M-Government, Wilaya and Women's Empowerment in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Abstract

With the loosening of the male guardianship system (Wilaya) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), this study examines the contribution of m-government to the empowerment of Saudi women. We employ the key concepts of Sen's Capability Approach (CA) to understand how m-government services in the KSA have provided opportunities for women to become empowered. The findings of the study indicate that m-government contributes towards women's empowerment by providing opportunities to participate in social and economic activities. However, there are also key social and cultural factors that impede the use of m-government services for empowerment, and we found these to include religious beliefs, Saudi traditions and customs, and husbands' jealousy. The study makes some important contributions to theory and practice by being the first study to focus on the use that Saudi women make of the opportunities now available to them to access government services through m-government applications and to address the cultural barriers which may function to prevent their access.