AMMAN // While Jordanians accept female police officers directing traffic, the idea of women sitting behind the wheel of a taxi is still a step too far for many in this conservative kingdom.
Four young Jordanian woman — Rahmeh Abu Shweimeh, Sura Al Mahasis, Maha Al Amad and Salam Abu Khadra — are intent on breaking that taboo.
Next year the women will launch a company called SheCab, a taxi service exclusively for female passengers, despite the venture already having sparked an uproar on social media.
“SheCab will be the first official female taxi company provided by women drivers to women,” said Ms Shweimeh, 22, a pharmacology student.
“We are targeting women who do not use transportation because of family restrictions that prevent them from riding with a male driver. We are trying to make life easier for them and provide them with a safe means of transportation,” she said.
The young women came up with the idea for SheCab last year while attending a five-week programme on women’s leadership in the United States.
After winning a $USD 21,000 (Dh77,000) grant from an innovation fund connected to the US state department, the women are now developing a smartphone app for booking the taxis and tracking their street locations ahead of an official launch next year.
They have also provided financial support to five women who obtained their public transportation driver licences and will drive taxis for SheCab in the future. These women will also attend self defence classes.
Though SheCab’s founders, three undergraduate students and one graduate, are not planning on driving the taxis themselves, they hope the company will help change Jordanian society and also allow women to earn independent incomes.
Despite the intention to make life easier for women, earlier this month, the controversy surrounding such a company was seen in a fiery online debate.
When the US embassy in Amman announced that the women would share their entrepreneurial experience in a live webcast, conservative Jordanians took to the internet to voice their outrage.
One commentator on a local website called the project “prostitution”. Another underlined traditional gender roles, mocking SheCab by saying, “Let the men then stay at home breastfeed the children and cook.”
Though women in Jordan have increasingly become ministers, politicians, lawmakers and bankers, they still only made up 22 per cent of the workforce in 2010, according to a World Bank report.
That the US embassy also posted the webcast on its Facebook page also fuelled fears among conservatives about western values encroaching on Jordanian society.
A headline in local news site Saraya said: "Jordanians are angry because of the [US] ambassador's behaviour [and are] demanding that she keeps quiet."
Critics also took to the US embassy’s Facebook page to express their outrage.
A man named Saleh Odeh denounced SheCab as “a devious idea from the enemies of God and religion”, adding that “women are created to set up families”.
Another critic, Anas Alsarrawi, accused the US of “brainwashing Muslims with corrupt ideas under the guise of freedom”.
Jordan is one of the largest recipients of US aid in the world with $USD 1 billion planned per year from 2015-2017. The kingdom is also a key partner in the US-led anti-ISIL coalition in Syria.
Yet, a Pew Research Centre poll published last year shows that only 12 per cent of Jordanians have a favourable view of the US.
Ms Shwiemeh, 22, responded to critics, saying, “People tell me that I have been brainwashed by the Americans after we participated in the programme. But I tell them I have brainwashed the Americans back, changing their perception on Islam and women through our discussions.”
Jordanians also voiced support for SheCab, underlining the ongoing debate being waged in the country on the role of women.
“It is an excellent idea that is implemented in several countries,” wrote Amin Abuhijleh on the US embassy’s Facebook page.
Another commentator, Faten Ajjour, wrote: “It will provide utmost security … I hope it will be implemented.”
Ms Al Amad said on her Facebook page “Feminists of Jordan” that she found men to be more supportive of the taxi project than women.
“Women fought the idea because we live in a patriarchal society, which is deeply rooted,” she said. “But new ideas face resistance.”
Ms Al Mahasis, 22, an undergraduate in clinical pharmacology, said: “We are trying to change society’s perceptions to show that women are capable of working in professions dominated by men.”
foreign.desk@thenational.ae
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Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hoopla%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EDate%20started%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMarch%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Jacqueline%20Perrottet%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2010%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPre-seed%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20required%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%24500%2C000%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
A Dog's Journey
Directed by: Gail Mancuso
Starring: Dennis Quaid, Josh Gad, Marg Helgenberger, Betty Gilpin, Kathryn Prescott
3 out of 5 stars
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Founders: Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Albabtain.
