SUPPORTING Arab Women’s Wellbeing

1INDEVCO Social Responsibility 2017

OUR COMMITMENT to Arab Women’s Physical & Emotional Wellbeingis to engage media, associations, and educational institutions to increase awareness of menstrual hygiene, early breast cancer detection, and positive self-image, while providing access to sanitary feminine hygiene products through the lifecycle

SUSTAINABILITY CONTEXTSocietal norms in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region often influence access to health services.1 The teams behind INDEVCO’s Sanita Private® and Napco National’s Fam® feminine hygiene brands have chosen the intersection among health and wellbeing, education, and female empowerment in the region as a significant area for contribution.

The brands promote health awareness and education programs on puberty and menstrual hygiene, positive psychology, and early breast cancer detection across the Arab region.

As employers, INDEVCO and Napco National play a critical role in providing employment, empowerment, and suitable working conditions for women to help reduce gender inequality. Although education levels of women in the MENA

region are increasing, and women outnumber men in university2, the economy operates without the talents and abilities of half the population.3 Female participation in the labor force boosts economic growth4 and GDP,5 and raises productivity wages, especially when women are offered equal opportunities and salaries.6

For mothers, INDEVCO emphasizes work-life balance with a maternity policy that includes options for flexible hours and/or reduced work hours.

INDEVCO and Napco National initiatives align with UN Sustainable Development Goal SDG3 Good Health and Wellbeing7, SDG4 Quality Education8, SDG5 Gender Equality9, SDG8 Decent Work and Economic Growth10, SDG10 Reduced Inequalities11 and SDG17 Partnerships.12

Supporting Arab Women's Wellbeing

2INDEVCO Social Responsibility 2017

Puberty & Menstrual Hygiene Education for School Girls

AE

KWLB

SAOUTCOMES

Cultural and religious sensitivities affect coverage of feminine health issues in school curricula in the region, with teachers often unwilling or ill-prepared to discuss these issues in class.13

In 2017, Fam® and Sanita Private® and Miss Teen® brand teams partnered with schools to deliver our Puberty & Menstrual Hygiene Education Program to nearly 45,000 girls in over 380 schools across4 Arab countries. The program coincides

Reach

Nearly 45,000 girls between 11-17 years old

380+ schools

ContentHygiene educational material

Impact

with UN SDG3 (Target 3.7) and SDG5 (Target 5.6) to ensure that women have access to healthcare information and education.

Presentations detailed physical and psychological changes during puberty, menstrual health, personal hygiene practices, and sanitary products. Students and staff members received feminine sanitary napkin samples.

Supporting Arab Women's Wellbeing

3INDEVCO Social Responsibility 2017

Passionate by Nature Program

Sanita Private® brand has run annual Positive Psychology programs in schools and universities since 2010 to empower women in the MENA region. Positive Psychology concepts in the Arab region highlight the influence that passion and emotional wellbeing have on overall health and performance.14 Educational reform in Arab countries is needed to change perceptions of women and their role in the workforce and to normalize views of gender equality and economic participation.15

In 2017, Sanita Private® brand launched Do It with Passion and Passionate Brain social media campaigns that reached over 570,000 women in 5 Arab countries, as well as its In Passion Career Orientation Program in over 70 schools in Lebanon. The initiatives encouraged girls to identify their passions and pursue careers that will allow them to achieve success and happiness.

Sanita Private® also engaged Lebanese American University female students

Impact

Reach

570,000+ women aged 18 - 45 years in 5 Arab countries through social media

Girls in 74 Lebanese schools

18,000+ women in Lebanon through a viral video on social media

Content

Career orientation presentation

Do it with Passion and Passionate Brain campaigns on Facebook & Instagram

Lebanese American University (LAU) viral video

to share their passions via video on social media, which reached over 18,000 Lebanese women and inspired them to follow their dreams.

These initiatives correspond with UN SDG5 (Target 5.5) to ensure women’s effective participation in economic life, as well as (Target 5.B) to use technology to promote empowerment of women.

