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Sana'a: Women are not allowed to live their lives like men in Yemen because the social traditions still look at women as minors who need help and support however matured and educated they are, says a paper on women and tribal traditions in Yemen.
The main roles of women are confined to giving birth, raising children and caring for the house and the family, said the paper which was presented by researcher Dr Afaf Al Haimi in a symposium held in Sana'a this week on the political role of tribes in Yemen, Jordan and Iraq.
Education is not essential for women especially in the rural areas where women work for about 16 hours per day in the farms and houses, often fetching water.
The rates of illiteracy among women in the rural areas reaches 75.7 per cent and 40.5 per cent in the urban areas, she said.
The gap between girls' and boys' education is 76 per cent for girls versus 100 per cent for boys, she said.
The researcher also pointed out a high dropout rate from girls' schools in almost all stages of education.
The girls dropout from schools because of early marriage, a prevailing culture that does not encourage female education, work, and some families preventing girls from leaving the home, the researcher said.
Tribal culture
For those employed with the government, the number of women who work in the governmental institutions are 90,464, versus 440,061 men.
The researcher also criticised the educational curriculum in Yemen, saying it discriminates against women and focuses only on male power.
She said the political parties did not help women. The political parties are greatly affected by the tribal culture which considers women inferior.
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