JEDDAH, 29 June 2005 — The second annual Gulf Businesswomen’s Committee (GBC) forum will be hosted in Jeddah during the last week of November 2005. The GBC forum, to be held in cooperation with the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, is a meeting point for Gulf businesswomen and young entrepreneurs. The two-day forum will include sessions and workshops that tackle issues facing Gulf businesswomen and the means to expand their work status and opportunities. Over 400 businesswomen and university graduates from across the Gulf are expected to attend. “We are pleased that the second annual Gulf Businesswomen’s Forum will be held in Jeddah and in cooperation with the JCCI,” said Dr. Rawda Al-Mutawa, chairperson of Abu Dhabi Businesswomen Council and the chairperson of the GBC, at a press conference held yesterday at the JCCI. “We have been given the full support of the Jeddah Chamber and we look forward to bringing the necessary support and expertise to our target audiences in the Gulf via such a forum to be held for the first times in Jeddah,” she said.
The GBC was formed under the umbrella of the federation of the GCC Chambers of Commerce and Industry to oversee the implementation of the recommendations of the first Economic Forum for Gulf Businesswomen that took place in Muscat, Oman in December 2004. It consists of 12 members, two women from each of the six GCC country members. The second forum was to take place in April 2005; it was delayed for bureaucratic reasons, “until all the bylaws and procedures to establish the committee were complete,” explained Princess Mashael bint Faisal ibn Turki, one of the two Saudi women committee members.
Among the recommendations made to the federation is establishing an up-to-date and comprehensive electronic database of Gulf businesswomen as well as a website for the committee and the Saudi 2-the-Point computer company has already been chosen for this task.
The other recommendation is organizing an annual forum for Gulf businesswomen. Dr. Mutawa said that this second annual forum will discuss: The reality and expectations of the role of Gulf businesswomen in developing the economy of the region; investment opportunities for women in the financial market and in training programs and the obstacles facing women’s participation in economy development such as financing, education, qualifications, unequal opportunities and social issues. There will also be workshops and an exhibition of some of the businesswomen’s products and activities.
“This forum will focus on the particular problems that Gulf women face such as in terms of laws that might restrict her participation and some of the issues that prevent her entering the commercial business world,” said Dr. Mutawa.
Saudi businesswoman Hessa Al-Oun, vice chairperson and spokesperson of GBC, said that it is important that women move beyond the traditional businesses they usually go into. “I think investing in industrial projects and entering new business fields are the ways for women to have an effective role in developing the economy nationally and in the Gulf. It is these projects that offer more employment opportunities for women,” she said.
“The laws don’t restrict women. There are many businesswomen who own and manage big industrial and manufacturing projects and there is a move now to open more opportunities for women,” she added. “The important thing for us in the Gulf is to benefit from each others experiences and expertise because each Gulf country has its strengths and we can cooperate as businesswomen and unite our efforts. At the forum we will announce the establishment of the first Gulf businesswomen company,” said Al-Oun.