The women of Kuwait have experienced many progressive changes since the early 20th century. Since then, women have had increased access to education, gained political and economic rights, and financial power. They can serve in the police, military, and as judges in courts. However, women in Kuwait struggle against a patriarchal culture which discriminates against them in several fields. Kuwait's Bedoon (stateless) women are at risk of significant human rights abuses and persecution. Kuwait has the largest number of Bedoon in the entire region.
According to the Civil Service Commission (CSC) data in 2024, the joblessness trend among Kuwaitis was found to significantly increase year after year. Major contributors to this trend include a rise in graduates from fields not sought by the labor market, poor linkage between skillsets acquired in these specializations and labor market demands, and insufficient attention to the private sector combined with inadequate coordination between concerned authorities. As of November 2023, the total unemployed Kuwaitis numbered 8,727, with women making up approximately 52 percent.
History Pre-oil Kuwait From the 17th century until the discovery of oil in the late 1940s, the economy of Kuwait was largely dependent on maritime trade. While men were seafaring, Kuwait's women managed their homes, and controlled family affairs and finances. For those families that could afford it, houses were built with a courtyard and a harem where women spent most of their time. This structure, along with high windows and doors that faced into the house rather than the street, removed women from public vision. Upper-class women's participation in the public sphere was very limited. However, lower-class women had a much less secluded experience; they went to the suq on a daily basis, fetched drinking water, and regularly washed their families’ clothes on the beach.
Kuwaiti girls began learning scripture in 1916 when the first Quran school was established. After this many women of modest means began working as Islamic instructors. The first private school opened in 1926; it taught reading, writing, and embroidery. Public schooling began in 1937 though enrollment in it was low for some time; however, by the 1940s many young Kuwaiti women were enrolled in primary school. It was often women themselves who pushed for these educational advances and opportunities and in 1956 a group of young women burned their abaya to protest their right to go abroad to study.
Political activism and emancipation Women's rights activism began in Kuwait in the 1950s with the establishment of many women's groups (lijân nisâ’iah). Noureya Al-Saddani established the first of these groups, the Arab Women's Renaissance Association (later, Family Renaissance Association), in 1962. The Women's Cultural and Social Society followed a year later in February 1963. In 1975, The Girls Club (Nadi Alfatat) was established, advocating for women's sports. In 1971, Al-Saddani as head of the Arab Women's Development Society, began a national campaign for women's suffrage. Her initial proposal was rejected by the National Assembly.
During the liberal nationalist era in the 1950s and 1960s, the unveiling of Kuwaiti women was viewed as a natural part of the progress of Kuwait as a new independent nation; Kuwaiti feminists like Lulwah Al-Qatami and Fatima Hussain burned their veils and abaya in public.Deborah L. Wheeler: Internet in the Middle East, The: Global Expectations And Local Imaginations ..., s. 98–101 The majority of Kuwaiti women did not wear the hijab in the 1960s and 1970s. At Kuwait University throughout the 1960s and most of the 1970s, miniskirts were more common than the hijab. This development gradually turned around due to the growing Islamization of Kuwaiti society, which made veiling the norm again by the mid-to-late 1990s. In 1978, Sheikha Latifa Al-Sabah, then-wife of Emir Saad Al-Salim Al-Sabah, established the Islamic Care Association, seeking to spread Islam along with the associated lifestyle and conduct of Muslim life. However in recent decades, an increasing number of Kuwaiti women have been unveiling or choosing to not wear the hijab; including the daughter of Kuwaiti Muslim Brotherhood leader Tareq Al-Suwaidan.
During the Gulf War in Kuwait from 1990 to 1991, women played a significant part of resisting the Iraqi invasion, occupation, and supporting the offensive which liberated Kuwait from Iraqi control. This period of conflict also solidified Kuwaiti women from different backgrounds and raised their political awareness. After the war, demonstrations and protests for women's rights continued throughout the decade. A shift began, as more political figures supported the Kuwaiti women's rights proposals, most notably Emir Al-Sabah, whom in May 1999 attempted to institute women's suffrage by decree during a period of parliamentary dissolution; however, this decree was reversed by the newly elected National Assembly in November 1999.
Protests and activism continued and escalated into the 2000s alongside renewed proposals before the legislature, ultimately culminating in a 2004 protest inside the National Assembly building. The following year in 2005, Kuwaiti women held some of the largest demonstrations in their history, and in May 2005, the Assembly voted to give women full political rights to vote and hold office. The first elections Kuwaiti women ran for office and voted in were in June 2006. In 2009, four women were elected to parliament, Massouma A-Mubarak (the female minister appointed), Aseel Al-Awadhi, Rola Dashti, and Salwa Al-Jassar. In 2012, a lawsuit against the Ministry of Justice was resolved, enabling women to hold high positions in the judicial system. In 2014, twenty-two Kuwaiti women were appointed to serve as prosecutors. In 2018, the Kuwait Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs changed its policies to allow women in senior positions. In December 2019, three women were appointed to cabinet positions, Available with photographs from MENAFN. including the first female Minister of Finance in the Persian Gulf region. On 30 June 2020, Kuwaiti Attorney General, Dirar Al-Asousi, approved the promotion of eight female prosecutors to become judges. On 3 September 2020, the eight judges were sworn in as the first female judges in Kuwait's history.
