The Prince of Eastern inaugurates the Women's Economic Forum 2022
Under the heading "Change Industry"
His Royal Highness Prince Saud bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz, Governor of the Eastern Region, inaugurated "via visual communication" on Wednesday, the Women's Economic Forum 2022, which is organized by the Asharqia Chamber under the title "Change Industry".
His Highness, the Governor of the Eastern Province, said in his speech during the inauguration, "You all know the number of reinforcements that the state has paid, under the leadership of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz and His Highness, the Crown Prince, His Royal Highness Prince Muhammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz to empower women." And strengthening her roles in various fields, due to her deep-rooted belief that women are half of society and her energy is a motivator for all, and she can participate, give and share with her brother the man in the service of the country in a parallel manner committed to her values, customs, and her distinctive mental image.
His Highness, the Prince of the Eastern Region, added, "Women represent an essential source for reforming societies and an active partner in the process of our development renaissance. To the effective contribution to the process of growth and development of the region, stressing his confidence in the arms of the people of the region to be contributors to achieving the desired goals of the country.
Four sessions
The forum witnessed four sessions that dealt with the concept of making change and how women have become an influential actor and an essential pillar in it, becoming an integral part of the movement of the national economy and its endeavors towards diversification and exploitation of opportunities, as well as the empowerment of women in family businesses and ways to enhance their roles in decision-making within them, and what they can do. She performs it to ensure the sustainability of their companies, especially by increasing their involvement in the labor market in general and leadership positions in particular, as well as empowering them in various economic sectors, especially sectors such as energy, industry, and technology, with the participation of many specialists, specialists, officials, academics, and those interested in economic affairs in general and the women’s business sector in particular.
And that wise leadership has an inherent belief that women are half of society and their energy is a motivator for all segments of society, and they can participate, give and share with their brother men in the service of the country in parallel.
Al-Razaiza pointed out the extent to which the Asharqia Chamber is keen on the periodic convening of the Women's Economic Forum to keep abreast of the state of economic developments and transformations taking place in the country and measure the extent of their reflection on Saudi women, through the collective dialogue that it adopts about the various roles that women can play for broader participation in achieving Vision 2030 AD. Pointing out that it has become a leading local platform through which the Chamber tries to support Saudi women in various fields, as it is an extension of the positive theses that the Chamber always adopts to support and develop the business community and advance the role of women in it, and an affirmation of the importance of women’s efforts in building nations and what they can perform in the structure of society and the economy.
consecutive achievements
Nouf bint Abdulaziz Al-Turki, a member of the Board of Directors, said during her speech that this year’s forum comes in light of the successive achievements that Saudi women are experiencing today and a continuous movement towards enabling them to obtain appropriate opportunities to build their future and contribute to the development of their country, which has the greatest impact on what women represent. Saudi Arabia has a high status with my master, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, and His Highness, the trustworthy Crown Prince (may God protect them).
Al-Turki indicated that women's participation in business doubled during this period, so the percentage of establishments they run jumped from 21.5% in 2016 to 45% this year, and their participation in the labor market increased by the middle of the year to about 32.9%, in addition to their remarkable presence. In many administrative and other positions, in which she proved her competence and ability to lead, she was confident in her competence, which reflects the overall extent of the positive impact of the steps aimed at empowering women, which the Kingdom has embarked on implementing within the framework of its ambitious vision.
industry change
In its first session, which was titled “Making Change” and was moderated by the broadcaster on MBC channels, Yasser Al-Amro, during which Dr. Fahd bin Suleiman Al-Tukhaifi, member of the Human Rights Council and head of the Human Rights Monitoring and Follow-up Committee and Chairman of the Trade and Investment Committee, Dr. Human in the Arab countries at the Arab Observatory for Human Rights, Dr. Al-Jawhara bint Fahd Al-Zamil, and the Undersecretary of the Ministry for Sectoral and Regional Development Affairs in the Ministry of Economy and Planning, Farah bint Ahmed Ismail, who emphasized that making change to empower women in various economic and development fields requires distinguished leadership in the making of change And that today, under the wise leadership, there is a real industry for change, and that women have become a major and strongly present part of the change that has taken place, and they indicated that the empowerment of women has become a national project, and all government agencies and others are working to empower women in various aspects of life, and that the various systems and legislation are keeping pace with the goals of empowerment As a main pillar of Vision 2030 AD, the work system has been modified through the philosophy of gender equality, as well as the retirement system, the employment of women in all professions, the issuance of travel documents and many other systems and legislations, as their empowerment came in all aspects and in various categories, and they pointed out that the Kingdom now has many One of the advanced indicators of women's empowerment, and that what happened to Saudi women during the past few years represents a model and an experience from which other countries can benefit, especially as it is an experience that achieved a rapid pace in the paths of empowerment and also achieved perfection in implementation.
