Women account for nearly half of Oman’s population, but make up about one percent of its top leadership. A community leadership program, implemented by AMIDEAST with funding from Shell Development Oman LLC, has sought to enable Omani women to advance their leadership potential and play a greater role in their communities. 

The Community Capacity-Building Initiative for Women (CCIW) helped over 150 Omani women from across the country acquire communications and strategic thinking skills to strengthen their self confidence and empower them to contribute in all areas. During week-long “Leadership Essentials” workshops, participants learned how to present themselves confidently, establish rapport with others, communicate effectively, set and achieve goals, and empower themselves and others around them.  Techniques such as role-playing and self-assessment helped them explore roles as strategist, change agent, coach, manager, communicator and team member. 

“Women did not want the workshops to end because they had such an impact on their daily lives,” said Sabah Al Bahlani, an experienced community-based trainer who assisted with facilitating the workshops.  “The workshops raised the participants’ awareness that they are responsible for what is happening to them, and to move away from being constrained by perceived limitations from their families, from men, and from society. They realized they can accomplish their goals and dreams.  It was a wonderful experience to see this happening from Day One of the workshops.”

Implemented in coordination with Oman’s Ministry of Social Development, the CCIW provided training sessions in five regions — Nizwa, Salalah, Sur, Muscat, and Sohar — to a representative group of women from the private and public sectors: members of Omani Women’s Associations, entrepreneurs, candidates for the 2011 Majlis al Shura elections, teachers and school principals, health sector employees, volunteers, and assorted other “leaders-to-be” in their communities.   

The program built on themes of women’s empowerment and education that emerged from a women’s forum in Sohar in 2009. Organized under the directive of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said, it underscored the importance of education and empowerment of women and the critical role that women play in contributing to sustainable development in Oman. 

"This program has helped to strengthen our cultural outlook and to use that to improve our situation,” said Thuraya Al Nabhani, one of the participants from the city of Nizwa.  “This comes in tandem with the royal directives of His Majesty the Sultan to involve women in the country’s development."

It wasn’t long ago that Oman had some of the worst indicators for women in the world. That has changed considerably. Omani women have achieved great strides since 1970, when the vast majority were illiterate. Today, the literacy rate of women is close to 75 percent (compared to over 86 percent for men), and both men and women complete 11 years of schooling on average. Moreover, a growing number of Omani women are holding senior positions in the government and seeking elective office.

The strides are driven in part by the government’s policy of Omanization, which encourages greater participation of women in economic and political spheres.   Aiming to focus on the untapped potential of half of its population, the government supports a network of 53 Omani Women’s Associations, which provide women a channel for voluntary work, training programs, public awareness initiatives, and the provision of early childhood education.

AMIDEAST has implemented several programs with an exclusive women’s focus in Oman in recent years. They included two job-skills programs for women and a training course to promote entrepreneurship awareness among girls nearing completion of high school.  AMIDEAST has also enabled Omani women to participate in a number of programs involving study and internships in the United States.