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COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF CASE STUDIES:FINAL REPORT
By: Jannat Nain, Ketheesakumaran Navaratnam, Rabea Naimullah
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INTRODUCTION
Connections among individuals and activist groups around the world are continuously being expanded by social media today. Organizers of social movements taking advantage of such tools to spread their message and garner support. Through social media, people are connected to eachother around the globe in a way never experienced before. More than 10 percent of the world’s 7 billion people are connected by Facebook (Facebook Key Facts,2012) and nearly 100 million users on Twitter (Twitter Sources,2012).Social media has not only changed social networking, but also provides as a valuable tool for political and social organization and activism. When combined with a political problem, social media offers great potential for social movement participation.
One way of defining social media power, is as a label for the net result of organizing a societies resources so that the media sector has a significant independent bargaining power over and against other key sectors of the nation (Couldry & Curran, 2003).Past analysis of social media organisations has normally assumed a close link between the grievances of a collectivity actors and the growth of movement activity. (McCarthy & Zald, 1997).Several properties of social media tools promote the emergence of social movements and thus foster social change: These properties being, ‘authenticity and immediacy’, ‘visibility’, ‘autonomy from the mainstream media’ and ‘facilitation of communication and networking of like-minded, but geographically dispersed people’.
ANALYSIS
For our case study, we compared the case studies of Africa and South Asia drawing parallels between both.Social media has been integrated into all of the case studies in one or the other form.Forms of social media utilized in these initiatives includes but not limited to blogs, MSN, e-mail and social networking. Both in South Asia and Africa, reliance on social media to enhance the cause can be quantified as between low to medium. It is however noticed that there was a notable presence of social media in all the case studies. In the South Asian case studies, there was relatively increased use of Facebook whereas in African case studies, most of the initiatives didn’t use Facebook but used other forms such as SMS. Literature shows that social media plays a significant role in facilitating citizen action and enabling them to collectively fight towards common goals. Citizen initiatives all around the globe utilizes social media as a coordinating tool ( Shirky, 2008, 28). This statement can be supported as the initiatives both in South Asia and Africa have relied on social media on varying degrees to coordinate their cause and facilitate some of the logistics to continue their cause. In the cases of IAC and SJ, it is evident that social media was utilized to coordinate their cause. It is also evident that their initiatives have seen tangible political maneuvers in light of the mobilization including in social media.In the case of South Asia, the activism was more against controversial cultural issues and in the case of IAC, against corruption. The mass media is also less restricted, since both India and Pakistan are democratic countries with a fair freedom of press. The African countries in most of the cases had a very blanketed media that was controlled by the so called presidents slash dictators. It was difficult for the African countries to use any kind of communication apart from social media. The concept of social revolution was also very new to those countries.
Countries with strong public sphere can have a relatively considerable impact on governments using social media as opposed to countries with weak public sphere where the presence of social media plays a minor role in spearheading changes (Shirky 2008, 28). The expression of conservative dilemma expressed in the literature also evident in most of the case studies that were under the review. Social media also plays a crucial role in not only providing access to information but also creating a conducive environment for debate and conversation among users ( Joseph, 2012). Social media cannot replace the ‘real-world action’ but will help to coordinate the real world actions (Shirky, 2008). Online petitions indicate that some real world actions could be executed in absolute virtual environment. In Nigeria, petition against mob justice appears to be an absolute virtual initiative which negates the proposition that social media cannot replace real world actions (aluu4 inspires action, 2012).
It is also observed that most of these movements such as the Facebook revolution in Egypt, the Tunisian Uprising and the Malala Yousafzai story have emerged due to the major catalyst being ‘digital activism’. Digital activism not only enabled faster and effective communication but also helped in the delivery of information to a large target audience. It provided the opportunity for people to discuss, collaborate, and raise important issues in their everyday life which may lead to policy change, aid for development and citizen voices being heard ("Digital activism," 2012).
