A virtual international symposium "Arab Women. Entrepreneurship opportunities. and challenges of success in the daughters of Ain Shams

Under the auspices of Prof. Dr. Mahmoud El-Metini, President of Ain Shams University, Prof. Dr. Ayman Saleh, Vice President for Graduate Studies and Research, Prof. Dr. Amira Youssef, Dean of the Women's Faculty and Prof. Dr. Hanan Al-Shaer, Vice Dean of the Faculty of Girls for Graduate Studies and Research, held the International Journal of Women and Child Studies issued by the Faculty of Girls, Ain Shams University, and with the participation of the Arab Women Organization, an international virtual symposium was held entitled "Arab Women.. Entrepreneurship Opportunities. and Challenges of Success."

Prof. Dr. Fadia Kiwan, Director-General of the Arab Women Organization, participated in the opening of the symposium, speaking about the challenges of research in the humanities and following the scientific method in studying the factors behind stereotypes and shifts in the concept of the social role of men and women, and the obstacles that prevent the dismantling of those stereotypes.

Several academic professors also participated in research papers in the symposium. Where Prof. Dr. Fawzia Al-Bakr from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, participated with a research paper entitled: “Empowering Saudi Women in the Light of Vision 2030: Opportunities and Challenges,” in which she explained the giant steps taken by Saudi women in the past few years towards active participation, scientifically and practically, to serve the renaissance of Saudi society, and the society’s interaction with those changes at the family side, at the professional side, and in the business sector .

While Prof. Dr. Buthaina Ghalbzouri participated from Morocco with a research paper entitled: “Arab Women from Discrimination to Empowerment between Privacy and Universality: Equality as a Model.” Her paper addressed the concepts of equality and women’s empowerment, which are two sides of the same coin. It also sheds light on many ambiguous doctrinal issues related to equality between women and men, which contribute to the ambiguity of the concept of equality among many jurists and the public.

Also Prof. Dr. Samia Kadry presented a research paper entitled: “Empowerment of Egyptian Women: A Socio-historical Reading” in which she addressed the historical path of Egyptian women’s liberation and chronicled the main stations that constituted a qualitative shift in women’s participation in education and professional work in various sectors, and liberation from cultural legacies that were constraining their freedom and contribution in the renaissance of Egyptian society. In the end, Prof. Dr. Azza Khalil presented a research paper entitled: "Women's Psychological Empowerment and Patriarchal Culture", in which she sheds light on the concept of patriarchal culture and the factors that underpin it, and how this ideology works to curb women's emancipation and their access to equal opportunities with men.

Also discussed the concept of "psychological empowerment" and identified its dimensions, methods of development, and the establishment of the concept of equality between women and men from an objective perspective away from the patriarchal perspective prevailing in many Eastern and Western societies.

The symposium lasted 3 hours and many attendees from different Arab countries (Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Morocco, Algeria) participated in it.

The seminar was coordinated by Pro. Dr. Azza Khalil, professor in the Department of Child Education at the faculty and editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Women and Child Studies, under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Radwa Ramadan, director of the scientific publishing unit at the faculty.