Journal of Social Equity and Public Administration

Social Media Advocacy for SDG 5 in the Middle East: Insights from Egypt, Tunisia, and Jordan

Laila El Baradei

The American University in Cairo

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9499-2500

Mohamed Kadry

Dalhousie University, Nova Scotia

https://orcid.org/0009-0006-4503-7204

Ghadeer Ahmed

The American University in Cairo

DOI: https://doi.org/10.24926/jsepa.v3i1.5856

Keywords: SDG 5, Advocacy, Facebook, Middle East, Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)

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Abstract

This article explores how government organizations in Egypt, Tunisia, and Jordan use Facebook (FB) to advocate for the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 5 (SDG 5). Guided by the Dragonfly Advocacy Model for evaluating social media advocacy and using CrowdTangle for FB content analysis, researchers analyzed advocacy efforts over eight and a half years, nearly midway through the planned implementation timeframe of the SDGs. Findings show that the SDG 5 targets most advocated by all three countries were those for women’s empowerment, eliminating violence, ending child marriage, and Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). “Reproductive health,” “technology,” and “unpaid work”’ were among the lowest-mentioned terms. Videos, animation, and influencers were key factors contributing to the effectiveness of FB posts. Gender inequities identified in these Middle Eastern countries, like FGM, honor killings, and inheritance rights, stood in contrast with Western concerns about abortion rights, access to contraception, flexible work arrangements, and digital inclusion.

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Author Biographies

Laila El Baradei, The American University in Cairo

Laila El Baradei (lbaradei@aucegypt.edu) is Professor of Public Administration & Chair of the Public Policy and Administration Department (PPAD), School of Global Affairs and Public Policy (GAPP) at the American University in Cairo (AUC), Egypt. She was acting dean for the School of GAPP from 2013 to 2014.

Mohamed Kadry, Dalhousie University, Nova Scotia

Mohamed Kadry (Mohamed.kadry@aucegypt.edu) is an alum of the MPP program of the American University in Cairo and a PhD candidate at Dalhousie University, Nova Scotia, Canada. He worked for many years as the Program Manager for the Public Policy HUB project at the School of GAPP, at the American University in Cairo (AUC), Egypt.

Ghadeer Ahmed, The American University in Cairo

Ghadeer Ahmed (ghadeerahmedali@aucegypt.edu) is an alum of the American University in Cairo (AUC) MPP program, with a concentration in Media Policy. She is a Media Consultant at the Public Policy HUB project at the School of Global Affairs and Public Policy (GAPP), at the American University in Cairo (AUC), Egypt.

 

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