In the African countries such as Egypt, Nigeria and Tunisia, a ‘conservative’s dilemma’ also existed as those in power no longer had control over public discourse, as the dissemination of information increased public access to speech and assembly, whereas in India, Pakistan and Ghana the freedom of speech was given to the press and the citizens (Shirky,2011). The African nations as compared to the South Asian countries also had the concept of ‘digital divide’ as a socio-economic disparity persists in the networked information society and the economy due to the large gap between those who have access to information and communication technologies and those who do not.
Gladwell, in contrast to Shriky's view, states that social media connection reinforces slacktivism ( Joseph, 2012, 150). Arab spring, SJ and other initiatives utilized social media to coordinate or strengthen their real-world action thus the role of social media cannot be undermined. As explained by Morsi, it was the slacktivism that laid the foundation for physical activism in Egypt and this indicates slacktivism is a useful tool in facilitating social change. In SJ in India and Mob Justice in Nigeria, online petition played a role in impacting policy changes which can be done in a virtual environment without physical activism, proving slaktivism has some value in facilitating social change.
Social media also helps spread information "faster and farther" and it also helps bring human rights abuses to limelight ( Joseph, 2012, 153). Technology has also made it possible for outsiders to exert influences on domestic affairs as informations on social injustices are made available to outside world through social media ( Joseph, 2012, 153). Tunisian uprising and Egypt uprising stand as a contemporary evidents on the role of social media in disseminating information at a faster rate within and beyond national boundaries.
Drawing on the variety of case studies, it becomes clear that citizens also struggles to secure their rights within their countries. The concept of “rights to have right’ explained by Prof. Lieres elaborates this point. In the case study of SJ, it shows how certain citizens are discriminated against within India; even though the Indian Constitution guarantees “ justice, liberty, equality, and fraternity” for all Indians, social injustices abounds (Permutt, 2011, 291); manual scavenging is an indication where a group of citizens rights are neglected ( Permutt, 2011). SJ however was able to mobilize support through its TV show and online collaboration which in turn received the attention of Indian government to address the issue.
Cute cat theory is particularly relevant in the case study of Tunisian uprising. Clips of Tunisians protest against the government was uploaded in Facebook and the president Ben Ali tried to impose censorship on facebook to prevent the spread of such actions against the government, but this in turn triggered more Tunisina participating in proxy sites.
In countries like India, citizen mobilization wasn’t confronted by brutal force and citizens demand has been heeded to and there were also incremental and/or radical policy changes, whereas in African countries citizen mobilization was often confronted with brutal force by the states. This is a clear evident of the important of the political context in facilitating citizen mobilization and rights claiming. According to Prof. Lieres, in middle income countries like india, there are more opportunities to mobilize but in fragile states there are limited opportunities for citizen mobilization.
In the 21st century, with the advent of Internet, individuals are enabled to create groups and conversations at the same time (Shirky, 2009). Shirky states that phone gave us one to one pattern of collaboration; TV gave us one to many pattern of collaboration, whereas the Internet has given us many to many pattern of collaboration (2009). Media is not just a source of information but also a source of coordination (Shirky, 2009). To put it in Shirky’s words, “as all medias get digitalized, the Internet becomes the mode of carriage for all other media” (2009). Shirky’s arguments hold water; SJ is a paragon to his perspective. SJ telecasts it shows but it has also integrated social media such as Facebook & Twitter and an official websites, where not only the shows can be watched but also the collaboration can be pursued. The role of social media in facilitating citizen activism and participation through online voting and sharing was a key factor in influencing the Indian states government in SJ.
CONCLUSION
The connection that is formed among individuals and activists through social media is very dynamic. The way various strata of civil activists respond to each other through various channels of media is not restricted to one path. Even though all these regions have utilized both physical and online activism to drive their movements, they have had their own ways of gaining momentum to foster their activities and have had faced different set of problems.
