Speaking at the opening of a conference on adult education in Abha on Tuesday, the deputy minister underscored the importance of continuing education.

“Adult education is the key to sustainable development,” she said during her opening remarks.

Al-Fayez, the Kingdom’s first woman minister, was appointed by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah under an initiative to advance girls’ education in the country. This was her first visit to Asir province as deputy minister of education.

Abdul Rahman Al-Humaidi, professor of adult education at King Saud University, said in a working paper before the conference that 45 percent of teachers involved in adult education believed that society looks at their work as a “marginal activity.”

The professor urged the local media to spread awareness about the important role of continuing education into adulthood, and the importance of teachers in this field.

Al-Fayez refused to answer questions by journalists about the shortage of women teachers in adult education and the lack of incentives extended to them by the ministry.