- Title: KUWAIT: A women-only market thrives in Kuwait
- Date: 20th June 2007
- Summary: (MER-1)KUWAIT CITY, KUWAIT (RECENT)(REUTERS) VARIOUS EXTERIOR OF SOUQ AL-HAREEM FEMALE TOURISTS WALKING IN THE MARKET CEILING OF MARKET/ ROWS OF STALLS TOURISTS WALKING ELDERLY WOMAN SEWING CLOSE OF WOMAN'S HANDS SEWING (SOUNDBITE)(Arabic)UM MOHAMMED, VENDOR, SAYING: "Sixty years, but I don't want to talk." MALE SHOPPERS WALKING THROUGH MARKET TRADITIONAL KUWAITI TEXTILES
- Embargoed: 5th July 2007 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Kuwait
- Country: Kuwait
- Topics: Light / Amusing / Unusual / Quirky
- Reuters ID: LVACGXV0O8HNUDLUFBR973DTHC0V
- Story Text: From traditional clothes to food and household items, Kuwait's bustling Souq al-Hareem -- Arabic for Women's Market -- offers locals and tourists a variety of products as a cheap alternative to the Gulf state's numerous modern markets and malls.
The souq is run by women, many of whom have inherited their business from their mothers and grandmothers.
Women costumers flock to the market daily to see what is available for sale. Some vendors own wooden stands and tables while many others sit on the floor selling their wares.
Established in the 1940s, the souq has become a national hallmark of the Gulf State.
Um Mohammed is one of the oldest sellers at the souq. She began sewing clothes and selling them over sixty years ago.
"Sixty years, but I don't want to talk," she said while sitting on the floor at the souq.
Another vendor, Um Khaled, thinks the market must be over one hundred years old.
"(The market has been here for) maybe more than 100 years, more than 100 years," she said.
Tourists from across the world often visit this traditional souq in a country that has rapidly modernised in recent decades. Although it is supposed to be a women's-only market, men can sometimes be spotted there too.
It has become a tradition for people to visit Souq al-Hareem to buy goods which vary in production and price. Most of these goods can be found in the country's more modern and affluent areas, but at Souq al-Hareem customers are given the chance to buy them at more affordable prices for everyday use.
"To sell things in Souq al-Hareem is like selling things in other markets. They sell clothes, children and school products," Um Khaled explained.
While most of the vendors are from Kuwait, a large number also come from other Arab states -- mainly Iraq.
According to the United Nations Development Programme, women constitute about thirty percent of Kuwait's labour force and this figure has steadily increased in recent years.
The vendors said that Souq al-Hareem used to be a much more run down area, lacking in basic necessities. It was only in the 1950s that the market was upgraded, with stalls being set up in the alleyways of the market, making it a more organised and pleasant environment to work and shop in.
"In the old days, before Sheikha Moudi, we sat on the floor. Now we have developed and we sit on wood. Before 1952 the stalls were also on the floor. Sheikha Moudi founded it in 1952," said Um Salem, referring to Sheikha Moudi Bint Mubarak al-Sabah, a member of the Kuwait ruling family.
Souq al-Hareem is one of twenty interconnected markets in central Kuwait city.
Women make up over 55 percent of the population of the conservative Gulf country. They were allowed to vote in parliamentary elections and run for office for the first time in 2006. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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