Despite the variation in their core issues and their obstacles, the key concept to hold here is how these regions have responded to the hoards of problems both technological and political and how they managed to strive for a fair change in their system by steering the route of social media following to their own direction.
While the importance of online activism is highlighted, it would unwise to assume that sole digital activism will bring social change. In fact, such activism, otherwise known as total slacktivism, will not bring the results. Physical activism cannot be replaced by any kind of digital activism but it can help coordinate the physical activism a great deal. Digital activism may be useful but it may not be the best solution to be entirely dependent on. Problems such as digital divide and previously mentioned slacktivism as well as internet censorship are one of the few examples of problems to digital activism.
For a fair conclusion, one can admit though, that social media has greatly brought about a positive change in the public sphere of countless countries around the globe. Awareness through social media slacktivism, has greatly shifted public opinions about certain issues and have paved way for actual physical revolution.
SOURCES
Couldry, N., & Curran, J. (2003). Contesting media power: Alternative media in a networked world. Rowman & Littlefield. Retrieved fromhttp://books.google.ca/books?id=tiFY59xGHBkC&pg=PA39&dq=Contesting Media Power: Alternative Media in a Networked World published&hl=en&sa=X&ei=2La9UPOXB8SA2AXq4IDIDQ&ved=0CC8Q6AEwAA
(2012). aluu4 inspires action; activist launches petition against mob justice. pilot africa, Retrieved from http://www.pilotafrica.com/2012/10/25/aluu4-inspires-action-activist-launches-petition-against-mob-justice/
Digital activism. (2012, 04 25). Retrieved from http://participationpower.wordpress.com/category/participatory-methodologies/
Joseph, S. (2012). Social media, political change, and human rights. Boston College International and Comparative Law Review. 35, 145-188.
McCarthy, J., & Zald, M. (1997). resource mobilization and social movements, a partial theory. JSTOR,82(6), Retrieved fromhttp://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/2777934?uid=3739448&uid=2&uid=3737720&uid=4&sid=21101449129471
Shirky, C. ( 2011). The Political power of social media: Technology, the public sphere and political change. Foreign Affairs, 90 (1), 28.
Shirky, C. (2008). Here comes everybody. Penguin.
Shirky, C (2009). How social media can make history? TED Talk. http://www.ted.com/talks/clay_shirky_how_cellphones_twitter_facebook_can_make_history.html
Permut, S. D. (2011). The manual scavenging problem: a case for the supreme court of India. Cardozo Journal of International and Comparative Law, 20. 277-310.
ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY
1.Joseph, M. (2011, 10 26). In India, a movement frayed by self-interest. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/27/world/asia/27iht-letter27.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
Any movement in India has some leader at it helm and some followers who keep hovering around the leader to indicate their position of power and access with the leader. Anna Hazare is one such aspirant who took on the sacrifice of starving unto death to highlight corruption in India.He also demanded action of autonomous institutions with extraordinary powers to pin down politicians and bureaucrats involved in corruption cases.The media lapped it up and went on to call it a 'revolution' which suddenly made this movement a new entertainment scoop for the middle class of the nation.With focus completely on the followers, One of the key players of the team, Ms. Kiran Bedi herself has been embroiled in corruption charges of seeking discount on travel bills of government departments.In the same manner are the doings of Mr. Prashant Bhushan and Mr. Arvind Kejriwal (leaders of the movement). Anna Hazare seems oblivious to these minor obliterations and has conveniently swept them under the movements carpet. Allegations such as these have given a blow to the sheen of the movement as which was once thought to be 'incorruptible' has also been found wanting.It is hard to sustain the anti corruption movement in India for everyone is in a complicity to declare that the system of order does not work.It needs to be broken down by devising a street smart strategy to expedite matters.The movement might dim down for the reasons that corruption is not calamitous development as compared to more serious movements at hand such as religious conflicts.
