SDG 5: Gender Equality
AUM University in Kuwait is a trailblazer in promoting SDG 5: Gender Equality. The university is committed to fostering an environment where women have equal opportunities in education, professional development, and leadership roles. Here's how AUM is working towards gender equality and empowering women in various fields:
1. Equal Educational Access: AUM ensures that women have the same access to education as men. The university encourages female students to pursue their academic interests and provides a supportive environment for their personal and professional growth.
2. Empowering Female Faculty: AUM actively supports and empowers female faculty members, fostering their career advancement and professional development. The university recognizes the value of diverse perspectives and experiences in enriching the educational environment.
3. Research and Initiatives: AUM promotes research and initiatives related to gender equality and women's empowerment. These projects raise awareness, challenge stereotypes, and contribute to a more inclusive campus culture.
4. Support Services: The university offers support services to address the unique needs of female students, including counseling, mentorship, and career guidance. These resources aim to help women succeed academically and professionally.
5. Leadership Opportunities: AUM encourages women to take on leadership roles within student organizations and academic societies. The university believes that fostering leadership skills is crucial for promoting gender equality.
6. Awareness and Advocacy: AUM actively engages in awareness campaigns and advocacy efforts to combat gender-based discrimination and promote gender equality. These initiatives extend to the campus community and beyond.
7. Community Outreach: AUM collaborates with local organizations and institutions to empower women in Kuwaiti society. These partnerships work towards gender equality at the community level.
By actively addressing SDG 5 and empowering women in education and various fields, AUM University in Kuwait is not only contributing to a more inclusive campus but also playing a vital role in advancing gender equality in society. The university's dedication to these efforts reflects its commitment to creating a more equitable and diverse academic and professional landscape.
Kuwaiti women have long been recognized as pioneers with a voice in social, political, intellectual, and cultural fields, throughout the country's history. The first Arab woman president of a university was from Kuwait at the Kuwait University, and women who have served as editors-in-chief of major newspapers, magazines, and multi-media outlets. Due to recent efforts and success in appointing female judges for the first time in Kuwait’s history, more women are pursuing careers as public prosecutors and more women lawyers are emerging. All these steps that Kuwait has taken to support and empower women in a variety of fields as part of its implementation of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 5.
Economic growth in Kuwait cannot be achieved without the full economic empowerment of women. This is one reason why the World Bank Kuwait Country Engagement Framework (CEF), which was recently approved by the Kuwaiti government in August 2021, includes a stand-alone Gender Engagement Framework, which mandates that all advisory services provided by the World Bank in Kuwait be viewed through a gender lens. The CEF will support a cross-cutting approach to increasing women's economic opportunities and will work to create an environment that is conducive to their employment, entrepreneurship, and leadership as well as their advancement in the workplace. The World Bank- Kuwait Gender Engagement Framework, is the first of its kind in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region.
In addition, Kuwait has been prioritizing women's economic empowerment in other key policy instruments, such as the new national plan for Kuwait called Vision 2035/New Kuwait. Kuwait's "New Kuwait" development strategy aims to transform the country into a regional financial, cultural, and institutional pioneer by 2035. It is built on five strategic axes and seven pillars: public administration, economy, infrastructure, living environment, healthcare, human capital, and global position. The Government of Kuwait aims to boost women’s engagement in the labor market under the Creative Human Capital pillar, in alignment with Goal 5 of the Sustainable Development Goals on gender equality. Vision 2035 aspires to transform the country into a knowledge-based economy by empowering the private sector to serve as the primary engine of growth. To achieve this goal, equal opportunity for men and women must be provided in order for both to be effective contributors to the vision.
Furthermore, as part of the SDG 5 program of the General Secretariat of the Supreme Council for Planning and Development, and in collaboration with the Kuwait University Women's Research and Studies Center, UN Women, and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the Women's Empowerment Program (WEP) initiative in Kuwait was launched. The Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs) are a set of guidelines for businesses on how to advance gender equality and women's empowerment in the workplace, marketplace, and community. They were developed by the United Nations Global Compact and UN Women. This initiative is geared toward the private sector and includes several companies. Its mission is to accelerate the implementation of Kuwait's new Vision 2035 by increasing the representation of women in leadership positions. In 2021, 14 new private sector companies committed to the WEPs to better diversify their workplace and promote women’s employment, bringing the total number of companies who adhere to these principles to 44.
And to further support these gender reform efforts, the General Secretariat of the Supreme Council of Planning and Development formed the Women's Affairs and Business Committee in May 2021 with the mandate of boosting women’s economic empowerment. Since its inception, the Committee has focused on increasing women’s participation in the workplace. It played a pivotal role in pushing through reforms in October 2021 to mandate non-discrimination based on gender in employment and to prohibit and criminalize sexual harassment at the workplace, in collaboration with the World Bank’s Business Regulations for Gender Equity Advisory team under the National Jobs Strategy Project.
While obstacles such as occupational segregation, a low female labor force participation rate, and social norms that restrict women's access to economic opportunity do still exist, there are also many opportunities to open the door for greater economic inclusion of Kuwaiti women. The above-mentioned significant steps already taken by Kuwait are a sign that the country means business, and other countries in the region can take note of these different multi-layered approaches in their plans to empowering women.
