Arab Women Organization Announces Winners of Best University Thesis Award on Women's Issues
4/22/2026
The Arab Women Organization (AWO) has concluded the adjudication process for the first edition of its award for the Best University Thesis/Dissertation on Women's Issues (2025-2026).
The initiative, launched in collaboration with UN Women, aims to bolster gender studies across Arab universities. Following a rigorous multi-stage evaluation, the results are as follows:
I. Best Doctoral Dissertation (Shared Award):
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Dr. Nada Najib Salha (Lebanon): For her dissertation titled "Women in the Lebanese Educational Curriculum: An Approach Between Content and Delivery – A Model of Arabic, English, and Civics in Beirut's Public Schools" (Lebanese University).
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Dr. Dina Ibrahim Ali Mahmoud Hassan (Egypt): For her dissertation titled "Feminist Literature and Redefining the Relationship Between the Margin and the Center: A Study on the Thought of Fatima Mernissi and Assia Djebar" (Faculty of Economics and Political Science, Cairo University).
II. Best Master’s Thesis (Shared Award):
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Researcher Marwa Abdul Halim Al-Habari (Yemen): For her thesis titled "The Social and Economic Empowerment of Yemeni Women with Disabilities and its Relation to Development: A Case Study of the Capital Secretariat" (Center for Comprehensive Development Research, Sana'a University).
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Researcher Rana Abdul Nasser Naseh Al-Shaheen (Palestine): For her thesis titled "The Impact of Financial Inclusion on the Economic Empowerment of Palestinian Women" (Faculty of Graduate Studies, Al-Quds Open University).
Selection Process and Participation
The organization received a total of 54 academic submissions (30 Master’s theses and 24 Doctoral dissertations) from 15 Arab countries, including Jordan, UAE, Tunisia, Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Somalia, Iraq, Oman, Palestine, Lebanon, Libya, Egypt, Morocco, and Yemen.
The judging committee employed a multi-stage peer-review process, utilizing a "double-blind" review followed by a collective evaluation of the highest-ranked works.
The winners were selected based on a "Composite Academic Excellence Standard," which measures:
The committee noted that the final selection was based on distinguishing between different modes of academic distinction rather than merely varying levels of quality, reflecting the high caliber of research submitted.