2. Singh, T. (2012, 11 4). Not 'corruption' again. The Indian Express. Retrieved from http://www.indianexpress.com/news/not--corruption--again/1026402
India today is being considered to be one of the most corrupt nations according to certain leftist groups who want a more totalitarian system of governance under the watchful eye of the Lokpal. These groups have taken into account very slim evidences and tried to pin down the high-ups in the government.One after the other publicity hungry people are following the footsteps of Mr. Arvind Kejriwal in the quest to expose a newer corrupt practice of the current government in power. For a person out to do business in the country, India does have corruption taking place at different levels due to endless rules and regulations incorporated in the system.Businesses that have earned international fame and respect for their professionalism are forced to pay the people who facilitate their business. Compared to India , China is way ahead in 'Crony Capitalism'.An investigation report by Bloomberg News, The New York Times and The New Yorker indicates that China is completely under the Influence of 'kleptocrats' who propagate an intricate structure of corruption. This is leading to major problems in the growth of the economy.The need to the hour for India is to pay more attention to pressing issues like revival of the economy.The opposition needs to join the government to find a solution to the difficulties the nation need to address.The irony lies in the fact that the middle class, which was a result of change in the economic direction wants to regress into much discredited economic policies and statism.
3. CMR. (2012, 01 19). Role of the internet and social media in india’s anti-corruption movement: Roadmap to clean government, growth and opportunity for every citizen. CMR INDIA. Retrieved from http://cmrindia.com/role-of-the-internet-and-social-media-in-indias-anti-corruption-movement-roadmap-to-clean-government-growth-and-opportunity-for-every-citizen/
The prevalence of corruption has been attributed to the economic, political, and cultural factors of a country. The movement 'India Against Corruption' has fuelled the urgency of having a strong legislation with enforcement to abolish endemic political corruption. It has been recognized that role of information technology and communication, especially the Internet, is very important to bring about a change in the mindset of the masses. For a country like India, access to information pertaining to government programmes and policies through the Internet has become very significant.IT helps to practically implement solutions to problems as well as serves as a reference point for formulating an appropriate policy framework.Internet and social networking sites are powerful weapons that can curb the menace of corruption and lead to greater transparency.The wide reach of these channels is critical in the fight to reduce corruption and renew the social fabric. This can give rise to a virtuous cycle of transparent policy making, clean government and faster economic growth.It has been proven that greater the Internet penetration, lower the corruption levels. It is vital that Indian citizens put in place a framework of public debate and interaction that can positively influence the formulation and delivery of government policies, programs and projects.Through adoption of IT the nation can set a new benchmark of ‘value convergence’ in which corruption in public life is universally disfavored.
4. Misra, U. (2012, 02 10). Fighting corruption, arvind kejriwal style: Which side are you on?. FORBES India, Retrieved fromhttp://forbesindia.com/blog/economy-policy/fighting-corruption-arvind-kejriwal-style-which-side-are-you-on/
Arvind Kejriwal,one of the foremost activists of 'India Against Corruption'is in a dilemma of whether to follow the footsteps of his leader, Anna Hazare and be a moral pressure trying to exert his influence from outside the political arena or to take a more active role and try to right the wrong that India is suffering from. Hazare took unsure steps into public life by successive fasts and protests to stand against corruption, demanding a non partisan, official Lokpal to judge corruption.This crusade met with instant approval and gained support among urban masses largely due to social media.Arvind Kejriwal, the driving force behind the movement wanted more conclusive results demanding charge and hence he floated a new political party , 'Swaraj Party', proposing a participative government where poeple would have a larger say in public matters.The party aims to get the 'Jan Lokpal' bill passed within 10 days of coming into power.The naysayers look at the disorganized structure and are skeptic of enough seats being won by the party .Besides there is a focus on demand supply mis-match due to over-population which is the main cause of corruption.India is wrought with many problems like illiteracy and poverty so people do not have so much energy to engage in the movement physically, the youth however is contributing significantly through the use of social media.By following a more aggressive method in highlighting corruption,Arvind Kejriwal has alienated the progressive elements of the movement that could have helped to pass the 'Jan Lokpal' bill.Thus,Anna Hazare and Arvind Kejriwal are both making the movement wider as the former is using Gandhian philosophy whereas the latter is in no mood for any shortcuts to achieve his dream.
