Widad Tawfiq

A Jordanian educator who transformed women's access to higher education in the Middle East

Widad Tawfiq (b.1968) broke barriers for Arab women in academia as founder of Jordan's first women-only university. Establishing the Princess Basma University in 2000, she created a groundbreaking model for gender-inclusive education in conservative societies. Her vision led to the creation of the Arab Women's Leadership Institute, training 8,000 female professionals across 12 countries by 2015.

Tawfiq pioneered the 'Mobile Learning Caravans' program, bringing STEM education to Bedouin communities. Her 2003 initiative 'Science Without Borders' established partnerships with MIT and Caltech, enabling 500 Arab female students to pursue advanced degrees. She developed the region's first gender-sensitive curriculum framework adopted by 30 universities.

In 2010, she launched the 'Digital Library for Women's Studies' - a pioneering online resource with 15,000+ academic papers in Arabic. Her 2016 UN report 'Educating Half the Population' influenced Qatar's 2020 education reforms. Tawfiq's TEDxAmman talk 'Educating Ourselves Out of Extinction' (hyperlink: TEDx) highlighted the economic impact of female education.

Recipient of the L'Oreal-UNESCO Women in Science Award (2014), her work inspired similar universities in Yemen and Palestine. The Widad Tawfiq Scholarship Fund now supports 200 students annually. Her memoir Breaking the Glass Ceiling in Amman (hyperlink: Amazon) details her challenges and victories in transforming educational paradigms.