Qatar advances women’s empowerment but access to leadership remains a priority: expert

Doha, Qatar — Qatar has developed a robust cadre of highly skilled women contributing across business, education, healthcare, technology and public service, yet ensuring their consistent access to leadership and decision-making roles remains a central objective, said Jules Youssef, Managing Director for Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait at Great Place to Work Middle East.

Progress and Persistent Gaps

“The next step is to translate this participation into more consistent access to advancement, decision-making and leadership opportunities across sectors,” Youssef told The Peninsula, emphasising the need for clear career pathways and equal opportunities for women.

Great Place to Work Middle East recently unveiled its 2026 Best Workplaces for Women List, which recognises organisations that have built high-trust workplace cultures where women feel valued, supported and able to advance their careers.

Two Qatar-based organisations made this year’s list: QIC Digital Hub, ranked 18th in the Medium category, and Marrybrown Qatar, which placed third in the Small category.

Youssef explained that the rankings are based primarily on confidential employee feedback collected through the Great Place to Work Trust Index survey, with a particular focus on women’s workplace experiences. “The ranking reflects what employees report about trust, fairness, respect, opportunity, and belonging, rather than company size or visibility alone,” he said.

Survey Findings on Gender Equality

Elaborating on women’s empowerment in Qatar, Youssef pointed to findings from the country’s employee-wide survey. According to the data, 83.2 percent of respondents said people were treated fairly regardless of gender, while 78.9 percent reported being offered training or professional development.

These results indicate meaningful progress, Youssef said, but also underscore the need for stronger career development opportunities and greater access to positions of responsibility. “The progress being made is encouraging, and many organisations are demonstrating that empowering women is not only the right thing to do, but also a strategic advantage that contributes to stronger organisational performance and more inclusive workplace cultures,” he added.

Recommendations for Further Advancement

Youssef outlined several measures that companies and government entities could adopt to strengthen women’s participation and advancement. These include transparent promotion criteria, flexible working arrangements, leadership accountability, mentoring and sponsorship programmes, and return-to-work support.

He stressed that regularly analysing employee feedback by gender, seniority, and function would help organisations identify workplace challenges and develop targeted responses.

The employee-wide survey also found that 74.5 percent of respondents said work-life balance was encouraged, 75.3 percent described their workplace as psychologically and emotionally healthy, and 73.8 percent felt involved in decisions affecting their work. Youssef emphasised that these areas require continued monitoring and improvement through employee feedback and people analytics.

He also highlighted the role of leadership in creating supportive workplace environments, noting that Great Place to Work’s Great Leader Lens provides entities with additional employee insights into leadership effectiveness and helps identify areas where targeted action could strengthen trust.