The purpose of the GUYW was to enforce the official women's policy of the People's Democratic Republic regime, which was a radical and ambitions state feminism.
[2] In 1970, the Socialist regime declared women to be politically, economically and socially equal to men in Article 36 of the Constitution of 1970, and women's suffrage was introduced the same year: this was followed by the new Secular Family Law of 1974.
The function of the General Union of Yemeni Women was to inform the public about these reform and enforce them in to reality, and it launched campaigns to encourage women to step forward and take their equal place alongside men.
[2] The foremost priority was to combat illiteracy, inform about the secular family law and integrate women to contribute to the country's economy.
The General Union of Yemeni Women had some success in the cities, particularly in Aden, but very limited success in the rural areas, were women were often prevented from attending the center by their families, and at least two centers were forced to close.