In the 2024 Kuwaiti parliamentary elections, a notable aspect was the active involvement of women as both voters and candidates. The participation of women in the democratic process, exercising their rights as voters and vying for parliamentary seats, garnered significant attention and positive remarks from observers. Although some voters expressed frustration, one voter perspicaciously predicted that only a single female candidate would secure a seat, attributing this to her demonstrated competence during her prior term in parliament. The level of women's participation, both in voting and as candidates for elected office, was highlighted as an important development reflecting the growing political empowerment of Kuwaiti women.
Demographics and statistics +Population statistics according to the United Nations Development Programme 2019 Human Development ReportStatisticFemaleMaleLife expectancy (from birth)76.574.7Adult mortality rate56%92%Expected future education (years)14.312.9Average current education (years)8.06.9Secondary education (% of pop.)56.8%49.3%Adolescent birth rate (per 1000 women, 15–19)8.2n/aGross income per capita (2011 PPP, USD)$49,075$85,615Rate of participation in labor force57.5%85.3%
International rankings Kuwait's position in international rankings has varied over the years. In 2014, Kuwait was ranked 113 of 142 globally in the Global Gender Gap Report; the country improved its ranking due to significant increases in the overall income indicator. In 2015, Kuwait was ranked 117 of 145 globally in the Global Gender Index. In 2020, Kuwait was ranked 122 of 153 globally in the Global Gender Gap Report. Regarding the GGGR subindex, Kuwait ranked 142 of 152 on political empowerment 143 of 153 on health and survival, 120 of 153 on economic opportunity, and 57 of 153 on educational attainment. In 2021, Kuwait was ranked 143 of 156 globally in the Global Gender Gap Report.Global Gender Gap Report 2021 World Economic Forum. Retrieved 17 December 2022 Regarding the GGGR subindex, Kuwait ranked 153 of 156 on political empowerment, 94 of 156 on health and survival, 137 of 156 on economic opportunity, and 59 of 156 on educational attainment.
Legal statutes
Citizenship The Nationality Act (1959) grants Kuwaiti men and women equal right to retain their citizenship; however, citizenship is only automatically inherited by children if the father is a Kuwaiti citizen. Women's citizenship is not automatically inherited by children and only becomes so under exceptional circumstances, such as unknown father, divorce, or widowing. Kuwaiti women's citizenship does not transfer to non-Kuwaiti husbands, who must apply for residency, unlike non-Kuwaiti wives of Kuwaiti men who are granted automatic residency and a pathway to citizenship after 15–18 years. As a result, both a non-Kuwaiti husband and any children a Kuwaiti wife has with him experience significant disadvantage— a lack of occupational, familial, and other rights.
In 2024, Kuwait's nationality law was amended, outlawing citizenship by marriage. Previously, under Article 7, women could attain citizenship through marriage to Kuwaiti men after five years.
Family law The Kuwaiti Personal Status Act of 1984 ( Family Law Act), based in Sunni Islam (Maliki), governs family law in the country. Sharia applies to Muslim citizens and residents, with different courts and rules for Sunni and Shi’a, a notable difference being Ja’fari applying to the latter group. Non-Muslims in Kuwait have their own secular court.
In terms of marriage, Muslim women are not permitted to marry without the permission of a wali, a male guardian, or marry non-Muslim men. Only men are allowed as legal witnesses for a marriage. Women's witnessing is either discounted or disallowed, depending on the legal context in question. The minimum age for women to marry is 15, provided approved by the wali. Polygyny is legally permissible and a man may have up to four wives, of which any existing wife(s) have no say in; however, the practice is uncommon. Culturally, forced marriages (ijbar) may also occur without consent of the bride, with attempts at annulment by the bride often met with heavy coercion or threats of prosecution.
In terms of divorce, both husband and wife may seek divorce—the husband may divorce her at will (talaq), while the wife may only seek legal divorce (fasakh) under specific conditions such as lack of financial support, exceptional absence, criminality, husband's deconversion from Islam, or chronic/terminal illness. With permission of her husband, women may also divorce through khul', returning her dowry or the equivalent.
In terms of child custody, the legal guardianship of Muslim children is possessed by the husband of their mother (presumed father) in most cases. In the case of divorce, legal custody remains with the father and physical custody remains with the mother until the children reach a certain age. Any women who remarry or are divorced for adultery typically lose all child custody rights of previous children. Women who are divorced, widowed, or married to a foreigner may be considered to lead the household.
Abortion is heavily restricted in Kuwait and can only be sought up to 17 weeks of pregnancy for reasons of the mother's health (physical or mental) or fetal deformity/unviability only. Sexual assault, incest, economic needs, and social needs are not valid reasons. Abortion outside of the few allowed is criminalized, carrying between 3 and 15 years incarceration.