Women’s Economic Empowerment: A Comparative Study of Qur’anic Principles and UN Human Rights Framework

Abstract

This article presents a comparative analysis of women's economic rights in the Qur'anic framework and in the UN human rights system. Recognizing the autonomous economic agency of women, the Qur??n affirms the rights to property, inheritance, wages, and dowry, and provides a rationale for those rights based on justice and compassion. Before being confused with our Modern context, our history demonstrates significant examples; such as economic leaders like Khadijah bint Khuwaylid (RA) and scholars like Aisha bint Abi Bakr (RA), two exemplary contributors to our evolving rights for women. Simultaneously, global instruments like the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR, 1948), the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW, 1979), and ILO conventions underscore equal rights for women to work, to equal pay, to property, and to freedom from discrimination. Both frameworks eventually meet at the common ground of justice and women's economic participation, but they split paths on the emphasis: the Qur'anic framework emphasizes equity within family and social obligations; the UN framework accentuates (though it does not achieve) complete equality across contexts. The legal and ethical basis to institute these changes is established, however, the cultural distortions and the limits of weak institutional enforcement, as well as a patriarchal development, remain stymied from implementation. The paper argues that to achieve true empowerment, Qur'anic ethics should be translated into criteria sufficient to universal standards to attain the rightful place of women in economic life as an inherent divine command and a universal human right.

Keywords: Women's Economic Rights; Qur'an; United Nations; CEDAW; Gender Justice; Human Dignity