By Turki Al Mutairi | Contributing Writer
International Women’s Day is a day dedicated to celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women around the world. It is a day recognized to highlight women’s contributions to society and to raise awareness of the issues that women face all over the world. On this day, we celebrate advancements in gender equality and women’s empowerment.
In the context of Saudi Arabia, the 2030 Vision puts emphasis on raising the status of Saudi women and encouraging their involvement in the workforce. The Vision is said to hold that women’s wide involvement in economic life is essential to the nation’s development and prosperity.
According to numbers stated by Saudi Human Rights Commission President Hala Al-Tuwaijri at the UN Human Rights Council’s 52nd session, there has been a significant increase in women’s participation rate in Saudi Arabia. Between 2017 and 2022, women’s labor-force participation increased from 21.2 to 34.7 percent, and their economic participation rate increased from 17 to 37 percent. Because of this increase in participation, the unemployment rate has fallen from 11.6 to 5.8 percent in the last five years. Al-Tuwaijri added, “the percentage of women’s representation in higher and middle administrative positions has also increased from 28.6 to 39 percent during 2017-2021”. This rise in representation is positive as it shows that women are playing more leadership positions across a variety of sectors.
As reported by the Saudi Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, the number of women working in the industrial sector increased by more than 93 percent between 2019 and 2022, reaching 63,892. This rise is an indication of the government’s attempts to boost women’s employment in order to fulfill the goals of Saudi Vision 2030.
Several Saudi women have made notable contributions in various fields, including Princess Haifa Al-Mogrin as a Saudi delegate to UNESCO, Shihana Al-Azzaz as the Deputy Secretary-General of the Council of Ministers, Princess Reema Bint Bandar as the Saudi Ambassador to the US, Haifa Al-Jedea as the Saudi Ambassador to the EU Commission, and Sara Al-Sayed as the Deputy Minister for Public Diplomacy at MOFA. Other accomplished women include Rasha Al-Khamis, the Vice President of the Saudi Boxing Federation and a boxer herself, Rayyannah Barnawi, an astronaut and biomedical researcher, Mishaal Ashemimry, an aerospace engineer, and Reema Juffali, a racing driver.
International Women’s Day acts as an annual reminder of the continuing efforts to achieve gender equality and women’s empowerment. The enhanced participation of Saudi women in the workforce and higher government positions, along with their increasing contribution in numerous domains, showcases progress toward these objectives. It is critical to recognize and celebrate women’s achievements while proceeding to advocate for further developments and opportunities for women to emerge throughout all aspects of society.