Taking large strides in progress

In 1992, I had the opportunity to meet Kawla Lootah, a young local lady from the Emirates, who had started the first Social Development Centre in Dubai which was under the aegis of the UAE’s Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. The Social Development Centre was established only for women and taught them various diverse skills such as literacy, typing, computer science and vocational training programmes including gardening, first aid, car mechanics, tailoring, talli work and cooking. The Centre also made a determined effort to preserve tradition, for instance, by practising the craft of weaving and braiding the fibres of the date palm, inherited from Bedouin culture. English was also taught as a second language. In the early 1990’s, there were about 11 such centres across the Emirates.

At that time, contrary to popular belief, local women worked in many areas ranging from the police, the military, in nursing and in the social sector. Kawla believed that the UAE was one of most forward-looking countries in the Arab world. She continued, “We are not very far behind. Our cultural attaché in Kuwait is a woman and so is a member of the Consular Section in our Embassy in Washington.”

I also got to know Fatima Ismail, who worked in a senior position at the Ministry. Fatima was a graduate from the University of Kansas in Lawrence in the United States and returned to work with the UAE Central Bank. Fatima was one of the first women accepted as an employee at the Central Bank. Fatima admitted, “The entire system of education in the U.S. was different to what I had been used to. The classes were mixed and the outlook of many students differed from mine. However, I never faced any problems. I lived my life on the campus the way I had been brought up to and my friends respected me for it.” Fatima observed that the 1970’s and 1980’s saw great change in the fabric of UAE society, largely due to education and the awareness that it had created.

The adjustment between the home and the workplace is something each individual woman has to negotiate. To keep up with the moving times, Fatima was aware she had to combine traditional home life with her work at the Bank. Like many others, she managed it with great success. “I am happy in both my worlds,” she said, “and I feel very satisfied with the work I am doing.”