Marwa Elselehdar’s name will go down in history. In a matter of weeks, she is expected to become the first woman in Egypt to earn the rank of ship's captain.
But on her journey towards achieving this, Ms Elselehdar has faced years of discrimination on account of her gender.
While this began when she was a cadet in the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport regional university, 12 years ago, it reached a whole new level in recent weeks.
"I was being accused of steering the ship that got stuck in the Suez Canal, while I was stationed on a totally different vessel," she told The National.
On March 23, 400-metre long, 220,000-tonne cargo ship the Ever Given became wedged across the Suez Canal, completely blocking the vital waterway.
This created a tailback of more than 300 vessels, with the disruption costing billions of dollars, before the Ever Given was freed six days later.
At the time of the incident, Ms Elselehdar, 30, was serving on the Aida IV, a training and supply ship for an isolated lighthouse in the Red Sea.
Days earlier, a Saudi-based news outlet ran a profile of the first officer, marking her achievements.
But cyberbullies took that story and rigged it with a fake headline blaming her for blocking the Suez Canal.
"I was shocked. That was my name linked to that event. My reputation, that I worked so hard on, was being tainted," Ms Elselehdar said.
In the wake of the fake story, the bullying centred around the age-old stereotype that "women can't drive" and that they are less capable than men, especially in male-dominated fields.
"Women have been pillars in Egyptian history and even now, during the coronavirus pandemic, have proven to the world what they are truly capable of," Ms Elselehdar said.
She has worked diligently to tell her story since the false accusation, and in doing so has garnered international support.
“I have had an outpouring of encouragement and many questions, too – about the nature of my field, its requirements and job opportunities – from men and women alike.
“This was a blessing in disguise,” Ms Elselehdar said.
Women in the maritime industry often get administrative roles, ones that do not entail being aboard a ship full of men for up to 18 months at a time.
“That was my main concern when I started. I had many moments of weakness where I felt like giving up. But my mom, who is my biggest supporter, always told me to keep going.”
Ms Elselehdar said she had to mature rapidly to deal with the difficult circumstances involved in long voyages and her unique work environment.
“As an Arab woman, it was important to me to make sure that I am being given the privacy and respect that complement my culture and my values.
"My cabin now is like my room. The ship, my second home and my crewmates, my second family.”
The first officer is just weeks away from taking her oral exam to become a captain, but getting to this point has not been easy. It has required her to "prove" her competence time and time again.
“Whenever someone directs a judgmental or discriminatory comment at me, I just challenge them to find a shortcoming in my professionalism and capabilities," she said.
"It means always having to ensure that I am doing my best.”
Ms Elselehdar said that although her detractors were numerous, grounding herself in a community of supporters and keeping in touch with her mentors gave her strength.
"I was really touched when my teachers, idols and mentors all reached out to me during the ordeal to make sure that I was OK.
"They gave me words of wisdom to go on, and spoke to me like a colleague, an equal,” she said.
The Egypt-based Arab Women in Maritime Association also rallied behind Ms Elselehdar, launching the hashtag #awima_support_capt_marwaelselhdar.
“Having such an empowering association behind me, who made such an effort to dispel all the rumours surrounding me, made me feel like we, as women, can really be there for each other,” she said.
Earning the rank of captain will qualify Ms Elselehdar to take charge of any type of ship.
“As long as we keep our professionalism, nobody will be able to say that we can’t do exactly what our peers do.”
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
SPECS
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
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Power: 819hp
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More from Neighbourhood Watch:
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
T20 World Cup Qualifier, Muscat
UAE FIXTURES
Friday February 18: v Ireland
Saturday February 19: v Germany
Monday February 21: v Philippines
Tuesday February 22: semi-finals
Thursday February 24: final
Sunday's games
Liverpool v West Ham United, 4.30pm (UAE)
Southampton v Burnley, 4.30pm
Arsenal v Manchester City, 7pm
VEZEETA PROFILE
Date started: 2012
Founder: Amir Barsoum
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: HealthTech / MedTech
Size: 300 employees
Funding: $22.6 million (as of September 2018)
Investors: Technology Development Fund, Silicon Badia, Beco Capital, Vostok New Ventures, Endeavour Catalyst, Crescent Enterprises’ CE-Ventures, Saudi Technology Ventures and IFC
Tips to stay safe during hot weather
- Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
- Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
- Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
- Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
- Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
- Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
- Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
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Price: On request
The story in numbers
18
This is how many recognised sects Lebanon is home to, along with about four million citizens
450,000
More than this many Palestinian refugees are registered with UNRWA in Lebanon, with about 45 per cent of them living in the country’s 12 refugee camps
1.5 million
There are just under 1 million Syrian refugees registered with the UN, although the government puts the figure upwards of 1.5m
73
The percentage of stateless people in Lebanon, who are not of Palestinian origin, born to a Lebanese mother, according to a 2012-2013 study by human rights organisation Frontiers Ruwad Association
18,000
The number of marriages recorded between Lebanese women and foreigners between the years 1995 and 2008, according to a 2009 study backed by the UN Development Programme
77,400
The number of people believed to be affected by the current nationality law, according to the 2009 UN study
4,926
This is how many Lebanese-Palestinian households there were in Lebanon in 2016, according to a census by the Lebanese-Palestinian dialogue committee
Honeymoonish
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