Supporting Arab Women's Wellbeing

UE

KWJOLB

SA

4INDEVCO Social Responsibility 2017

SAFam® Cares for Early Breast Cancer Detection

Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer in women in Saudi Arabia, affecting women of younger ages and usually detected at later stages.16 Medical researchers indicate that breast cancer is also increasing in the Middle East region. 17

Napco National has partnered under Fam® brand with Zahra Breast Cancer Association since 2009 during the annual October Breast Cancer Awareness Month to spread awareness about the importance of early screening, detection, and positive support systems.

Impact

Reach

21,000+ women at 12 malls in Dammam, Riyadh and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

400,000+ women aged 18 - 45 years in 3 Arab countries through social media

Content

Breast cancer awareness campaigns on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube

Public awareness advertisement reminding women to set their calendar’s for their annual check-ups on MBC pan-Arab TV channels

As awareness and early detection are key factors in survival, this initiative works towards UN SDG3 (Target 3.4) to reduce premature mortality from non-communicable diseases. The collaboration also aligns with UN SDG17 (Target 17.17) to establish public-private and civil society partnerships to work towards the SDGs.

Fam® launched an early awareness campaign in September, encouraging survivors to post their stories online and allowing friends and family share messages of support using the hashtag

(Ou3aber_bel_Wardi#) #اعبر_بالوردي_عن This campaign continued in October with booths across malls in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern, Western and Central provinces, as well as a The Will to Live (Iradat Al Hayat) social media campaign reaching 3 Gulf countries. The integrated campaign used a pan-Arab satellite TV ad Minutes are Worth Years (( to encourage (# دقايق_تسوى_سنينregular screenings and exams which increase patient survival rates.

Supporting Arab Women's Wellbeing

AE

KW

5INDEVCO Social Responsibility 2017

Fam® Cares for Arab Women’s Wellbeing

Impact

Reach

580,000+ women aged 18-45 years

Content

7 videos promoting healthy living, work-life balance, and comfort broadcast over Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube

3 Wellness choices on via pan-Arab satellite television ads

Supporting Arab Women's Wellbeing

OM

QA AEBAKW

SA

Fam® brand launched an integrated cam-paign to promote Arab women’s wellbe-ing via healthier and happier living.18 The campaign launched 3 videos on pan-Arab satellite TV, as well as 7 videos on social media channels, encouraging work-life balance, fitness, and personal comfort under the hashtag ‘أهتّم_بنفسي_أختار#’ (I Take Care of Myself; I Choose).

Spreading awareness about women’s health and wellbeing is consistent with UN SDG3 (Target 3.4) to promote mental health and wellbeing, as well as SDG4 (Target 4.7) to spread knowledge that promotes sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles.

6INDEVCO Social Responsibility 2017

OM

QA AEBA

KWLB

SAStrengthening the Role of Women in the Workforce

The Middle East North Africa (MENA) region has the lowest female labor force participation at 22%, with over four out of five working-age women not formally employed, a figure substantially lower than the global average of 46%.19

Saudi Vision 2030 has set equal opportunity as a key target, identifying women as important for the development of society and economy and comprising over 50% of university graduates in the Kingdom.20

INDEVCO, operating in the industrial manufacturing industry, employs nearly 600 women in the MENA region, including 100 women in Saudi Arabia. In addition to employment, INDEVCO offered learning and development opportunities to over 150 women in Lebanon, Egypt and Saudi Arabia in 2017.

In an effort to enhance work-life-balance and encourage women to return to the workforce after childbirth, INDEVCO offers all working mothers within the group in Lebanon, with a child under the

Impact

Diversity in Saudi Arabia & Gulf

Napco National employs 110+ women in the Gulf

Training & Development

26% of all female employees in INDEVCO in MENA received training

Work-Life Balance

100% of working mothers in Lebanon with a child 6 years or younger are eligible to benefit from INDEVCO’s maternity policy

age of 6 years old, the option to benefit from INDEVCO’s maternity policy, which includes options for a flexible schedule and/or reduced work hours.

