Qatar’s oil and gas industry should introduce more flexible work policies that deliver a better work-life balance in order to attract more women into the national energy industry, according to ‘The Women in Energy 2015’ survey conducted in Doha.
More than half of the respondents (55%) thought the energy industry would struggle to correct its gender imbalance without offering more flexibility in the work place, with 18% saying the industry needed to spend more time on educating young females about career prospects.
“The Energy industry in Qatar is a major industry and therefore we want to work together to empower women who work in this industry, and attract more women to it,” said Aisha Hussain Alfardan, vice chairwoman, Qatari Businesswomen Association.
“Qatari Businesswomen Association is keen to partner with all parties to identify the challenges, address them, and pave the way for future women generations to enter this field and contribute to it,” she said.
Across the industry, however, women’s participation in plant operations and trades—as well as in some professional areas such as engineering—has been slow to develop despite promotional programs.
While the overall number of women working in the oil and gas industry rose slightly in 2014 to 7.8% from 7.1% a year earlier, it will still take 30 years to achieve gender parity even though the number of men and women graduating from university with engineering or geosciences degrees is now fairly even.
“Women have a responsibility to continue to push their companies and organisations to recruit, retain and promote women professionals, especially in engineering and science positions,” said Dr. Jennifer Dupont, Research Director, ExxonMobil Research Qatar.
“Women also need to work with their companies to create work cultures that recognize and support their unique capabilities as women,” said Dr. Dupont, who is the only woman to head-up a research center at the Qatar Science and Technology Park.
While the numbers vary from country to country, the overall trend, appears to be slowly changing, with the number of women entering the industry constantly growing. In the U.S., 46% of all new jobs in the oil industry went to women in the first quarter of 2013 – the highest number since the bureau started tracking these figures in 1991.
The Women in Energy 2015 survey was produced by Gulf Intelligence in partnership with the Qatar Businesswomen Association (QWBA).