5. Social media to drive movement against corruption: Survey. (2011, 12 12). INDIA TODAY, Retrieved from http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/social-media-to-drive-movement-against-corruption-survey/1/163896.html
This article mainly elaborates on the findings of a survey 'Youth in the day and age of Social Media', conducted by India Biz News and Research Services. The survey brought out that nearly three fourth of the Indian youth that have access to internet believe that social media empowers, encourages and motivates them to bring a change to the world we live in today. They believe that movements against corruption can be driven through this medium that is now growing as a source for information. People prefer to get information through channels of social media than mass media.The youth does not believe in symbolism as about two thirds believe that ground realities cannot change by merely being part of a group.The respondents indicated that while they primarily engage in this space to connect with peers and garner information, they feel that they almost equally influence human rights and social change, politics and policy making and corporate governance.Anti-corruption has emerged as the most prominent social cause recently in India ad is endorsed by the youth.
6. Mustafi, S. (2012, 08 26). Is a youth revolution brewing in india. The New York Times, Retrieved fromhttp://india.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/27/is-a-youth-revolution-brewing-in-india/
With the advent of the newly aware youth of India there has been a blow of information due to free speech on the internet.It has been seen that if the ratio of the population under 25 and there is an urge to overthrow unresponsive governments, it is not impossible to do so as we have seen Civil Rights Movement in USA , Cultural Movement in China and more recently in the Arab Spring movement.'India against corruption' is headed by an iconic 75-year-old Gandhian yet it has managed to unleash youth disenchantment against the establishment, using new means of communication like Twitter and Facebook as its fuel. One of the reasons of the brewing revolution is also that the youth expect a certain standard of living and since they are not being provided with that, they are bound to rebel.The youth is capable of bringing great benefit to the country in the decades ahead as IMF reports suggest that if right policies are adopted, the youth alone can bring about two percentage points to the annual GDP in the coming years which makes them the biggest economic strength of the future.This youth is expected to fight for their rights to recieve a better nation so that they are more valued and it seems like the struggle for this has begun with the involvement in the 'India Against Corruption' movement.
7.Namazi, N. (2011, 08 09). Social media against corruption.Business Review India. Retrieved fromhttp://www.businessreviewindia.in/marketing/social-media/social-media-against-corruption
According to this article,social media platform is custom-made to combat fraud in corruption-infected India. Social media giants become platforms for citizens to extend their solidarity for this cause. In fact, social media paved way for citizens living in India as well as abroad to voice their opinion on Facebook, Twitter as well as YouTube.People called upon “Candle Light Support” rallies across major metros like Mumbai, Bangalore and Delhi owing largely to Facebook. The top 5 trending topics in India have been about the Anna Hazare movement and the need for a corruption-free India. In fact, the movement picked momentum mainly because people were discussing non-stop about it on Twitter. Twitter continues to be an active platform where people support/ condemn events related to the fight against corruption in India.As the fight against corruption progresses, the online social movement is likely to keep the government on its toes
SATYAMEV JAYATE, INDIA
1. Permut, S. D. (2011). The manual scavenging problem: a case for the supreme court of India. Cardozo Journal of International and Comparative Law, 20. 277-310.
