Qatar

Qatar is an Arab emirate in the Middle East, bordered by Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf. It is a monarchy governed by an emir who exercises power with few restraints. The family is considered the primary social institution to provide a suitable environment for children's care and growth.

A new constitution, approved in 2003, formally grants women equality and the right to participate in competitive and democratic elections with full and equal suffrage. In April 2003, the first woman cabinet minister was elected in Qatar's second municipal council elections. However, in practice, most women living in Qatar are not always treated as equals.

The state religion is Islam, and the majority of Qatar's residents are Sunni Muslims. The implementation of Islamic laws in Qatar is often discriminatory against women, particularly the laws that govern inheritance and child custody. Women do not have full and equal freedom to choose a husband, and polygamy is quite widespread and accepted as Qatar tradition. Qatari law allows a woman to seek a divorce by petitioning the court. The court will only grant a woman divorce if she can prove she is no longer able to continue to live with her husband. Women are generally granted custody of younger children (boys under 7 and girls until puberty), while fathers are granted custody of older children.

Women have restricted freedom of movement. To get a driver's license, it is required to get permission of their male guardian and prove their daily life necessitates mobility. Schools, workplaces, restaurants, health clubs, and banks have either family rooms or women's sections.

Education has been the doorway through which women have entered the workforce. Statistics show that the number of Qatari female students in the state-run schools has risen at greater rates than the number of male students. Cultural and family pressures have led the majority of employed women to work in the fields of education and health care. Women who have been employed for a complete year are entitled to maternity leave with full pay for 50 days. Upon returning to work, a nursing mother is entitled to two hours per day (for one year following delivery) for nursing.

Of married women or those who had been married, 69 percent used at least one contraceptive method, and 43 percent of presently married women use some form of birth control. The rate of contraceptive use among women rose from 32 [Page 1046]percent in 1987 to 43 percent in 1999. The fertility rate for women (ages 15–19) dropped from 57 children per 1,000 women in 1990 to 36 in 1999, a decline of 36 percent. This decline is due to the rise in marriage age, which is attributed to the tendency of this age group to pursue further education and join the workforce. The total fertility rate dropped from 4.7 in 1990 to 3.2 in 1999.