They pointed out that there is no contradiction between empowerment and building expertise, and that the Kingdom, according to the results on the ground, was able to support the empowerment of women and at the same time increase their experiences and skills through several programs and initiatives in various aspects, stressing that empowering women is a fundamental factor in achieving the goals of sustainable development. And the economic policies created by the vision mixed diversification and empowerment, which reflected positively on the stability of the Saudi family by increasing income rates and thus on the purchasing power of the Saudi family. Women’s empowerment policies benefit everyone, whether men, women, or the country as a whole.
Women in family businesses
In the second session, titled (Women's Empowerment in Family Businesses and Their Role in Decision-Making), spoke each of Dr. Aed bin Ibrahim Al Mubarak, CEO of the National Center for Family Enterprises, And a member of the Board of Directors of the Riyadh Chamber, Kholoud bint Abdulaziz Al-Dakhil, and the Executive Director of the Al-Muhaidib Foundation for Community Service, Sarah bint Essam Al-Muhaidib, They explained that the presence of women in family businesses has also become clear and distinct, due to the awareness they have and the family and companies in general, in addition to the fact that official decisions support this approach. Therefore, opportunities are available and women must develop scientific, technical, and leadership skills for more empowerment in their family businesses.
They explained that Saudi women at present are part of an integrated system of a changing society, and we are still in the phase of change, which includes all sectors, especially companies, and family businesses in particular, but the depth of women's partnership - at present - is linked to the woman's personality, scientific competence, and skills, without being We neglect the support of companies and families. What is required of women is to develop their entrepreneurial ideology and develop leadership and management skills. This achieves the sustainability of the establishment in the way that we aspire to as a society.
They mentioned that the role of women is historical, as they are half of society, and at present, they enjoy direct and explicit support from the initiatives of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, and they occupy the most important positions, and what is required of women is to raise their scientific and professional competence, as opportunities are available and support is available, and the initiative is what is required, and continuing education and social presence.
Various software packages
The issue of empowering women in the sectors of energy, industry, and technology, is the title of the third session of the forum, which was moderated by the President of the Council of Business Women, Maram bint Saeed Al-Jishi, in which the CEO of the Saudi Technical Institute for Petroleum Services, Bassam bin Ayoub Al-Bukhari, and the Executive Vice President of Capital spoke. Al-Bishri at the Saudi Industrial Development Fund, Dr. Kholoud bint Abdullah Ashkar, and Director General of Digital Sustainability at the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, Farah bint Muhanna Al-Muhanna Aba Al-Khail.
This session emphasized what the energy, industry, and technology sectors have become today, thanks to the empowerment policies adopted and the many programs and initiatives they included to enhance the participation of women in them, a fertile field for Saudi women who are already present in them, but the matter now, according to the speakers, is not related to empowerment as much as it is related to facing the challenge of increasing improvements Supporting greater participation of young people in general in these sectors.
The speakers agreed that the three sectors, despite their importance in the gross domestic product, all witness, according to their fields, various packages of various training and educational programs with objectives aimed at empowering young people in general and giving them the full opportunity to be an influential part in these sectors, such as the program for qualifying Saudi female engineers in refineries and petrochemical factories. Not to mention the various programs offered by the Industrial Development Fund, the petroleum sector, communications, and information technology to train and qualify young people of both sexes.
sustainability
And in the fourth session, which was titled: Environmental, Social Practices, and Corporate Governance ESG, in which the chief investment and executive partner at Desert Technologies Khaled bin Ahmed Sharbatly spoke, and the environmental, social, and governance sustainability solutions officer at KPMG Professional Consulting Fadi Shams Al-Din Al-Shihabi, and it was moderated by the consultant and researcher Visitor at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), Dr. Hana bint Abdullah Al-Moaibed. The speakers emphasized that providing a suitable environment for women in the work environment contributed greatly to their creativity, noting that the internal and external investor feels comfortable when he knows that a company has a clear disclosure and participation of women.
