Dubai, UAE: 02 May, 2013 - There is a need to develop a national strategy to retain highly qualified women in the workforce, especially as part of a successful implementation of the UAE's Emiratization policy, according to Dr Sylvia Maier, Clinical Assistant Professor, Center for Global Affairs, New York University.

Dr Maier added: "If we are to facilitate gender equality, we must also raise awareness on the significant contributions that highly qualified women make to the national economy. In addition to encouraging the development of networking and mentoring opportunities between and among senior and junior female and male professionals, we must foster a 'Can Do It' attitude among girls from an early age."

Dr Maier's comments came during a seminar titled 'From the Classroom to the Boardroom: Breaking Down Barriers, Realizing Potential' organized as part of Dubai School of Government's (DSG) Gender and Public Policy Program Seminar Series.

The seminar explored from a cross-national perspective the reasons behind the gender gap in the labor force, identifying ways that women can leverage their academic achievements to shape successful careers. The discussion also highlighted strategies for professional advancement that women have developed or adapted from their male peers to overcome social and structural obstacles for realizing their full potential.

In addition, women's low participation in the labor force has also been attributed to cultural pressures and expectations that women, once married, should prioritize their responsibilities as wives and mothers. This mindset has particularly contributed to the high dropout rates at the workplace following the birth of the first child, leaving only a small number of women 'in the pipeline' for senior positions.

Other reasons include lack of child care facilities outside the home, limited number of suitable jobs in the public sector and keen competition from male counterparts for jobs, as well as low prestige of private sector jobs and low awareness of women-specific work-life balance needs. Lack of available mentoring and networking opportunities to support junior women as they struggle to balance career and family also tilt the balance against women.

Ghalia Gargani, Acting Director of the Gender and Public Policy Program, said: "We are delighted to have had the opportunity to host Sylvia Maier and gain from her cross national perspective based on the interesting research she has conducted in the region. The Gender and Public Policy Program at DSG will continue to focus its efforts on similar important issues. Later this year, we will be launching a regional research initiative on family formation and work, which will look at how processes of career progression and family formation intersect in the lives of young men and women in the GCC and how notions of work, family and care are negotiated."

Dr Maier also recommended ways for replicating the phenomenally successful strategies of GCC governments to increase women's access to higher education in Yemen and Afghanistan, where the gender makes up only between 20 - 30 percent of the student body.

Dr Sylvia Maier's primary fields of interest are women's rights and empowerment in the Global South, with a particular focus on Afghanistan, Pakistan and the UAE where she has worked, taught and conducted extensive field research. Her expertise extends to honor-based violence, as well as social and political reform movements in the Middle East, Gulf and South Central Asia. Dr Maier has spoken and published on these and related subjects and is currently working on a book manuscript, tentatively titled "Paradise in Her Hands: Women's Empowerment in Afghanistan."

Established in 2007, the Dubai School of Government's Gender and Public Policy Program aims to address the challenges facing research and policy making on gender related issues in the Arab world. Important functions of the Gender and Public Policy Program include informing organizational policy on gender-related issues through policy formulation, filling knowledge gaps on gender issues through knowledge production, and presenting alternative empowering views.

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About the Dubai School of Government
The Dubai School of Government (DSG) is a research and teaching institution focusing on public policy in the UAE and the region. Established in 2005 under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, DSG aims to promote good governance through enhancing the institutional capacity for effective public policy. Toward this goal, the Dubai School of Government also collaborates with regional and global institutions in delivering its research and training programs. In addition, the School organizes policy forums and international conferences to facilitate the exchange of ideas and promote critical debate on public policy.

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© Press Release 2013