Based: Riyadh
Offices: UAE, Vietnam and Germany
Founded: September, 2020
Number of employees: 70
Sector: FinTech, online payment solutions
Funding to date: $116m in two funding rounds
Investors: Checkout.com, Impact46, Vision Ventures, Wealth Well, Seedra, Khwarizmi, Hala Ventures, Nama Ventures and family offices
Four-day collections of TOH
Day Indian Rs (Dh)
Thursday 500.75 million (25.23m)
Friday 280.25m (14.12m)
Saturday 220.75m (11.21m)
Sunday 170.25m (8.58m)
Total 1.19bn (59.15m)
(Figures in millions, approximate)
Porsche Macan T: The Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 265hp from 5,000-6,500rpm
Torque: 400Nm from 1,800-4,500rpm
Transmission: 7-speed dual-clutch auto
Speed: 0-100kph in 6.2sec
Top speed: 232kph
Fuel consumption: 10.7L/100km
On sale: May or June
Price: From Dh259,900
Water waste
In the UAE’s arid climate, small shrubs, bushes and flower beds usually require about six litres of water per square metre, daily. That increases to 12 litres per square metre a day for small trees, and 300 litres for palm trees.
Horticulturists suggest the best time for watering is before 8am or after 6pm, when water won't be dried up by the sun.
A global report published by the Water Resources Institute in August, ranked the UAE 10th out of 164 nations where water supplies are most stretched.
The Emirates is the world’s third largest per capita water consumer after the US and Canada.
The Limehouse Golem
Director: Juan Carlos Medina
Cast: Olivia Cooke, Bill Nighy, Douglas Booth
Three stars
The specs
BMW M8 Competition Coupe
Engine 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8
Power 625hp at 6,000rpm
Torque 750Nm from 1,800-5,800rpm
Gearbox Eight-speed paddleshift auto
Acceleration 0-100kph in 3.2 sec
Top speed 305kph
Fuel economy, combined 10.6L / 100km
Price from Dh700,000 (estimate)
On sale Jan/Feb 2020
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BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MATCH INFO
Inter Milan v Juventus
Saturday, 10.45pm (UAE)
Watch the match on BeIN Sports
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
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How to invest in gold
Investors can tap into the gold price by purchasing physical jewellery, coins and even gold bars, but these need to be stored safely and possibly insured.
A cheaper and more straightforward way to benefit from gold price growth is to buy an exchange-traded fund (ETF).
Most advisers suggest sticking to “physical” ETFs. These hold actual gold bullion, bars and coins in a vault on investors’ behalf. Others do not hold gold but use derivatives to track the price instead, adding an extra layer of risk. The two biggest physical gold ETFs are SPDR Gold Trust and iShares Gold Trust.
Another way to invest in gold’s success is to buy gold mining stocks, but Mr Gravier says this brings added risks and can be more volatile. “They have a serious downside potential should the price consolidate.”
Mr Kyprianou says gold and gold miners are two different asset classes. “One is a commodity and the other is a company stock, which means they behave differently.”
Mining companies are a business, susceptible to other market forces, such as worker availability, health and safety, strikes, debt levels, and so on. “These have nothing to do with gold at all. It means that some companies will survive, others won’t.”
By contrast, when gold is mined, it just sits in a vault. “It doesn’t even rust, which means it retains its value,” Mr Kyprianou says.
You may already have exposure to gold miners in your portfolio, say, through an international ETF or actively managed mutual fund.
You could spread this risk with an actively managed fund that invests in a spread of gold miners, with the best known being BlackRock Gold & General. It is up an incredible 55 per cent over the past year, and 240 per cent over five years. As always, past performance is no guide to the future.