Bahrain-based Gulf Daily News (GDN) has partnered with UN Women to highlight its year-long campaign to promote gender equality.

As part of a series of articles to mark the 20th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, GDN, our sister publication, has reported on the disparity between women's achievements in education and the world of work.

Gender discrimination is still widespread in Bahrain as a result of traditionalist views, according to a top parliamentary official.

Parliament services committee chairman Abbas Al Madi told the GDN that "honestly" speaking there was a prejudice against women in the workforce, despite the fact that female students regularly outperform men academically.

He said this was probably because it was men, of an "older generation", who were in control of the hiring process.

"In Bahrain now, most ministries prefer men over women in some jobs," he said.

"In some cases, they don't need the person to be at the desk, but rather out doing checks - so some people would say that a man is more equipped to do that. As a younger generation, we don't have that problem, but the older generation do.

"There is still gender discrimination.

"Let's speak honestly - in some companies, the person hiring will be religious, an older man, and when he's looking at application he'll say, why should I hire a woman? A man would be better.

"We don't have a law that says we have to have a certain percentage of women and men."

Statistics released by the Supreme Council for Women (SCW) show that in higher education, women in Bahrain outnumber men by almost two to one - or 61 per cent to 39 per cent.

Female students also receive higher grades and the largest number of scholarships and fellowships, a split of 69.39 per cent female to 30.61 per cent male.

However, in technical and vocational education the numbers are very different, with men outnumbering women 86 per cent to 14 per cent.

Private secondary schools also have more boys than girls with 55 per cent males to 45 per cent females while in government secondary schools, the split is a more even figure at 51 per cent female to 49 per cent male.

Women with higher education certificates are also less likely to find a job, according to the SCW statistics, with 66 per cent of those entitled to unemployment benefits holding a bachelor's degree or higher.

"Statistics always give us a certain indicator that the country has to take into account," said Al Madi.

"Why are there more boys in private school? The government needs to look into that, perhaps through surveys or interviews with parents.

"I believe that in some cases, people don't have the money to send all their children to private school. So if the choice is between a boy and a girl, they decide to send the boy because he has to work and should have a more comprehensive education.

"That isn't everyone's opinion and it's not mine, but it is an opinion that does exist.


"Some people also have the thought that they won't send the girl because she will get married and might not work,” he added.

Meanwhile, Shura Council women and child affairs committee head Hala Ramzy said that compulsory paid maternity and bereavement leave could be dissuading some employers from hiring women.

"In my opinion, one of the main reasons for such a high percentage of female unemployment is our Labour Law," she said.

"As you know, by law women have paid maternity leave, feeding hours and bereavement leave.

"All these paid absences make employers reluctant to employ females even if they achieve higher grades.

"To change this we need to either change our law, which is difficult, or we need to change the mindset of employers by giving them incentives for employing females, for example."

Ramzy added that Bahrain has achieved much over the past two decades for women's rights.

"I think a lot has been done during the last 20 years," she said.

"Females today account for around 40 per cent of workforce in the government sector and around 35 per cent in private sector.

"To me personally I would like to see a 50:50 ratio of male to female workers but I know its not so easy, as some females prefer staying home after education, especially those who have secured income either from a father or a husband."

The SCW hoped to increase the rate of female employment in Bahrain as it is "important for the national economy and raising the standard of living", Ramzi said. – TradeArabia News Service