Permutt in this journal article talks about manual scavenging in India. He points out the reasons and dangers of manual scavenging. In this article, manual scavenging is noted to have been reinforced by the pervasiveness of the Indian caste-based society. This article also portrays the guarantee of the Indian Constitution, which indirectly prohibits manual scavenging and the cases that were on Indian Supreme Court on manual scavenging. This article is relevant to my case study, as the topic of manual scavenging was one of the focuses of Satyamev Jayate. The TV show highlighted how people were stigmatized for the job they are performing and the dehumanized nature of manual scavenging. The TV show also revealed how caste system reinforces manual scavenging and limits freedom to certain cohort. In light of the TV episode on this social issue, the TV show host Aamir Khan was called onto meet the Indian Prime Minister and the PM promised to take action on this issue immediately. Permutt clearly discussed the dangers of manual scavenging and the action taken by this initiative signifies the importance of eliminating manual scavenging to accelerate Indian development.
2. Johnson, K. (2001). Media and Social Change: the modernizing influences of television in rural India. Media, Culture & Society, 23, 147- 169.
In this article, Johnson analyzes the role of Television in rural India and its economic, cultural and social impacts on rural villages. Jonson also talks about the critical role of TV in urban modeling, restructuring human relationship, immigration and access to information in Indian villages. This article is well related to the case study Satyamev Jayate, as TV is the main medium used to inform the citizens about the social issues. My case study could very well support Johnson’s points that TV plays an important role in bringing out changes. Satyamev Jayate, realizing the important role and pervasiveness of TV in the Indian society, has chose TV as the main medium of the show. The integration of social media as part of the show was to promote collaboration and increase the awareness among privileged citizens.
3. Joseph, S. (2012). Social media, political change, and human rights. Boston College International and Comparative Law Review. 35, 145-188.
In this journal article, Joseph talks about the role of social media in political change. Joseph particularly delves into the role of social media in the context of Arab spring. He elaborates on the prevailing perspective for and against the power of social media in social change. Though this article describes the role of social media in the context of Arab spring, the important roles of social media could be well relevant to Satyame Jayate. As the article indicates, social media such as Twitter and Facebook have played a major role in raising the profile of Arab spring. Likewise, Twitter has been the factor for raising the profile of Satyamev Jayate. The importance of social media in providing access to information and creating an environment for debate and conversation are well accounted in this article and is very well relate to my case study.
4. Trivedi, B., & Thaker, K. (2001). Social dimensions of media convergence in India. Media Asia, 28(3), 157-157. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/211522918?accountid=1477
This articles talks about the importance of converging social medias and their implication on Indian society. The social implication of media convergence is noted as changes in “life-style, employment scenario, viewership patter, and market strategies”. This concept of media convergence is relevant to Satyamev Jayate; the TV show cleverly incorporates an official website and Facebook page where the TV episodes are posted and discussion and collaboration are also encouraged. The article points out that convergence will open up opportunity for reaching out unreached factions of the society. The TV show is just a clear example of this point. TV is widespread in India and thus the message is reached out to wider audience. Social media provides the opportunity for collaboration. A problem with that is the opinion that flows in the social media cannot account the perspectives of those who are not connected to social media.
Goolsby, R. (2010). Social media as crisis platform: The future of community maps/crisis maps. ACM Transactions on Intelligent Systems and Technology, 1. 11.
Goolsby in this journal articles talks about the impact of social media in the context of ‘crisis platform’ by showing how organizations, news communities and users take advantage of social media. She focuses on particularly ad-hoc crisis community. The article sheds lights on problems associated with social media, social media as crisis platform ,
Sreekumar, T. T. (2007). Cyber kiosks and dilemmas of social inclusion in rural India. Media, Culture & Society, 29(6). 869–889
Case Study: The Malala Yosufzai Story By Rabia Naimullah
1. Shah B., (23rd June 2011) Social media revolution, Retrieved from
http://dawn.com/2011/06/23/social-media-revolution/
Countries like Pakistan can take from the example of the Arab uprising, especially in Egypt in the social media revolution context. The bloggers, Facebook users and Twitter users of Pakistan are the ones who can change it's future. These people are young and creative, dissatisfied by their countries situation but have the power and capability to change it. These micro bloggers of Twitter have the interest to debate and question their surroundings and openly criticize what they do not like. Even though Pakistan's democracy is questionable, there is no doubt about the extreme openness and the fairness of the freedom of the press and the media that they have. In fact, debate is much more open on the internet forums than the real physical society of Pakistan. The only thing Pakistan are lagging behind is actual physical revolution. So far, clicktivism and slacktivism has prevailed. All Pakistan needs is real protests by the very same people who debate on these forums.
