New Arab Women Forum Inaugurated

The opening day of the forum witnessed the recognition of the previous First Lady of Lebanon, Muna Elias Hraoui, in conclusion of the morning opening ceremony steered by Mr. Zahi Wehbe; the ceremony also included speeches delivered by H.E. Bahiya Al Hariri, Dr. Nadine Abou Zaki, and Dr. Sima Bahous, in addition to the participation of MBC Group represented by Mazen Hayek, Group Director of Marketing, PR and Commercial.

Hayek's speech discussed several developments, namely: First, the honoring of Elinor Ostrom, 76 year old professor at the University of Indiana with the Nobel Prize for Economics, marking a significant milestone as the first female to be awarded such a prize. Ostrom shared her prize with a fellow American academic, Oliver Williamson, also 76, and teacher at the University of California, Berkeley. Both professors specialize in economic governance and the deployment of authority to resolve conflicts.

Second, The Arab Human Development Report for 2009, compiled by the UNDP, addressing the challenges of "Human Security in Arab Countries". This in-depth and timely Report dedicates a complete chapter - from a total of nine - towards the "non-existence of personal security for people beyond mainstream society", as well as "gender preferences and bias against women", in addition obviously to other sensitive topics such as: the physical and mental abuse of women; premature marriages; agreements to alleviate all kinds of prejudice against women; honorary crimes; rape; violence encountered under military occupations; and finally, female sufferings and child abuse under siege.

Third, the UNIFEM Report which raises the pressing question of:

"Who will be held responsible for the discrimination against women? It tackles the concerns of women's progress in the world to be able to better contribute to politics and public arenas, as well as play an active role in economy and accountability; face discrimination and implement justice. This important report is one of many other credible reports that shed the light on women's continuous advances on various fronts particularly in terms of income, education, purchasing power and active contribution in the workplace. Hayek stressed the fact that women today control the majority of worldwide purchasing decisions of around $12 trillion dollars from the Overall Global Consumption Spending which amounts to an annual figure of approximately US$ 18.4 trillion."

Women also control 73 % of Household Expenditures in the U.S., in comparison to 50 % in China and 33 % in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Furthermore Hayek raised awareness about women in Scandinavian countries that occupy 20.5 % of executive boards, as opposed to 1.5 % only in the GCC.; and he further indicated that by the year 2013, it is expected that women will represent the biggest opportunity and potential power in the world and will enjoy an average income of US$ 15.6 trillion, half of that of men's which is expected to then reach around US$ 31.1 trillion.

Moreover, Hayek's fourth indication referred to "Forbes" 2009 list of "Top 100 Most Powerful Women" and the Financial Time's "Top 50 Women in Business", where the former included only two Arab women; and the second list recognized only one Arab woman.

The speech was concluded by addressing a number of thought provoking questions: "What could or would be the incentives that will uplift talented, educated Arab Women to new pioneering realms in order to steer business and trade; government institutions, parliament and public administration; charity, social responsibility and good governance; mass communication and journalism in addition to other sectors that require combined elements of education, risk, initiative-taking, entrepreneurial zeal, courage, merit and fulfillment?"

Furthermore, Hayek questioned the proper mechanisms and tools for Arab Women to progress and embrace Change, Reform, Sustainable Development, Meritocracy, and Good Governance while actively participating in both the public and private arenas.

And in conclusion, Hayek ended his speech with an integral subject about Arab Women's capability to develop their own initiatives to break the cycle that hinders their role in various sectors and spheres, anytime, anywhere.