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UAE's Gender Balance Awards Were All Won By Men

Twitter was quick to point out what was wrong with UAE's 'Gender Balance Index' awards.
Twitter/@DXBMediaOffice

In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), everything starts with men and ends with men. Even gender equality.

Authorities in the UAE are being mocked after the Dubai government’s media office tweeted pictures of the winners of awards for gender balance. They are all men.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, the vice-president of the United Arab Emirates and ruler of Dubai, gave awards to the winners of the Gender Balance Index 2018 on Sunday.

The Index features three categories — Best Personality Supporting Gender Balance, Best Federal Authority Supporting Gender Balance, and the Best Gender Balance Initiative.

The Sheikh, according to BBC, insisted women were “central to shaping the future of the country”.

According to the official press release, the Sheikh “recognised the efforts” of one woman, Sheikha Manal bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who heads the Gender Balance Council. “The Council was praised for its exceptional projects that helped achieve the nation’s goals of gender balance,” the release said.

The award, according to The Guardian, has been instituted to recognise progress made by government departments in meeting female participation goals set by the government.

Twitter was quick to point out what was wrong with the awards.

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.