The Importance of Emirati Women

Article in brief: the author reflects on the importance of the Emirati Women’s Day for the society to keep thriving to achieve more.

Oh how blessed we are as Emirati women to receive such unequivocal support from our wise leadership. The news and social media are filled with words of both celebration and gratitude for the Emirati Women’s day, but here is why I believe we can do more.

The Emirati Women’s day is set to recognize the role women have played in the sustainable development of the UAE. Although the day might seem mainly as a commemoration of what Emirati women have done so far in the past years for the progress of the nation, we must not lose sight of what more we can do in the future.

On this day, the starting pistol of the marathon is shot; we all must be set and ready to run.

If Sheikh Zayed, our Founding Father, and Sheikha Fatma, the Mother of the Nation, have taught us anything, it is that the road to further development never ends. Therefore, I would like to call upon myself and my fellow compatriots to pull out our journals and start drafting our personal guidebook to that road.

Writing down what we want to do forces us to clarify why we need to take a certain action, and motivates us to continue to take it.

I believe there are five important points we need to consider in that regard. First, write down a list of what the UAE has done –and is doing- for us. Second, note down what we’re good at and what our unique skills are. Third, ask ourselves how that can benefit our society, and start writing a list of what we can do for the UAE. Fourth, find a mentor to help us through our journey. Finally and most importantly, believe in ourselves and know that we are worthy of being successful.

We, both Emirati women and men, are now presented with an opportunity. Both our roles are complementary to each other. Just as women tens of years ago have assisted their men when they went out to make ends meet, we will now be great together with our brothers, supporting each other, as we go out to serve our country.

For a minute, let us step back a little and look at the world. It is 2015, and there are still countries that do not allow girls to receive an education. As a result, less than half of their female population are literate. This situation restricts opportunities for women to obtain leadership positions, diminishing their participation in decisions that affect society at large. Women in that part of the world have to fight for their rights.

The aforementioned example does not only make us feel ultimately blessed and proud, but it also must make us think of ways to give back to the country that gave us what so many other nations crave for. However, we need to remember that we also have a battle to fight, but a battle within ourselves. That is, we need to push ourselves to live up to the trust our leaders have put in us and take on the responsibility we are given to be a more contributing member of our society’s development.