JEDDAH: Jamil Farsi, head of the Gold and Jewelry Committee at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI), says he expects 3,000 job opportunities to be created for Saudi women in the jewelry design and gold sector across the Kingdom, with about 10 women working in each manufacturing workshop.

The efforts of the Technical and Vocational Training Corporation (TVTC) through its activities and training programs will have an impact on the industry because, without the availability of skilled, educated and trained work force training, the job cannot be completed, he added.

“The move by the TVTC to establish a technical and vocational training center for women in the gold and jewelry design sector is a good step toward hiring women and reducing the unemployment rates among them,” said Farsi.

He noted that the industry of gold and jewelry demands hard work which is not suitable for all women, especially as a number of workshops have been moved to places outside Jeddah, which makes it difficult for women to travel far distances.

“This is one obstacle still facing the gold and jewelry committee at JCCI without a foreseeable solution so far. The decision to move the workshops to outside the boundaries of Jeddah was taken without the presence of the industry’s representatives whose interests will be affected by it,” he added.

Additionally, Farsi demanded that the Ministry of Commerce and Industry should reconsider the granting process of work permits in the gold and jewelry design sector.

Commenting on the step to establish a center for training women on the job, he said: “The idea is good, but the most important thing is the implementation process in a professional manner to entrench competitiveness and not just for the sake of hiring women.”

Sameer Husain, an expert in the human resources sector, said it is likely that training in the jewelry design sector will attract many women to the work force as the nature of this industry is close to women in general.

“The training program should include courses on the knowledge of the stones and jewelry items, their classification and distinguishing fake items, and encouraging the trainees by giving them incentives because the nature of this work demands a high level of accuracy and skill,” he said.