Hala Aldosari

Former Visiting Scholar

Hala Aldosari is a former visiting scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. She is interested in the development of women’s rights in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf. Aldosari earned her PhD in health services research from Old Dominion University, concentrating on the epidemiology of violence against women and its adverse health outcomes in Saudi Arabia.  She earned her MSc in medical science from the University of Surrey, United Kingdom.

Aldosari has worked as a medical scientist, lecturer, and an administrator in the Saudi health and education sector. She has also worked as a consultant to the Ministry of Health in Saudi Arabia in research and planning of the country’s national health policy and services. In 2015, she completed a fellowship at Johns Hopkins University, focusing on social determinants of women’s health and violence against women. She currently directs and maintains a women’s rights advocacy project online (www.aminah.org) and participates in advocacy efforts and community capacity building aimed at promoting women’s rights and empowerment in Saudi Arabia.

Aldosari is also a writer and a blogger, commenting on Saudi political and social affairs. Her writings have been featured in several major media outlets including The Guardian, Foreign Policy, and Al Jazeera English, among many others. Several of her writings can be found on her blogs.

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Saudi Arabia’s Post-Oil Future

The euphoria that accompanied the launch of “Saudi Vision 2030” has begun to dim in the face of fundamental challenges.

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All the King’s Women: New Shura Council Members Stir Gender Debate

In the past few years, women have been increasingly assuming leadership positions in public and private sectors of Saudi Arabia.

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The Effect of Gender Norms on Women’s Health in Saudi Arabia

This paper examines the impact of inadequate health education and preventative health measures on women’s reproductive and sexual health care as well as mental health care.

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Women Driving Positive Change in the Middle East

The year 2016 witnessed a dramatic economic transformation in Saudi Arabia that triggered unprecedented political changes.

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Saudi Arabia’s Struggle for Sunni Leadership

Saudi Arabia’s decision to limit the authority of the Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice (CPVPV)—barring it from chasing, arresting, or interrogating suspects—was positively welcomed by commentators as an attempt “to respond to [public] grievances.” In response to gross violations committed by members of CPVPV, locals have called repeatedly to reform the institution, for example suggesting checking its authority by developing a protocol to describe the specific public offenses that are considered vices.

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The Personal is Political: Gender Identity in the Personal Status Laws of the Gulf Arab States

This paper examines personal status law in the six Gulf Arab states, and the limitations PSLs impose on women’s autonomy and the role of women within the family.

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Royal Women in the Gulf: Agents of Change or Defenders of the Status Quo?

Women of the ruling families of Arab Gulf states are well situated to lead or impede significant change for women in their societies.

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Women’s Rights in Saudi Arabia: Hala Aldosari on Reform and the Future

Dr. Hala Aldosari, honored by Freedom House on May 24 as co-winner of its 2016 Freedom Award, is a Saudi women’s rights advocate whose work on behalf of women is nearly without precedent in the kingdom.

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Riyadh Book Fair 2016: A Political Memorandum from New Rulers

Book fairs are generally occasions to promote new titles and track literary and cultural trends.

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Five Years after the Arab Spring: What's Next for Women in the MENA Region?

The year of 2015 revealed to women in Saudi Arabia the limits of the state’s tolerance for women’s rights.

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Family Identification Documents for Saudi Women: An Identity Dilemma

A New Development In a recent development, the Saudi Civil Status Department started issuing divorced or widowed women family registry cards.

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The Saudi National Transformation Program: What’s in It for Women?

In a national workforce largely composed of men and foreign workers, can economic reform ensure women's participation?

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New Saudi Law Maintains State Control Over Civil Society Organizations

After eight years of deliberation, the law for civil associations and organizations has finally been released by the Council of Ministers in Saudi Arabia.