JEDDAH: Fawzia Al-Harbi, a member of the Training Authority, and director of public relations and media at the girls’ branch of the Technical and Vocational Training Corp. (TVTC), emphasized the importance of Saudi female empowerment for the development of the Kingdom at an international conference on development in Turkey.

She said female empowerment is a key part of Saudi Vision 2030. The program’s goals include increasing the participation of women in the labor market from 22 to 30 percent, increasing the contribution of small and medium-sized enterprises in gross domestic product (GDP) from 20 to 35 percent, and reducing female unemployment from 12.6 to 7 percent.

She said Saudi women are an important part of the sustainable development of the Kingdom, adding that Saudi female empowerment began under the late King Abdullah and continues under King Salman.

She cited participation of women in municipal elections and the Shoura council as examples of government support for women.

She added that Saudi women own more than SR45 billion ($12 billion) in Saudi banks and SR130 billion ($35 billion) in real estate, and that they are involved in charities and humanitarian organizations.

She said her participation in the second TASCA international conference for partnership and development was to highlight the important role of Saudi women in development, to strengthen that role, and to urge women from the Muslim world to carve out their own identity and take a leading role in building an economic and social renaissance.

She added that the conference — hosted in the city of Antalya and organized by the Turkish-Arab Association for Economic and Strategic Cooperation, and the Turkish-Arab Institute for Strategic Studies — was one of the most important to be held about empowering women.

The conference brought together more than 300 participants from 30 countries.