Commerce and Industry Minister Abdullah Zainal Alireza’s decision earlier this year to select Hana Al-Zuhair and Samira Al-Suwaigh for the chamber board sparked rare celebrations.
The ministerial appointments came after none of the three women who stood in the elections were victorious. The three candidates had collected fewer than 100 votes among them. Al-Zuhair and Al-Suwaigh were not among the contestants.
Both Al-Zuhair and Al-Suwaigh are hugely respected in the Eastern Province — and not just by businesswomen. Al-Zuhair excelled through her pioneering work at the Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Fund for Supporting Small Business Projects for Women. As the fund’s executive manager, she has helped dozens of entrepreneurial women to launch businesses.
Al-Suwaigh is well known as a hardworking businesswoman and is credited with much of the success of the Al-Moaibed Group. As a key member of the Businesswomen’s Forum of the Eastern Province, she has played an active role in highlighting issues concerning businesswomen in the region.
Al-Suwaigh was delighted at being appointed to the board.
“It is a huge responsibility and I thank the country’s leadership, especially Gov. Prince Muhammad bin Fahd, for entrusting me with this very important job. Without the leadership’s support, this would not have been possible. My first priority will be the economic empowerment of women. That is the key to women’s development,” she told Arab News. “Without a doubt, it is a huge step for women in this region.”
Nora Al-Shehail, president of the Businesswomen’s Forum of the Eastern Province, was overjoyed. “Al-Suwaigh is an honorable member of our forum. Therefore, we are excited beyond words. She deserves the honor. She is a successful businesswoman and a great mother. She assumed business responsibilities at a very young age and is a role model for all businesswomen,” Al-Shehail told Arab News.
She admitted that the lack of electoral success had dampened the spirits of businesswomen in the region. “Women were expecting to win at least a seat or two and when that didn’t happen, we thought of getting in by being appointed. I want to thank the government for giving us the honor and for trusting our abilities to deliver,” said Al-Shehail. Hind Al-Zahid, the former manager of the Businesswomen’s Center at the Asharqia Chamber, was equally happy.
“This means women will now be part of the decision-making process at the chamber. That is hugely significant and means there will be a greater role for women in the chamber,” she said.
Prominent businesswoman Salman Al-Jishi felt the appointment of women to the chamber was a good sign. “We were expecting this decision because this is in line with the king’s vision,” she said. “The appointment of a woman as a deputy minister of education sometime back was a clear indication of the king’s philosophy of reform. These appointments are a continuation of that policy.”
Writer and researcher Abdullah Al-Alami described the women’s appointment as a major step forward, but said it was not enough.
“We look for the day when capable Saudi women are appointed as full members of the Shoura Council, as ambassadors abroad and as ministers of state,” he said.
Samia Al-Edrisi, a well-known name in the Eastern Province business circles, rightly points put the selection of the two women to the chamber is the first logical step toward women’s empowerment.
“In the recent elections, women ran as independents and not as part of a bloc as was the case previously. Voters were allowed to vote for one person only and check one name only on the ballot versus six names in the February 2006 elections. In addition, the time provided for candidates to campaign, from the announcement of the final list of candidates until the election date, was shorter than last time and did not allow for all the fanfare during the election period that was evident in the past. In short, the whole process was more understated.”
On why women lost in elections despite having a little less than 1,000 registered women members at the chamber, Al-Edrisi said: “Women are still at a disadvantage despite the fact that they have had equal time as the men to prepare for their campaigns. This is simply because, in general, women have lesser resources, both financial and manpower, to allocate to their campaigns, and they are less willing to spend as much as the men.”
When a small number of businesswomen turned up to vote during the chamber elections it only confirmed a widely held view that women are sometimes their own worst enemies. Dina Al-Fares, one of the three candidates who contested the elections unsuccessfully, was not at all dejected by the poor support of women. “Elections are new to us. The last time they took place in early 2006, I was a student. This time, it was a great experience for me. It has been very enlightening. The one thing I have seen during these elections is the ability to listen and to understand issues in their right perspective. I am a positive person and I have no complaints about the way the electoral exercise went.”
Businesswomen in the Eastern Province have got new strength with the chamber appointments and they have promised to chart a new path for their progress in the coming years.
