international conventions guide signatories to emphasise women s equality and promote a vision of inclusive governance for women in both rural and urban areas many countries aim to advance gender equality through national reform agendas that adopt new laws and institutional arrangements aimed to increase women s access to justice and protection of their physical integrity civil society organisations in the region are active in promoting awareness of women s rights and advocating for greater gender equality these efforts need further strengthening to be sustainable to have a genuine impact on eliminating discriminatory provisions embedded in many laws across the region and to build institutions capable of protecting women s rights and granting equal access to justice this chapter assesses the legal policy and institutional frameworks guiding some of the key areas of family relations and private life in the mena region which ultimately impact women s ability to fully participate in economic and public life