JEDDAH, 2 January 2004 — The Jeddah Businesswomen’s Committee and the Jeddah Marketing Board have agreed a joint initiative to give Saudi businesswomen a more active role in the 5th Jeddah Economic Forum, Arab News has learned.
The initiative, supported by Princess Adelah bint Abdullah, the head of the Jeddah Businesswomen’s Committee, follows the committee’s strategy to reinforce the role of Saudi businesswomen and integrate them into the business community.
“Females make up half of the society, and the only way we can achieve accelerated growth is by channeling all of our resources and involving all segments of society,” Princess Adelah said.
“That women take part in the forum conforms to our Islamic values and principles and falls within the context of our culture and tradition. The government has taken the initiative to highlight the role Saudi women play internationally,” she said.
“It is important for us to support qualified women by giving them the opportunity to actively participate in key social and economic activities,” she added
Committee member Dr. Haifa Jamal Al-Lail, the dean of Effat College, believes that it is essential to focus on financial dependency and opportunities for the Saudi women.
“The private sector needs to effectively forecast the role that the women can play in supporting progress. In reality, the absence of Saudi women from upper management positions in the private sector and our small presence in the work force through the lack of job opportunities has made Saudi women search for alternative employment opportunities primarily in the services industry,” she said.
“This has led to the setting up of numerous small and medium sized businesses and the creation and expansion of voluntary and non-profit organizations in an unofficial capacity,” she added
Dr. Nahed M. Taher, senior economist at the National Commercial Bank, commented: “In the past five years the forum has had a unique appeal for the economic sector in the Middle East,” and called the forum “a platform to debate complex economic challenges and suggest appropriate solutions.” The Businesswomen’s Committee is made up of a number of businesswomen, academics and specialists in the field of economics and finance.