• ​Prince of the Eastern Province inaugurates the activities of the Women's Economic Forum 2024 at the Asharqia Chamber

    25/11/2024

    Prince of the Eastern Province inaugurates the activities of the Women's Economic Forum 2024 at the Asharqia Chamber

    His Royal Highness Prince Saud bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz, Prince of the Eastern Province, inaugurated on Tuesday, November 19, 2024, the activities of the (Women's Economic Forum 2024), which was organized by the Asharqia Chamber represented by the Women's Empowerment Center in its eighth edition, at the Chamber's headquarters, amidst wide participation from specialists, female specialists, officials, academics, and those interested in economic affairs in general and the women's business sector in particular.

    His Highness the Prince of the Eastern Province praised the efforts made by the government of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz, and the support of His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, "may God protect them", to empower women in all fields, through economic programs provided in various fields to contribute to the gross domestic product.

    His Highness the Governor of the Eastern Province honored the sponsors and supporters of the forum, and toured the accompanying exhibition. During his tour, he listened to an explanation from the Chairman of the Chamber, Badr bin Suleiman Al-Rizaiza, about the forum, its objectives, and the most prominent services and works provided by the Chamber in order to empower Saudi women. The forum, which will continue until Wednesday, November 20, 2024, and hosted during its opening session His Excellency the Deputy Minister of Human Resources and Social Development for Labor, Dr. Abdullah bin Nasser Abu Thunain, aims to support the state's efforts in empowering women through entrepreneurship, highlighting successful experiences, and providing appropriate formulations for those wishing to engage in freelance work, as well as for owners of pioneering ideas and emerging projects on how to keep pace with the paths of Vision 2030.

    The forum witnessed the holding of four sessions that addressed the developments of Saudi women in light of the vision by reading their effective and influential role in achieving its goals, as well as the opportunities and capabilities available to women in the entrepreneurship system and ways to enhance their roles in it and what they can do to ensure the sustainability of their companies, and their pivotal role in economic development in all its various sectors, in addition to training and its importance in qualifying them for successful leadership. During his speech, His Excellency the Deputy Minister of Human Resources and Social Development for Labor, Dr. Abdullah bin Nasser Abuthnain, confirmed that the Ministry has achieved multiple accomplishments by implementing ambitious development initiatives and projects in accordance with the Kingdom's Vision 2030. These integrated efforts have resulted in tangible positive results on the social and economic levels, which has contributed to strengthening human capital and raising the Kingdom's competitive position globally. His Excellency pointed out that the labor market strategy has set a clear roadmap for implementing radical reforms in the labor market, whether in the public or private sector, stressing that this strategy is concerned with enhancing the economic participation of male and female citizens, raising the level of skills of national cadres, increasing productivity, improving the efficiency of the labor market, as well as reducing unemployment rates.

    Speaking about the ministry's targets, His Excellency pointed out that the overall unemployment rate has dropped to a historic low of 3.3%, making the Kingdom rank fifth among the G20 countries in terms of low unemployment rates. He indicated that the unemployment rate among Saudis has dropped to 7.1% by the end of the second quarter of 2024, with 4% among males and 12.8% among females. He added that the number of Saudis working in the private sector has reached a record number by the end of October 2024, reaching 2.4 million Saudi men and women. On the other hand, His Excellency explained that the private sector's participation rate in employing Saudis has increased to 52.8%, which reflects the success of government initiatives and policies in promoting Saudi employment, and confirms the strength of the Saudi economy and its rapid growth. He explained that the Ministry's efforts have focused on qualitative initiatives aimed at raising the level of skills and training for male and female citizens throughout the Kingdom, the most prominent of which was the launch of the National Training Campaign (Waad), which aims to provide one million, one hundred and fifty-five thousand training opportunities over 3 years until 2025 AD, and this target was achieved by the end of the second quarter of 2024 AD. Regarding women's empowerment and increasing their economic participation, His Excellency stressed that the Kingdom has achieved qualitative leaps in this field, as the economic participation rate of Saudi women doubled to reach 35.4% in the second quarter of 2024, compared to 17% in 2017, noting that Saudi women have proven their ability and efficiency in the labor market, as the percentage of women in middle and senior management positions reached 43.02% during the second quarter of 2024. His Excellency referred to a group of initiatives launched by the Ministry to support women's participation in the labor market, such as the leadership training program in cooperation with INSEAD University, which contributed to qualifying 1,700 Saudi female leaders, and the parallel training program that supported more than 122,000 Saudi women in developing their technical and personal skills; In the same context, His Excellency said that the Human Resources Development Fund continues to implement the "Wusool" program, which provides partial coverage of transportation costs for working women, and the "Qara" program, which contributes to enabling working women to join and continue in the labor market by providing financial support for childcare services.

    At the end of his speech, His Excellency explained that the Ministry is currently working on launching new initiatives within the National Transformation Program, including the initiative to develop skills and increase job opportunities for women in the fields of freelance and flexible work, and the initiative to develop a childcare system to support working women, within the framework of the Kingdom's full commitment to empowering women and achieving a balance between work and family, to enhance their role as an effective partner in national development in all fields. 

    For his part, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Asharqia Chamber, Badr bin Suleiman Al-Rizaiza, praised during his speech the patronage and honor of His Highness the Prince of the Eastern Province for the forum, stressing that his patronage contributes to supporting the activities and initiatives of the Chamber and gives it the momentum required to continue its efforts in organizing forums and gatherings. He added: His Highness's honor gives the forum a value that is added to its value and importance in empowering Saudi women, noting that the forum provides an effective environment for communication, supports the exploration of opportunities, and monitors the opinions, ideas and visions necessary to increase women's participation in the development and growing growth witnessed by the country and the region. Al-Rizaiza said that Saudi women have received a lot of attention, care and appreciation during the reign of His Majesty the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and his faithful Crown Prince, which has contributed to strengthening their status and giving them a place befitting them and their capabilities in many fields. They have achieved successes at the national and international levels, and confirmed their role in accelerating the steps towards achieving the goals and aspirations of the vision.

     

    He continued by saying that today, as we are on the path to implementing our blessed vision, and in light of the serious steps our country is taking towards a promising future for Saudi women, we have confirmed the fact that (Saudi women are a number that cannot be ignored in achieving sustainable and comprehensive development in the Kingdom).

     

    He pointed out the importance of what the forum seeks to do in order to support women's participation in the national economy and review the extent of their ability to influence it, noting that it is an opportunity to learn about the pivotal role of women in the comprehensive economic development that the country is experiencing, and to anticipate their future in promoting sustainable development, and to support their role in economic leadership.

    He said that the Asharqia Chamber has its mark in supporting women's progress not only in the economic field, but in all fields and at various levels; the Chamber has been and still is a pioneer in its support for women, by launching initiatives and programs, and its keenness to diversify its tools in awareness, qualification and training in line with the needs of the national economy, and its keenness today to organize the (Women's Economic Forum 2024) for the eighth time, is evidence of this role that the Chamber is proud of and works hard to empower women in all fields. The forum's activities continue today, Wednesday, November 20, 2024, as the workshops start at 9:30 am, and the first workshop deals with the Dhahran Tech Valley system and supporting entrepreneurship, while the second reviews tourism entrepreneurship, and the third workshop discusses the importance of diversity and inclusiveness in the work environment, and the fourth workshop talks about creative leadership - the key to success in the changing business world

     

     

     

     

     

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