Providing inclusive and good working conditions for women supports their effective participation in economic life, consistent with UN SDG5 (Target 5.5) to ensure women’s effective participation in economic life, SDG8 (Target 8.5) to achieve productive employment and decent work for women, and SDG10 (Target 10.2) to promote the economic inclusion of women.

Supporting Arab Women's Wellbeing

7INDEVCO Social Responsibility 2017

1 World Bank. 2017. Progress towards gender equality in the Middle East and North Africa Region. Washington, DC. © World Bank. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/28965 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.

2 Reuters (2017, October 17). Educated but not at work: Lack of women in Middle East workforce hinders growth. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-population-mideast/educated-but-not-at-work-lack-of-women-in-middle-east-workforce-hinders- growth-idUSKBN1CM1AC

3 Amanda Weinstein (2018, January 31). Harvard Business Review: When More Women Join the Workforce, Wages Rise — Including for Men. https://hbr.org/2018/01/when-more-women-join-the-workforce-wages-rise-including-for-men

4 International Monetary Fund (2018, November 12). World economic and financial surveys: Regional economic outlook: Middle East & Central Asia.

5 Reuters (2017, October 17). Educated but not at work: Lack of women in Middle East workforce hinders growth. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-population-mideast/educated-but-not-at-work-lack-of-women-in-middle-east-workforce-hinders- growth-idUSKBN1CM1AC

6 Amanda Weinstein (31 January, 2018). Harvard Business Review: When more women join the workforce, wages rise — including for men. https://hbr.org/2018/01/when-more-women-join-the-workforce-wages-rise-including-for-men

7 United Nations Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform. Sustainable Development Goal 3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well- being for all at all ages. https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg3

8 United Nations Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform. Sustainable Development Goal 4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg4

9 United Nations Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform. Sustainable Development Goal 5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg5

REFERENCES

Supporting Arab Women's Wellbeing

8INDEVCO Social Responsibility 2017

REFERENCES

Supporting Arab Women's Wellbeing

10 United Nations Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform. Sustainable Development Goal 8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all. https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg8

11 United Nations Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform. Sustainable Development Goal 10. Reduce inequality within and among countries. https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg10

12 United Nations Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform. Sustainable Development Goal 17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development. https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg17

13 United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) (2014). Good Policy and Practice in Health Education. Booklet 9. Puberty Education and Menstrual Hygiene Management. Paris, France, pp. 24-25.

14 Middle East Journal of Positive Psychology. Focus and scope. http://www.middleeastjournalofpositivepsychology.org/index.php/mejpp/about/editorialPolicies#focusAndScope

15 Momani, B. (2016, December 2017). Equality and the economy: Why the arab world should employ more women. Doha: Brookings Institution. https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/bdc_20161207_equality_in_me_en.pdf

16 Saudi Arabian Ministry of Health (2017, October 17). Health Days 2017: Breast cancer awareness month. https://www.moh.gov.sa/en/HealthAwareness/healthDay/2017/Pages/HealthDay-2017-10-01-31.aspx

17 El Awady, A. (2013, September 30). Arab women suffer more aggressive breast cancer. Nature Middle East. www.natureasia.com/en/nmiddleeast/article/10.1038/nmiddleeast.2013.166

18 INDEVCO News Network (2017, April 25)). Fam® launches arab women’s wellbeing initiative. http://news.napcogroup.com/en/April2017/sustainability/1014/Fam%C2%AE-Launches-Arab-Women%E2%80%99s-Wellbeing-Initiative.htm

9INDEVCO Social Responsibility 2017

19 World Bank. 2017. Progress towards gender equality in the Middle East and North Africa region. Washington, DC. © World Bank. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/28965 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.

20 Saudi Vision 2030 (n.a.). Thriving economy rewarding opportunities. http://vision2030.gov.sa/en/node/8

REFERENCES

Supporting Arab Women's Wellbeing