The Saudi government reshuffle announced yesterday is not just a changing of the guard — new faces replacing old with policies remaining the same. It is a clear sign of major transformation in the Kingdom.
Most eyes, certainly abroad, will be on the appointment of the country’s first woman minister, Nora Al-Fayez, who takes over as deputy minister for women’s education. An exciting development, it shows the commitment of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah to empower women in society and bring them into the decision-making process. There may be some who are uncomfortable with that. They have no reason to be. Saudi women have the same beliefs and values as Saudi men. They are just as capable of standing up for the country’s traditions as men. They are just as well educated as men — indeed in many cases, better — and they have much to contribute to the Kingdom’s future. The appointment is a guide to how Saudi Arabia is evolving. It should be seen in the same light as that of Fatimah Al-Saleem, the new cultural attaché at the Saudi Embassy in Ottawa — another “first” for a Saudi woman. Both appointments are steps in a process that, one day, will see women heading major ministries and women ambassadors. The Kingdom is reforming, albeit at a pace society can cope with.
The other government changes are no less momentous. Major overhauls at the justice and education ministries are signaled. They are hardly surprising. Justice and education are at the heart of the king’s drive for reform. At the Education Ministry not only is there a new minister, Prince Faisal bin Abdullah bin Mohammed, there is a new deputy minister, Faisal Al-Muammar — who until now was in charge of the King Abdul Aziz Center for National Dialogue — as well as Nora Al-Fayez. At justice, there is a new minister, Mohammed Al-Eissa, a new head of the judiciary, Saleh Bin Humaid, and in a related appointment, a new head of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, Abdul Aziz Al-Humain.
The new faces should not, though, be seen as a break with the past. In both areas, reforms have already been approved. Over SR6 billion has been set aside for new judicial facilities; new courts and the need for judicial training have been agreed. But they have not been implemented. Likewise, there has been a range of measures approved over the past three years to overhaul the education system but they too have not been implemented. The most important in terms of education is the King Abdullah National Education Project. Teachers are to be reassessed, training improved, new schools and colleges built. Education is the government’s priority. It is the key to the Kingdom’s growth. Over a quarter of this year’s budget will be spent on it. It is hardly surprising then that it has been decided that fresh hands are needed to take the controls and implement the potentially far-reaching changes that have been agreed. The reshuffle also sees the governor of SAMA replaced and new ministers of both health and information. These are also important, especially at SAMA, given the present economic climate. But it is what is going to happen in education and the judiciary and the role of women that will make all the difference to the Kingdom’s future.
