In January, the UAE celebrated the Gender Balance Index by presenting awards to government bodies working to ensure gender balance.

The three awards were collected by male recipients, causing some backlash on international media, with outlets criticising the predominately male presence during the award ceremony, so much so, the government responded to the backlash.

Now, Rana Nawas, a speaker and writer and one of the creators of the highly-praised and number one iTunes podcast in the region, ‘When Women Win” has come out to defend the government.

In a 90 second video released on Saturday, Rana pointed out how international media immediately ridiculed the awards, without considering the positive action being taken by the UAE government to support women here in the UAE

Here’s my 1.5 minute take on the recent UAE gender balance awards that all went to men-led organisations. @UAENews @HHShkMohd @HamdanMohammed #uae #genderbalancecouncil #genderparity pic.twitter.com/bXzdw8wDNF

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— Rana Nawas (@RanaNawas) February 9, 2019

And Twitter is full of praise

‘She made some good points’

I have to confess, I was one of the people who giggled at the irony when I saw the images of the all-male winners of the Gender Balance Awards, but @RanaNawas makes some good points below.
Her When Women Win podcast is also well worth a listen: https://t.co/gjVLlMcoCO https://t.co/XRNwRIz5Op

— Rachel Hamilton (@RachelLHamilton) February 9, 2019

“Well said”

Totally agree with you Rana well said.

— Muna AlGurg (@MunaAlGurg) February 9, 2019

Notably, women living in the UAE only have positive things to say

Very well said. As a woman living in UAE for 10 years, I am grateful for the endless opportunities that I have had here and the senior roles I’ve been at. Awarding men, also, can have a domino effect: they will become role models to others!

— Stefania Brunori (@stefingg) February 9, 2019

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