Al-Azhar prepares women scholars to issue fatwas

CAIRO - 24 December 2019: Al-Azhar Islamic Research Center (AIRC) held a workshop on Monday for female scholars on "fatwas" related to women in a rare official move.

Al-Azhar Imam Ahmed al-Tayeb has recently called for intensified training courses to qualify female scholars to issue fatwas, responses to public questions related to the practice of Islam.

Secretary-General of AIRC Nazir Ayad said the practical training on fatwas targets dealing with legal texts of Islam and projecting them on the reality of people in a way that recognizes the time, location, customs and circumstances of individuals.

Such training comes to fulfill the needs of the society for women giving fatwas, especially in relation to private female matters, Ayad added.

Scholars delivering fatwas should continuously be trained and prepared for new contemporary issues and emerging societal problems, he continued.

The workshop, titled "The Making of a "Muftiya (woman fatwa issuer)," is supervised by Dr. Ilham Shahin, assistant secretary-general for female preacher affairs, in coordination with Al-Azhar fatwa committee.

While the number of men licensed to issue fatwas overwhelmingly surpasses that of women, Islamic studies PhD holders Amena Nusseir, Abla al-Kahlawy and Suad Saleh are pioneers in creating a space for women in the field of fatwas in the past couple of decades.