UAE mocked over gender balance awards tweet featuring only men Published duration 28 January 2019

image copyright Dubai Media Office image caption Sheikh Mohammed said the UAE had made "significant progress in achieving gender balance"

The UAE has been mocked over a tweet announcing the winners of awards for gender balance that featured only men.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai's ruler, was shown congratulating the recipients of Best Personality Supporting Gender Balance, Best Federal Authority Supporting Gender Balance, and Best Gender Balance Initiative.

The sheikh insisted women were "central to shaping the future of the country".

But many Twitter users questioned their apparent absence from the ceremony.

A later tweet by the Government of Dubai Media Office included a photograph showing five women standing beside Sheikh Mohammed and the male recipients , but it did not identify them.

A statement by the official Dubai Media Office meanwhile cited Sheikha Manal bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, president of the UAE Gender Balance Council, as saying it had achieved a goal set in 2015 to reduce the gender gap across all sectors of government

In April, the UAE cabinet approved legislation to ensure equal pay for women.

image copyright Dubai Media Office image caption A later tweet from the Dubai Media Office did include a photo featuring several women