State Feminism: The Lived Experiences of Qatari Women Leaders Within Qatar Foundation

This study focuses on how the lived experiences of Qatari women within the Qatar state feminism policies are delivered by Qatar Foundation. The emphasis on women is informed by the challenges they face in traversing various juridical, social, political and economic spheres, including who initiates and implements governmental actions to create and reinforce women’s status in Qatari society; for what reason; women’s part and contribution in state feminism strategy processes; the statutory, executive and managerial depiction of women within society; and their connection to existing feminist institutions or programmes. The study focused on a life history analysis of eight (8) elite Qatari women who worked for Qatar Foundation. The results showed reflected that both public and private patriarchy impact on the objectives of state feminism as described in the lives of the women. Secondly, women adopted three main strategies; deferring, exit and conformity strategies to respond to private patriarchy and hence apply themselves to the public spheres. Finally, two main policy aspects noted in the study were that; there was a need to review the personal status laws and family laws and the wide pay gap between men needed addressing while ensuring women took a lead role in initiating some or all these policies.