AUM supports the importance of the role of women in development to invest her energies and activating her essential role at the local and international levels, and thus supporting women empowerment
AUM graduate, Ghanima Al-Asfoor, is an intern at the European Organization for Nuclear Research, CERN
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We congratulate our students Suad Al-Othman and Kawthar Fadlallah from the Industrial Engineering major at AUM for winning the first place in the IEOM International Competition 🥇
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Whether in sports, art, engineering, technology, or business! Our students and graduates shine in various fields... and you can... Happy New Year
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Female student one of the promising leaders in the field of space
We are proud of our student Lama Al-Ariman ✨🚀🛰
AUM student Lama Al-Ariman was selected among 30 male and female students worldwide as one of the promising leaders in the field of space 🧑🏽🚀 by the International Astronautical Federation for her efforts in spreading awareness and encouraging young men and women to enter the field of space.
Lama received a scholarship to attend the 73rd International Conference on Astronautics in Paris, which is the most important annual event in the field of space, which all space agencies, government agencies and institutions, and private companies operating in the field of space are keen to attend.
His Highness the Deputy Emir and Crown Prince Sheikh Mishaal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah receives Lama Al-Ariman
• On the occasion of receiving the Rising Space Leaders Award presented by the International Astronautically Federation as a representative of the State of Kuwait in this global competition
#THEMENA Summit 2022 - Kuwait welcomed HRH Dr. Maha Bint Mishari Al Saud today at the panel discussion “Leadership reflections: How can we successfully bridge the gap between policy, institution and industry?”
The American University of the Middle East (AUM) celebrated International Women’s Day (IWD) by organizing various events for students, faculty, and staff.
The University joined the global movement of breaking the bias, which resulted in faculty and staff striking the “break the bias” pose to show solidarity and help advance gender equality worldwide. In addition, faculty and staff watched the empowering movie “Hidden Figures” at the AUM Cinema inside the Library.
On the other hand, the campus community engaged in various events, which saw students engaging in interactive activities related to women’s day by the lake, enjoying the performance of an all-female band, and watching a movie related to female historical figures.
Computer 💻 through the students' innovative project -
Al-Juri Al-Sharhan
Retaj Al-Qattan
to sign up:
Chemical 🧪👩🏻🔬 through the innovative project for students -
Rawan Al-Talihi
Mary Spring
Zahraa Mohammed
to sign up:
https://admission.aum.edu.kw/ApplyNow
From the interview of graduate Shaden Al-Mubarak 🎤
A success story that started at AUM ✨
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From the interview of graduate Batool Al-Awadi 🎤
A success story that started at AUM ✨
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Bodour Nakas
Fatima Al Balushi
Heba Al-Awadi
Laura Ibrahim
Maryam Idris
Zainab Ahmed
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Khadija Qutbuddin
Lulwa Al-Askar
Retaj Malallah
Sondos Al-Qallaf
Dana bin Nasser
Ahed Al Hajji
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The American University of the Middle East (AUM) concluded its AUM Startup Challenge 2022 by organizing an event at the Cultural Center on February 21, 2022.
The event was attended by faculty, staff, students, and special guest Mr. Jamie Kendrioski, Director of the Babson Collaborative for Entrepreneurship Education, who joined virtually.
The AUM Startup Challenge is the first phase of the Babson Global Student Challenge and results in three winning teams competing in the semi-finals and finals along with other participating universities from more than 16 countries from all over the world. AUM’s annual organization of the AUM Startup Challenge and its engagement in Babson’s Global Student Challenge comes as part of the university’s efforts to expose students further to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and challenge them to think of these goals in the context of business opportunities.
The event started with an exhibition where 25 teams of students who have been working on their business idea for months participated with a dedicated booth and explained to attendees about their project and how it helps advance one or more of the SDGs.
A jury comprising of subject matter experts from AUM faculty voted for the top six teams based on specific rubrics. All attendees also had the chance to vote for the best three teams.
Following the exhibition, the elected six teams presented their ideas on stage and the top three were selected by the jury.
The team that ranked first, second, and third were awarded 5,000 KWD, 3,000 KWD, and 1,500 KWD, respectively, as part of AUM’s support to help them turn their startup idea into reality.
At the end of the event, Mr. Jamie Kendrioski delivered a speech where he congratulated all the participating teams and talked about the collaborations between AUM and Babson. “Babson and AUM share a belief that entrepreneurship is not only about starting a business but is also a mindset applicable to any industry that when put to its best use truly can advance social, economic, and environmental causes, and change the world,” Kendrioski said as part of his speech.
Kendrioski also announced that the winning team of the Babson Global Student challenge will receive a scholarship to attend “Babson Build”, an immersive and experiential one-week-long entrepreneurship program that takes place at Babson in the United States in July. Participants join a global cohort of peers, experience Babson’s unique ecosystem, and learn to think and act more entrepreneurially.
Kendrioski concluded his speech with a special announcement on behalf of the American University of the Middle East that the team from AUM that reaches the finals will receive a scholarship to attend Babson Build.
