Of all the life-altering changes that the world has seen in the last 100 years, I am happiest for the fact that women can now take an education for granted in most countries, writes Neerja Singh Of all the life-altering changes that the world has seen in the last 100 years, I am happiest for the fact that women can now take an education for granted in most countries. Not only is there tremendous joy in learning, educated women have been proved to uplift entire communities. But for the largest majority of women, education does not necessarily translate into a fulfilling working life. Inevitably, after the studies and flirting with a career, marriage happens and at some point, children come along. Asian, Arab or Western, no matter how ‘successful’ a woman may be at her place of work, ultimately the home and children are a woman’s responsibility. It’s what we have always done, it’s what our families expect — and for many it’s also a heartfelt desire to do so. I believe feminism has done a huge disservice to women by making it feel ‘wrong’ to want to do the right thing by one’s family at the cost of a career. It has been drilled into us that come what may, if we have
replica watches been educated we must endure the life of a wannabe superwoman: finish a week’s worth of chores in a day, perform 100 per cent at work, come back and lay fresh meals on the table, ensure we’re on top of kids’ school work — and do it all with an ever-ready, beatific smile. There are many reasons women put up with killing schedules; one of the most compelling is the simple fact that one salary is never enough and a family can live much better on two wages. Let’s face the truth though: very few of us are working at jobs that have anything to do with our qualification or passion and given enough money, many would be happy to change directions. So why limit the definition of paying work only to superficial skills? Why not look deep within for an interest that could uniquely define you? Something you learned in your mother’s lap, an activity that fills you with joy, something creative that might also make a commercially viable product? Women in the UAE come from over 100 diverse backgrounds; they collectively represent a huge treasure of feminine skills that were taken for
Rolex watches granted only two generations ago. From cooking snacks or special foods to celebration songs and dances or weaving, knitting, painting, quilting, pottery and embroidery, women have always created emotional gifts and lifelong memories with their unique talents. I still possess a rug my grandmother wove more than 50 years ago at a loom in her backyard, and simply looking at it reminds me of her colourful personality, instantly connecting me to a person who passed away decades ago. Now, with ladies simply not able to spend enough time at home, I believe the world is set to lose a huge chunk of culture when the current generation of mothers passes away unless governments step in to take urgent corrective action. As things stand, even if a woman has a unique talent she can use commercially, there is no formal platform for her to exhibit or sell products, nor can she legally do so without first risking a lot of money — money she may not have in the first place. But if the government is to create a forum which enlists talented women, helps them stand on their feet, connects sellers and buyers, performs the necessary quality checks and makes it legal to accept payments for these goods, women
Breitling watches will come forward. Imagine how that could energise the community! No more dragging your feet to work every morning, no more enduring of drudgery, no more living from one weekend to the next, one pay cheque to the other. Happy people are far more productive, and if every home is humming with the sounds of joyous industry, we cannot even begin to fathom how far-reaching the social, economic and health ?consequences could be. When the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner Mohammad Yunus started giving loans from his personal income to the poor in Jobra village near his university, he focused on lending to women: women who, in Bangladesh’s conservative environment, had never had formal education, never been allowed to step outside the house, never handled money matters. Yet he insisted on handing over the money to women even when a couple applied for a loan, and he encouraged women to find something they could do inside the house: buy a goat, create handicraft items, learn a skill that the village did not have. Today, the Grameen Bank model has been copied in dozens of countries across the Western world too — and I believe UAE needs to implement a similar body. Look at it this way: in a country where the expat population hugely outnumbers the
discount ugg boots numbers of locals, wouldn’t the cultural tapestry be so much more colourful if it had shades of all residents? Not only would a visitor to the UAE have much more to see, buy and be impressed with; the country would benefit in several other ways too. For one, increased ‘happiness quotient’ (which many nations have now started calculating along with GDP as a measure of how well a country is doing) of any society is not just a fancy concept for reports, it is directly responsible for the long-term physical and mental health of a nation. When women are able to do something they love and work flexible schedules to accommodate their family’s needs, homes will be overall happier, more relaxed places, which will make for stronger, more connected families. When children can see their mothers straight after school, they will both get time to eat, play and study together without any rush or tension. It will also make for those unplanned moments that are some of life’s most wonderful: when your mother narrated childhood stories, laughed in a way you’ll always remember with a grin, spontaneously sang a song or got up and danced ?for you. Secondly, nothing drives a branch of
cheap ugg boots learning like the smell of money; if more people could be assured of an earning from traditional talents, more people would come forward to learn them. The ripple effects that will follow will demonstrate how with one stroke of the pen it is possible for a country to prevent an impending cultural loss, create a fresh talent bank in the next generation, strengthen families, improve major health benchmarks and make all residents feel deeply connected to the country they call home.