2. Mushtaq M.,(April 13, 2012) Social Media Developments in Pakistan, Retrieved from
http://thinkbrigade.com/media/social-media-developments-in-pakistan/
This article talks about the influence of social media and its accessibility around the world. It has the potential to shape history with a few clicks of the mouse and a couple of keystrokes. For Pakistan, Facebook is one of the tools for social interaction. Given that 63% of the population is under 25, the country has the potential to grow. Most of the population has easy access to Facebook which may very well pave the way for a Facebook revolution. Already, there have been instances of the power of social media in Pakistan. For example, when the military dictator Pervez Musharraf sacked one of the main judges in the Supreme Court of Pakistan, hundreds of lawyers went on strike and signed a petition backed heavily by social media such as Facebook. Twitter, which has now become popular among Pakistani masses, also helped spread the awareness to the world. Currently, social media is heavily used to pinpoint and name and shame corrupted politicians who have left Pakistanis dissatisfied. In replacement to those politicians, Imran Khan, cricketing legend turned politician, has been gaining popularity more and more especially through social networking websites where the youth find hope in him and his contributions towards Pakistan.
3. Rani I. et al Naseeruddin M., Khaleeq A.R., Khan M., An Exploratory Study Regarding the Role of Demographic Variables and Social Status of Female Education in Pakistan, Vol 2, No 10, February 2011.
Education for women is empowerment and the first step to their equality in any kind of society.This report assess the research made by the writers of this journal. They did a demographic study of the province of Punjab in Pakistan and based their research on the highest educational certificate received by working women. Teachers, nurses, telephone operators, bankers, police officers and housewives were the respondents. Around 200 women from each profession were picked. The lowest level of certificate was set to secondary school certificate for the report. Results were surprisingly positive for the region. Around 66 percent of the respondents had BA/BSc degrees. Around 20% had completed Masters and the rest responded that they had other certificates and diplomas. Though, their salaries were a meager Rs 5000 - Rs 10000. Most of them lived in joint family system and were satisfied with their lives.
4. Roomi M.A., Behind the veil: women-only entrepreneurship training in Pakistan, International Journal of Gender and Entrepreneurship, Vol 2, No.2, 2012, pg 150-172
With regards to the the cultural context, women in Pakistan face a lot of hurdles when it comes to entrepreneurship. Apart from that many women have a lot religious obligations they believe they need to adhere to. This paper talks about the theoretical concepts of Islam when it comes to women entrepreneurship. Since many women firmly believe in veiling themselves and not mixing with the opposite gender, this paper focuses on women-only entrepreneurship training in which women are free to practice their beliefs as well as participating in society and earning for their families. Such methods can be used to empower women in a society where women do not participate much in social activities and emphasize on their potential to be excellent entrepreneurs .
5. Zahidi S., We Owe it to Malala to End Our Gender Gaps Now, The Huffington Post, Nov 11, 2012
Retrieved from
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/saadia-zahidi/malala-yousafzai-education_b_2110758.html
Even though globally, the gender gap in education has been closed by 93% and the remaining 7% seems less, it is not actually the case. In some countries, the story is far from over. Pakistan has only close about 55% of the gender gap in education. It may seem that bringing out only one country is unfair but even the country that tops the list is at 86%. One can comprehend the rate of the other countries by looking at the gap of the top country.
Surprisingly, countries like Nicargua and Phillipines are among the top ten. Japan is shockingly at 101st and France and Italy at 57th and 80th.
These figures defy the claims that the more wealthy a country is, the smaller the gender gap. When in fact, it may work the other way round.
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