The average female labour force participation rate for OECD countries is 50.9%.2 In contrast, men’s participation in the labour force in the six countries reached 70% or more in 2014, only slightly below other emerging economies (WDI, 2016). According to the World Bank data, the MENA region includes the following countries: Algeria, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, West Bank and Gaza, and Yemen. The gap between male and female participation was reduced during the 1990s, but this progress slowed afterwards.