“First Jobs for Young Women in the Middle East & North Africa: Expectations and Reality” is a research imitative undertaken by Bayt.com, YouGov, and Education for Employment (EFE). The white paper sets out to learn more about the obstacles faced by young women in the MENA, and to identify potential ways to manage these obstacles. The findings suggest that there are tangible steps that governments, NGOs, employers and young women themselves can undertake to increase women’s participation in the workforce.
Some highlights:
96% of the young women and92% of the employers surveyed believe there are challenges to young women entering their field.
Young employed women and employers cited the need for flexible working hours to care for family as a top challenge (55% and57%, respectively).
Inadequate salaries were mentioned by42% of both employed women and women seeking employment. However, only17% of employers felt that unrealistic salary expectations were a main challenge for young women trying to enter their field.
32% of young employed women cited knowing someone who worked at the company as the most helpful factor in securing their first job, with the second most cited method being word of mouth.
To create more and better pathways to a job for young women, employers could consider partnering with or advising NGOs and governments to shape effective interventions.
Significantly, only7% of young women job seekers indicated that they would most like to work in a small or medium local private company.
The “First Jobs for Young Women in the Middle East & North Africa: Expectations and Reality” white paper is available here.
