arab human development report 2003 - Palestine Remembered

The core challenges tohuman developmentin Arab countries, asepitomised in the"three deficits", arestill criticallypertinent.steps in Jordan allocating a minimum of sixseats for women.More broadly, the ruler of the UnitedArab Emirates affirmed the right of womento engage in political activity. In Qatar, awoman won, for the first time, a seat in alocal council and, at the beginning of 2003, awoman was appointed minister of education.The Kuwaiti government adopted adraft law allowing women to join the securityforces. In the Sultanate of Oman,women were allowed to drive taxis and tocarry passengers of both sexes. In Yemen awoman was appointed as a State Ministerfor Human Rights and one woman enteredParliament in a 2003 election. And in a suddendevelopment early in 2003, Egyptjoined other Arab countries in allowingwomen to serve on the Judiciary by appointinga female attorney-at-law as the firstwoman judge on the SupremeConstitutional Court and appointing twowomen as commissioners before that court.The political emancipation of Arabwomen called for in the first AHDR evidentlystill has a long way to go; yet the newprogress made in this period is evidence of agreater receptivity to women’s empowermentat the executive levels of governmentsand state institutions.Evidently, the core challenges to human development in Arab countries, as epitomised inthe "three deficits" identified by the first AHDR, are still critically pertinent. Arguably, thosechallenges are even graver than before, especially with respect to freedom. World and regionaldevelopments unfavourable to Arab human development have exacerbated these negativetrends.The second part of this report aims to make a continuing contribution to Arab human developmentthrough a detailed study of one of the three cardinal deficits – knowledge. Thisstudy culminates in a strategic vision for building the knowledge society in Arab countries.32 ARAB HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPORT 2003