JEDDAH, 4 October 2005 — With the formal filing of their candidacy for the 12 positions in the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry elections, most of the businesswomen have now shifted their focus on working out a strategy that would see the election of the first businesswoman to the chamber’s board of directors.
Of 77 candidates in the fray, 18 are women. The elections are scheduled for November.
Businesswoman Hussa Al-Aun who is among the candidates finds the enthusiasm among the women very positive. “As a right for women and one which they have earned, it feels good to be recognized by officials. It is a sign of confidence in businesswomen and it encourages them,” she said.
“As members who pay the fees at the JCCI, women should be on an equal footing with men,” Al-Aun added. She considers the number of women candidates appropriate and says that those who nominated themselves surely have the confidence and ability to compete and serve on the board of directors.
“The problem is with the perception toward women. With all due respect, some of them are probably better qualified than the men. Another major point is that if women don’t vote for men or men don’t vote for women, it means there is a lack of awareness on both sides. Because we are a segregated society, men and women don’t know much about each other so when a member decides to vote for a candidate, whether male or female, it’s not based on knowledge of the candidate. Even if no woman wins a seat, it’s not because none were qualified or because of sexism but because they were not recognized,” explained Al-Aun.
Salwa Ridwan nominated herself because she felt the need of a female representative on the board of directors to speak on behalf of businesswomen.
“We struggle a good deal in doing business and we need a voice on the board who can help us and push for solutions so that we too can contribute to solving the country’s economic problems,” she said.
For Aliya Banaja, the goal is not simply to run but to have at least one of the women win a seat, no matter which is. “It’s important that we all support each other and not simply compete with each other,” she said.
The women held a meeting yesterday at which they discussed their strategy and set their goals. All the candidates, men and women, have a month in which to campaign and during this time it will become clear who the strong candidates are and who should therefore be supported.
“Some may decide to withdraw and in that event the women should unite and focus the votes on one candidate,” said Banaja.
While some of the women candidates are in favor of creating a women’s group, others think it better to be part of one of the existing groups along with the men. “This is another point we discussed today; we want to agree on a group that we think will help us to reach our goals before and after the elections,” she said.
