This paper tries to examine if women’s education affects the economic growth. To illustrate this aim, four countries cases have been presented: Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia, and Algeria, named MATE. The motive behind choosing them was because these countries have many common religious and cultural norms and values. The statistical analysis of data over the period 1960-2012 shows that the relationship between fertility rate and different measures of education is negative. Averages literacy rate and labour participation of the female are less than that of male. Two panel models are estimated over the period 2000-2012: a 'general' panel model and a 'gender' panel model. In the first model, the explanatory variables are introduced without gender’s characteristics in order to measure their impact on the economic growth. In the second model, the explanatory variables are introduced in the first model with gender’s distinguishing excluding variables that measure the quality of governance and institutional. The main findings are that women’s education, particularly, tertiary education, women’s labour force participation and institutional capital affect positively economic growth. On the contrary, the primary and secondary school enrolment are negatively linked to the economic growth. This paper concludes that women’s tertiary education is a master-key to economic growth and development accompanied by a healthy and good quality of institutional capital and by eliminating all forms of gender discrimination.

There is strong evidence about the situation of women in the Middle East and North Africa region despite a lack of highly accurate data available at the national and regional levels. The data that is available reveals that the empowerment of women and the level of equality between men and women are fluctuating. The most important findings concerning the status of women can be summarized as follows: -The rights of women that do exist are poorly enforced. The economic, social, civic and political capacities of women are low. Consequently women are largely disempowered and uninfluential. -Poverty deeply burdens women more than men, affecting everything from their education, health, and economic access to their participation in decision making. This directly affects women’s ability to enjoy all their human rights. -The lives and civil participation of Arab women in the countries of the region are affected directly and indirectly by conflict and war.

Many Arab countries have in place family laws – also known as personal status codes – that confer upon women the status of dependent and minor with respect to marriage, divorce, child custody, and inheritance. Because of these family laws, States that have signed the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women have done so with significant reservations. Broadly speaking, women remain associated primarily with their family roles, and the cumulative effect is gender-based discrimination and second-class citizenship for women, albeit in varying degrees across the countries of the region.

The Lebanese labour market is characterised by low activity (38.7%) and employment rates (44.9%) and a large informal sector. It is challenged by a low participation of females (employment rate of 66.9% for males and 25.3% for females; activity rate of 55.4% for males and 23.5% for females) and high youth unemployment (18% for males and 20.4% for females). The low employment and low activity rates of females can be attributed to social, cultural and economic factors.

This study is the subject of a contract signed between United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and Consultation and Research Institute (CRI) on the 4th of August 2005. The main objective of this contract is to conduct a mapping of gender and development initiative in Lebanon. The assignment’s original deadline was November 15, 2005; however, due to the arousal of certain limitations, the deadline was extended, and verified by UNDP, till the 29th of December 2005. As per the terms of reference, the specific tasks to be undertaken by the consultant are the following: Identify and map significant existing interventions targeting gender and development in Lebanon Develop an analysis and categorisation for these initiatives Identify and map significant actors and stakeholders on Gender and Development in Lebanon Analyse linkages with the broader context Analyse interventions based on a critical review of earlier initiatives Elaborate a strategy into for UNDP intervention to support the gender and development in the national context.