaUy decrease their
reliance on
expatriate labour and increase the number
of local nationals
employed.
The GEM
-
gender empowerment
measure is a
composite
indicator that captures gender inequality
in
three key areas: Political participation and decision
making,
as measured by women's and men's percentage
shares of parliamentary seats; Economic participation
and decision-making power,
as measured by
two indi
cators
-
women's and men's percentage shares of posi
tions as
legislators, senior officials and managers and
women's and men's percentage shares of professional
and technical positions; Power over economic re
sources, as measured by women's and men's estimated
earned income (UNIFEM, 2004).
Two terms are used to refer to law in Islam, Shar'ia
and Fiqh. Shar'ia refers to God's divine law detaUed in
Qu'ran, Sunnah and the sayings and doings of Moham
med (Hadith). Fiqh refers to
scholarly efforts to inter
pret Shar'ia (Ahmed, 1998).
These extracts are taken from Abdel HaUeem's
(2004) new English translation of the Qu'ran which is
considered exemplary
in Islamic scholarship.
There is ongoing debate about the definition and
measures of empowerment and the generaUy accepted
view is that individuals should have the ability to make
strategic life choices (Malhorta et al, 2002).
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