Executive Summary
Constraints on women’s rights and freedoms, along with gender imbalances, are struggles in Yemen that predate the war. A decade of conflict, political instability, and pervasive insecurity has compounded this situation, posing a serious threat to the role and participation of Yemeni women in public life. Reports of increased gender-based violence, discrimination, and marginalization of women; restrictions on their freedom of movement and expression; as well as harassment and targeting of female leaders and activists are all worrying trends that appear to be on the rise since the onset of war. Without action, they risk pushing women out of Yemen’s political and public life.
In response, the Sana’a Center for Strategic Studies convened a three-day scenario-building workshop in Amman, Jordan, in May 2023. The workshop brought together Yemeni leaders from various professional sectors, including academics, artists, journalists, educators, members of civil society and women’s groups, business professionals, and researchers. Together, they developed various scenarios for the status of women by 2030 and formulated strategies to enhance their role in Yemen. The following strategy is the culmination of their work, in addition to consultations with more than 60 Yemeni male and female leaders from various governorates in Yemen and the diaspora, as well as extensive desk research and mapping of current efforts and gaps in the protection of women’s rights.
The strategy outlines a shared vision for stakeholders with influence on women’s rights and freedoms, including Yemen’s internationally recognized government, political parties, civil society, and national and international organizations operating in Yemen, such as the United Nations (UN). It is premised on the understanding that Yemeni women and girls should enjoy equal rights and participate fully in public life, socially, politically, and economically. They should be able to express their opinions and use their voices to shape decision-making at all national, regional, and local levels. To achieve this goal, Yemeni stakeholders identified three priorities to safeguard women’s rights and freedoms better:
- Promote positive narratives around the leadership role of Yemeni women in governance and development, including their active role in peacebuilding, political life, and civic space.
- Ensure the protection of Yemeni women working in the public realm, including female human rights defenders, politicians, community leaders, and professionals such as lawyers, journalists, and humanitarian workers.
- Empower women-led civil society organizations, informal associations and networks, women in political parties, and human rights defenders.
Numerous stakeholders in Yemen are developing gender strategies, revisiting their gender-related policies, and responding to the escalating demands of Yemeni women for support and protection against current risks. Concurrently, a growing body of evidence examines the prevailing patterns and underlying causes of the barriers faced by Yemeni women in the public sphere. Such developments present an unmissable opportunity for collective action. This requires different agencies, both national and international, to collaborate, ensuring a more comprehensive and practical approach.
To successfully implement this strategy, it is crucial to integrate strategic actions into the existing advocacy plans and strategies of key stakeholders, including the Sana’a Center for Strategic Studies (SCSS). This will entail establishing clear links between actions that support women’s rights and freedoms and broader strategies aimed at achieving political transition, transitional justice, and peacebuilding.