Saudi businesswomen to devise success strategy

RIYADH: Social and economic challenges facing Saudi businesswomen will be the focus of a high-profile national businesswomen’s conference set to be held on Sept. 2 here.
The forum, to be organized under the patronage of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman, will provide a major networking platform for women leaders to exchange ideas on issues related to business.
“The two-day event aims at examining the reality of investments made by Saudi businesswomen, their problems and the challenges faced by them,” said a statement released by the Council of Saudi Chambers.
The forum aims to enhance mutual understanding among Saudi businesswomen and highlight the role of pioneering female entrepreneurs in the region.
The event has added significance keeping in view the fact that the Saudi women’s participation in business is progressively growing in the Kingdom.
Currently, a large number of Saudi women are members of the various chambers of commerce across the country. They also have the rights to vote and contest chamber elections.
The World Bank has estimated that the wealth held by Saudi businesswomen in local banks exceeds $16 billion. This includes deposits in family companies, funds tied up in real estate, and those deposited in bank accounts.
Asked about highlights of the business conference, Omairah bint Abdul Raheem, a businesswoman, said that the event would focus on new investment regulations, regulatory provisions of government agencies and developing skills of women in the workforce.
She said that as businesswomen in Saudi Arabia “some of the obstacles we face are economic and some socio-economic.”
She said that the event also aims to achieve and support the growth of women’s projects and expand cooperation in the field of small and medium businesses.
Among several other topics, “the forum will also discuss ways and means to promote investments by female entrepreneurs, diversity of their investments, the role of innovation in women’s investments, and local as well as regional experiences,” according to a chamber statement
The statement said that Saudi women have great potential and they can play a major role in the making of the Saudi nation and its economic development.